June 2026
This June, Asian Cinema Digest spotlights exciting screenings and programmes from the Asian Film Archive (AFA) and Fukuoka City Public Library Film Archive’s RECIPROCAL, as well as the SOAS Library’s short film programme showcasing women filmmakers from the global majority. Also featured are retrospectives dedicated to Hong Kong auteur Stanley Kwan and experimental filmmaker Kimi Takesue.
Listen to conversations with screen icon Tony Leung and filmmaker Mary Stephen, and dive into essays revisiting the forgotten era of VCDs, an interview with Japanese filmmaker Shunji Iwai, and an analysis of the interdisciplinary filmmaking practice of Velu Viswanadhan.
To See
Image still from Underground (2024, Kaori Oda)Asian Film Archive: Reciprocal 2026 – Asian Film Archive (AFA) x Fukuoka City Public Library Film Archive (FCPLA)
Spotlighting the archival collections of the Asian Film Archive (AFA) and partner archives, AFA’s annual collaborative film programme RECIPROCAL returns, this time in partnership with the Fukuoka City Public Library Film Archive (FCPLFA).
Showcasing selections from both the archives’ collections, the programme highlights cinema as a space where filmmakers rethink form, identity, and emotion. The curated line-up explores unexpected creative intersections and juxtapositions of these works, while offering fresh perspectives on archival issues and concerns that come with contemporary preservation work.
Running till 28 June, don’t miss the opportunity to watch works by Japanese independent filmmakers and auteurs such as Gakuryū Ishii, Kaori Oda, and Takashi Ito, as well as Ashish Avikunthak (India), Daniel Hui (Singapore), and Tan Chui Mui (Malaysia). Find out more about the programme here.
SOAS Library: Insistent Focus: an evening of short films by women* filmmakers from the global majority
Presented by the SOAS Library in collaboration with independent film organisations Girls in Film and Cinelogue, Insistent Focus brings together short films by women filmmakers from the global majority. Featuring works by Cynthia Sawma (Lebanon), Maya Bastian (Canada), Larissa Sansour (Palestine), Charmaine Poh (Singapore), and Ariani Darmawan (Indonesia), the programme traverses speculative fiction, docu-fiction, and personal memory to reflect on displacement, inherited histories, diasporic experiences, and the complexities of belonging.
Taking place on 15 June 2026 in London, the screening will be followed by a conversation with Nikola Vasakova, founder of Girls in Film, and Rehana Esmail, founder of Cinelogue. Find out more about the programme here.
Image still from Rouge (1987, Stanley Kwan)Asia Society Museum: Stanley Kwan: Ladies Man
New York’s Asia Society presents Stanley Kwan: Ladies Man, a retrospective bringing together seven films by the acclaimed Hong Kong auteur.
One of the most celebrated figures in Hong Kong cinema, Kwan is renowned for his nuanced portrayals of women and his thoughtful engagement with questions of gender, desire, and sexuality. His complex, multi-dimensional female characters set him apart within a cinematic landscape often associated with masculinity and machismo.
Catch classics such as Rouge (1987) and Center Stage (1991), alongside other standouts from his remarkable filmography that continue to shape conversations around gender and representation in Chinese-language cinema. Find out more about the programme here.
Image still from 95 and 6 to Go (2016, Kimi Takesue)The Criterion Channel: Directed by Kimi Takesue
The Criterion Channel highlights the work of filmmaker Kimi Takesue, whose films blur the boundaries between documentary and fiction through her observant and experimental approach. Often centred on the act of travel, her works follow tourists and locals as they navigate shared yet unequal spaces, approaching the complexities of cross-cultural encounters with unexpected curiosity and sensitivity.
Delving into the tensions and connections between people and places, Takesue’s films offer a thoughtful reflection on how we look at the world and at one another. Catch some of her most acclaimed works, including 95 and 6 to Go (2016) and Onlookers (2023) here.
To Listen
Image still from 2046 (2004, Wong Kar Wai)Film at Lincoln Center Podcast: #651 – Tony Leung on His Collaborations with Wong Kar Wai, Hou Hsiao-hsien, John Woo, and More
The Film at Lincoln Center (FLC) Podcast presents a special conversation with global screen icon Tony Leung, as he joins FLC Vice President of Programming Florence Almozini to reflect on an extraordinary career spanning five decades.
From his early beginnings in television to his emergence as one of the landmark faces of the Hong Kong New Wave, Leung traces his collaborations with generation-defining filmmakers such as Wong Kar Wai, Hou Hsiao-hsien, and John Woo. Looking back on some of his most memorable roles, he discusses the working methods, creative instincts, and artistic choices that have shaped his enduring and charismatic screen presence.
Image still from Palimpsest: The Story of a Name (2026, Mary Stephen)Deep Cut: A Film Podcast: 133. HKIFF50: Palimpsest: The Story of a Name (2026) – Interview with Director Mary Stephen
Part of a series of interviews with filmmakers for the Hong Kong International Film Festival, Deep Cut co-host Wilson Lai sits down with Mary Stephen, who is known for her work as an editor for Éric Rohmer and Ann Hui, as well as her own accomplishments as a filmmaker.
Discussing her latest film, Palimpsest: The Story of a Name, Stephen reflects on the film’s narrative structure, its relationship to personal memory, and her enduring ties to the city of Hong Kong. Beyond the film itself, the conversation also explores her distinguished career in editing, the evolution of editing technologies, and her creative collaborations with Rohmer, Hui, and Jessy Tsang that have shaped her own filmmaking practice.
To Read
Image from O.cult MagO.cult Mag: Asia’s VCD explosion of the ‘90s
Investigating the rise of the VCD format in the 1990s, O.cult Mag reflects on the VCD’s impact on film culture across Asia. While often associated with piracy and camcorder recordings smuggled out from theatres, the article also examines how the format enabled the circulation of niche, fringe, and alternative films that were otherwise difficult to access, including Hong Kong’s infamous Category III titles.
Additionally, the article explores how the format reshaped Hong Kong’s film culture, as the rise of VCDs coincided with the 1997 Asian Financial Crisis, pushing audiences towards more affordable home viewing options. Alongside its lasting impact on film consumption, the article pays homage to the long-forgotten format — pixelated, blocky, and at times downright unwatchable — which remains strangely nostalgic in today’s pursuit of ultra-high-definition perfection.
Image still from All About Lily Chou-Chou (2001, Shunji Iwai)Letterboxd Journal: Love Letters: cult Japanese filmmaker Shunji Iwai on emotionally connecting through cinema
In anticipation of a four-film retrospective at New York’s Metrograph, critic Katie Rife sits down with acclaimed Japanese filmmaker Shunji Iwai to reflect on a career that has spanned more than three decades.
Known for his sensitive portrayals of adolescence and emotionally resonant storytelling, Iwai has built a filmography where each film is marked by a distinctive visual style and atmosphere. Even when revisiting familiar themes and settings, each film of his is a unique exploration of memory, longing, and human connection. In their conversation, Rife and Iwai discuss his approach to storytelling, recurring themes in his work, and the ways his characters connect through different, yet indirect, forms of communication.
Image still from Aakaash (2002, Velu Viswanadhan)Sabzian: Ethnography, Differently: Velu Viswanadhan’s The Five Elements
Although Velu Viswanadhan is best known for his abstract modernist paintings, film curator and critic Arindam Sen excavates the artist’s lesser-known film pentalogy, The Five Elements — Sand (1982), Water (1985), Fire (1988), Air (1994), and Ether (2002). Drawing from the Pancha Bhutas, the five elements that form the material basis of the cosmos in Vedic philosophy, the films weave together landscapes, rituals, labour, and architecture from across India.
Situating the pentalogy within traditions of ethnographic and avant-garde cinema, Sen traces the philosophical foundations of Viswanadhan’s work against the backdrop of India’s social and political transformations, examining how the films negotiate questions of identity, cultural difference, and the changing social landscapes of India.
To Submit
Open call: Objectifs x Momo Film Co Short Film Incubator 2026
The Objectifs x Momo Film Co Short Film Incubator focuses on developing short film scripts and is open to Southeast Asian filmmakers working with moving images. The five selected participants will be mentored by film programmer and producers Aiko Masubuchi and filmmaker Kenneth Dagatan, and gain a support network as the work on their scripts. The application guidelines can be found here, and the submission deadline is 28 June 2026.
Call for Submissions: Experimenta 2026
Returning for its 13th edition in December, Experimenta is an independent, artist-run film festival in Bangalore, India, dedicated to challenging conventional modes of cinema and expanding the possibilities of genre and form. The festival offers forums, discussions, and opportunities for networking with an international community of filmmakers, artists, and curators engaged with experimental moving-image practices. The application guidelines can be found here, and the submission deadline is 5 July 2026.
Call for Submissions: Cartoons Underground 2026
Singapore’s premiere and largest animation film festival, Cartoons Underground has been dedicated to showcasing the best award-winning international and local animation works. The festival will be held in November 2026, bringing together animation filmmakers, artists, producers and industry professionals. The application guidelines can be found here, and the submission deadline is 10 July 2026 for international submissions and 10 August 2026 for Singapore student films.
Call for Submissions: ASEAN-Japan New Generation Short Film Award 2026
Hosted by the ASEAN-Japan Centre, the ASEAN-Japan New Generation Short Film Award was established to showcase the diverse stories and perspectives of people across ASEAN to audiences in Japan and beyond. This year’s theme, “Our Next Waypoint,” invites filmmakers to reflect on moments of arrival and transition, exploring waypoints as places of reflection and new beginnings. The application guidelines can be found here, and the submission deadline is 20 July 2026.
This edition of the Asian Cinema Digest was compiled by Phyllis Chan. The Asian Cinema Digest is a monthly compilation of content taking place internationally involving Asian cinema and the moving image. Featured programmes are not representative of AFA’s views and are unaffiliated to the AFA unless otherwise stated.
