CAMBODIA’S LARGEST INTERNATIONAL CULTURAL EVENT CELEBRATES 10 YEARS!

The 10th CIFF presents film from 44 countries through a selection of 157 films, including short and feature films, documentaries, and animation.

FROM MARCH 13 to 22nd, CIFF offers 150+ screenings in all major cinemas of Phnom Penh; venues included this year are LEGEND CINEMAS, MAJOR CINEPLEX, BOPHANA CENTER, CHAKTOMUK THEATER, ROSEWOOD HOTEL & THE CIFF VILLAGE @ ECHANGE SQUARE.

CIFF IS POSSIBLE THANKS to all partners and industry supporters and we are glad to announce CELLCARD as PRESENTING PARTNER of the Festival.

OPENING CEREMONY ON MARCH 13th will host Cellcard’s Ambassador SUZANNA RETH.

CAMBODIAN CINEMA – FILMS made-in and ABOUT CAMBODIA

Buoyancy

– STORIES IN CAMBODIA includes fictions related to Cambodia including the recent feature films shot in the Kingdom such as BUOYANCY (multi AWARDED FILM in Festivals around the word) dealing with the topic of human trafficking in Cambodia and Southeast Asia. Also THE CLOCK: SPIRITS AWAKENING by Leak Lyda (box-office hit and Award winning film at the CAMBODIA NATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL 2019) is presented by CIFF in its international version.

– A SPECIAL CAMBODIAN PROGRAM is the Premiere of BANGKOSOL: A REQUIEM FOR CAMBODIA, the original performance presented by Cambodian Living Arts and filmed by the Bophana Center. World Premiere with performances.

– CIFF pays TRIBUTE TO PRINCESS BUPPHA DEVI who passed-away in November 2019. This special program includes film SCREENINGS, a TRIBUTE EVENT and a special ROYAL BALLET EXHIBITION at the Rosewood Hotel.

– CIFF is also about connecting with the CAMBODIAN DIASPORA FILMMAKERS and presents films from Khmer communities from USA, France, Canada, Australia, New- Zealand…

– Cambodian filmmakers also expose their work on the big screen through the CAMBODIA IN SHORTS programs. This year CIFF presents upcoming female Cambodian directors such as Sophea Kim (GREY FEATHER premiere) and Sreylin Meas (CALIFORNIA DREAM).

Also first time filmmakers trained by Bophana center present their work on WOMEN INDIGENOUS VOICES, and CIFF presents the environmental documentary JUNGLE GUARD by Ouch Makara.

CIFF VILLAGE by CELLCARD @ EXCHANGE SQUARE Plaza

For the first time, CIFF has THE VILLAGE at the Exchange Square Plaza: screenings, events and special performances will be offered free of charge from MARCH 14TH TO 21ST – EVERY NIGHT FROM 5 PM.

Giant Film Screenigs open-air

Concert plus Meet & Greet with Many Popular Stars in Cambodia like MUSTACHBAND

Cultural performances of local and international artists

Display of Cinematography Professional Film equipment and technicaldemonstrations

Cambodian and International Food and beverages and Fun

Meet and Talk with the Directors and the Stars in the film

INTERNATIONAL PROGRAM

A selection of quality recent INTERNATIONAL FEATURE FILMS from Asia and other continents in the presence of some of the filmmakers. Titles such as PARASITE (South Korea), THE CAVE (Thailand), ONCE UPON A TIME IN HOLLYWOOD (USA) and many more excellent movies.

Documentaries will focus on numerous topics including “climate change”, “natural resources”, and “environment” in the extensive BEAUTIFUL PLANET program gathering over 20 documentaries.

This year CIFF presents an incredible selection of INTERNATIONAL SHORT FILMS including the S-Express programs from ASEAN countries.

Kids and families can also enjoy quality and diverse animation shorts in the CARTOONS OF THE WORLD Program.

10th CIFF Special programs:

WOMEN IN ASIAN CINEMA – Celebrating established and fresh female directors fromthe Asian region.

SCARY WORLD – A selection of very scary thrillers and horror films from Asia.

COLORFUL WORLD – A selection of films offering different perspectives on genderissues.

CIFF COMMITTEE – World Acclaimed filmmakers support CIFF

We are very honored that ANGELINA JOLIE PITT, has warmly accepted the Presidency of the CIFF Honorary Committee and attended several events during CIFF since 2016. It is a great encouragement for the new generation of filmmakers. Also, famous Hollywood actress ELODIE YOUNG (Elektra, Gods of Egypts, Girl with Dragon Tatoo…) became Patron of the CIFF since 2018.

Oscar nominated and multi Awarded Cambodian-French director and producer RITHY PANH is a founding member of CIFF. He has contributed to the development of film in Cambodia through the creation of the Bophana Center in 2006 and the launch of the Cambodia Film Commission.

Since 2015, CIFF initiated an Honorary Committee, gathering together film professionals who support the development of the Cambodian film industry. The committee includes Sok Visal (Director, Cambodia), Kalyanee Mam (Director, USA), James Gerrand (Director, Australia), Nicholas Simon (Producer, USA), Caylee So (Director, USA), Davy Chou (Director, France).

Check out extensive list of all the Asian films at the Festival below:

BUOYANCY (dir. Road Rathjen, Australia)

A 14-year-old Cambodian boy leaves home in search of a better life but is sold to a Thai broker and enslaved on a fishing trawler. As fellow slaves are tortured and murdered around him, he realizes his only hope of freedom is to become as violent as his captors.

THE CLOCK: SPIRITS AWAKENING (dir. Leak Lyda, Cambodia)

Cheata, a girl living with her father and stepmother after her biological mother, Chanda, left the family, is suffering from depression. Every day she suffers mental and physical abuses from her stepmother. Together with her longing for her true mother, this had led Cheata to slip deeper and deeper into depression. Holding on to her mother’s photo and listening to her mother’s lullaby every night does little to heal her heartache and depression.

BANGSOKOL: A REQUIEM FOR CAMBODIA (dir. Rithy Panh and Him Sophy, Cambodia)

An extraordinary new composition fusing music, voice, movement, and visuals. It is the first major symphonic work that addresses the traumas of the late 1970s in Cambodia, and the first collaboration between contemporaries Rithy Panh and Him Sophy, both survivors of the Khmer Rouge and now at the forefront of Cambodia’s cultural renaissance.

PARASITE (dir. Bong Joon-ho, South Korea)

A poor family, the Kims, con their way into becoming the servants of a rich family, the Parks. But their easy life gets complicated when their deception is threatened with exposure.

ASHFALL (dir. Kim Byeong-seo and Lee Hae-jun, South Korea)

Sleeping since 1903, at heigt of 2,744 m, a volcano erupts on Baekdu Mountain located on the Chinese-North Korean border. Armed with the threat of eruptions, a team of uniquely trained professionals from South and North Korea unite.

THE CAVE (dir. Tom Waller, Thailand)

When a soccer team of 12 boys, aged 11-16, and their 25-year-old coach is trapped deep inside a cave in Northern Thailand, thousands of volunteers and soldiers from around the world unite in a race against time to find them.

SANGKAR (dir. Kabir Bhatia, Malaysia)

Adam, a cocky MMA fighter, wins a fight using dirty tactics and then when challenged outside the Cage,

unintentionally injures his opponent, Johan, in a street fight. As a result, Johan is paralysed. Guilt ridden

and worried, Adam tries to find out whether Johan knows that he is the culprit.

JOHN DENVER TRENDING (dir. Arden Rodd Condez, Philippines)

A 14-year-old farmboy’s life is suddenly upended when a video of him brutally attacking a classmate went viral.

MEKONG 2030 (dir. Anocha Suwichakornpong, Anysay Keola, Pham Ngoc Lan, Sai Naw Kham, Kulikar Sotho, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand, Vietnam)

A collection of short narrative films that envision the future of the Mekong River from five different national and cultural perspectives. Set in the year 2030, they aim to both entertain and inspire audiences to actively protect this critical life source.

EXPIRATION DATE (dir Anysay Keola, Lao People’s Democratic Republic)

Kai accidentally found a special power… Seeing a ‘relationship’s end date’ by pulling his nose hair. Knowing his own love’s expiration date, he couldn’t escape fate either.

JUST LIKE THAT (dir. Kislay, India)

Mrs. Sharma is the wife of a respected, small-time government employee in Allahabad. When her husband dies, she is expected to move in with her son and grandchildren. But the woman wants to live by herself.

KIM JI-YOUNG: BORN 1982 (dir. Kim Do-young, South Korea)

Kim Ji-young, an ordinary woman in her 30s, suddenly shows signs of being inhabited by others such as her late mother and older sister, and the stories of the people connected to her.

THE THIRD WIFE (dir. Ash Mayfair, Vietnam)

In 19th century rural Vietnam, fourteen-year-old May is ready to become the third wife of a wealthy landowner. Little does she know that her hidden desires will take her by surprise and force her to make a choice between living in safety and being free.

THE LONG WALK (dir. Mattie Do, Laos)

An old Laotian hermit discovers that the ghost of a road accident victim can transport him back in time fifty years to the moment of his mother’s painful death.

YOUNG LOVE (dir. Lomorpich Rithy, Cambodia)

15-year-old Kesor lives in Phnom Penh with her grandmother. She thinks that she knows everything as she is navigating her teenage life just fine with her best friends Rith, Sopheak and Bella. That is until she meets and falls in love with a senior student, Veha.

JEUX DE PLAGE (dir. Aimi Natsuto, Japan)

Three college students, Sayaka, Yui and Yui’s best friend Momoko, head to the seaside town of Shonan and stay in a large guest house which is where numerous romantic waifs and strays wash up. Being young and attractive, the three are the targets of interest from nearby guys.

KONPAKU (dir. Remi M Sali, Singapore)

Haqim’s life is at a standstill, having lost his girlfriend to his best friend. A chance meeting with the sensual Japanese girl Midori, returns his faith in love. Their growing passion takes on a darkness, when strange things happen to those close to him.

REPOSSESSION (dir. Goh Ming Siu, Singapore)

50-year-old Jim loses his high-flying job in status-conscious Singapore, but his ego and pride make him hide this from his wife and daughter. The only person he can trust is his best friend. Desperately holding onto the material symbols of his past success, he unlocks a dark force, with evil roots in long-buried secrets.

NIRVANA INN (dir. Vijay Jayapal, India)

The thrilling story of a boatman trying to escape his past, who becomes the caretaker of a Himalayan resort after an attempted suicide.

GOODBYE MOTHER (dir. Trinh Dinh Le Minh, Vietnam)

Van, a Vietnamese bachelor, returns from the U.S. for the first time in 9 years for the move of his father’s tomb. The whole family is surprised upon finding him going with a young Vietnamese American named Ian.

SONG LANG (dir. Leon Le, Vietnam)

Set in 1980s Saigon, Song Lang is a gritty underworld noir hiding a tender, romantic heart. At the film’s core is the unlikely bond that develops between hunky, brooding Dung, a tough debt collector for a ruthless loan shark, and Linh Phung, a charismatic young opera singer from a struggling cai luong troupe.

THE SAME PEOPLE (dir. Giancarlo Abraham, Philippines)

It’s been a year since Gabriel moved out of Manila, a year since his messy breakup. The breakup so messy, he broke ties not only with his boyfriend but also their friends. Now he’s back in Manila. But not with his friends. Not with his ex, not in his old life.

LINGUA FRANCA (dir. Isabel Sandoval, UK)

Olivia, an undocumented Filipino transwoman, works as a caregiver to Olga, an elderly Russian woman, in Brighton Beach, Brooklyn. When Olivia runs out of options to attain legal status in the US, she becomes romantically involved with Alex, Olga’s adult grandson, in the pursuit of a marriage-based green card.

INDIGENEOUS WOMEN VOICES (dir. Various, Cambodia)

Worldwide, indigenous people face great difficulties in maintaining and developing their own models of development and well-being, as their current needs and aspirations for the future often differ from those of the mainstream population. Although, indigenous people are entitled to full rights, established under international law, their distinct and unique cultures are often rejected or suppressed by others.

In collaboration with Cambodia Film Commission and Sundance Film Institute, “Amplifying voices of indigenous women and discriminated groups through innovative multimedia” is a documentary filmmaking and multimedia training, organized by the Bophana Audiovisual Resource Center and supported by Voice, through Oxfam in Cambodia, Heinrich Böll Stiftung Cambodia, and the Australian Embassy in Cambodia.

12 candidates from primarily rural areas of Cambodia were given 24 months training in film and encouraged to shoot in their own provinces, the aim of the project is to empower indigenous women and discriminated groups, and to give them a voice through innovative multimedia.

Titles:

ON THE MOVE by MINEA HENG

THE BAMBOO WITHOUT WATER by RODA DIN

WHERE IS MY FATHER by SAROEUN BLONG

WORRY by CHHOUK LOEUN and PRING PROEL

ENDURE by LEAN MANG and VUNNENG LENG

KANAB (MY PATH) by POAV SEV

DON’T GIVE UP by RANY PHOK

LAST HOPE by SITHORT RET

LAST NIGHT I SAW YOU SMILING (dir. Neang Kavich, Cambodia)

The White Building, an iconic structure home to 493 families in Phnom Penh, faces demolition. In the building’s final days, director Kavich Neang follows his own family and neighbors as they pack belongings, share memories and anxieties, and eventually move out before the building’s total destruction.

LOOKING FOR GILLES CARON (dir. Mariana Otero, France)

Gilles Caron was at the height of his career as a brilliant photojournalist when he went missing in Cambodia in 1970. He was just 30 years old. Through his iconic photographs, and the gaps between them, this film, constructed like an investigation, aims to restore the photographer’s presence, recount the story of his gaze, and how he managed to cover every high profile conflict of his day in such a short period of time.

THE PHOTOGRAPHER (dir. Calvin Keo, Canada)

A former refugee and genocide survivor retraces his photographic past and reconnects with the loved ones he left behind. This story is about his remarkable journey in search of closure.

NAME CREW: TINY TUNES (dir. Arestia Rosenberg, USA)

Tuy Sobil (aka “KK”) was born in a Thai refugee camp during the Khmer Rouge communist regime and soon legally emigrated to Long Beach. KK arrived in Cambodia’s capital city of Phnom Penh in 2004 and word spread fast in his new community that he had been a breakdancer. Soon the kids just started showing up at his door asking him to teach them…

DANCING IN SILK (dir. Magali An Berthon, France)

Tells the story of Khannia, a young Cambodian American dancer and instructor at Khmer Arts Academy, who lives in the ethnic neighborhood of Cambodia Town in Long Beach, CA. Khannia has taken up the responsibility to pass on her knowledge of Khmer classical ballet, a millennium-old practice that has nearly disappeared under the Khmer Rouge regime.

HIGH POINT SUMMER (dir. Joseph Mills and Sophia Sun, USA)

Sopheak began this video diary early in the summer of 2006. He planned to document his life as a refugee from war-torn Cambodia and to explain the meaning of the term, “thug life.” However, his summer is ultimately defined by unexpected tragedy.

A CHOREOGRAPHIC JOURNEY (dir. Eric Vassard, France)

A documentary on a meeting for 16 young dancers, 10 young classical students from the Conservatoire of Bagnolet (suburb of Paris) and 6 from the Fine Arts of Phnom-Penh, dancing together without any common language, but the dance.

GARUDA’S SONG (dir. Ambrose Soehn and Alex Biniaz-Harris, USA)

American composers Alex Biniaz-Harris and Ambrose Soehn write a four-hand piano piece, Garuda’s Song, based on Cambodian music from before, during, and after the Khmer Rouge.

CAMBODIA EVOLVING: FOOD AND CULTURE (dir. Hannah Kim, USA)

Cambodia is a centuries-old country with a rich food and market culture. We view the country through the lens of its cuisine, and follow iconic dishes, up and coming chefs, and changing culture, to show how Cambodia evolves its way through the 21st century.

A PEARL ROUGE (dir. Benjamin Rigley, UK)

A Pearl Rouge tells the story of the fall of Phnom Penh in 1975. The people of Phnom Penh where forced to evacuate by the Khmer rouge and sent to the fields to work. It looks at the story of the survivors and the creative art scene which there once was before the Khmer Rouge.

A PLACE BENEATH THE SURFACE (dir. Leef Hansen, Germany, Cambodia)

During the war between 1969 and 1975 millions of landmines were laid under Cambodian soil. Many of these relics remain under the ground until today. As a symbol of the past they illustrate the complex social structures which underlie the relationship of men and mine.

CURRENT SEA (dir. Christopher Smith, Malaysia, USA)

A feature-length, environmental thriller that follows investigative journalist, Matt Blomberg, and ocean activist, Paul Ferber, in their dangerous efforts to create a marine conservation area and combat the relentless tide of illegal fishing. Along the way a new generation of Cambodian environmentalists are inspired to create a better life for their people.

THE BAMBOO BRIDGE (dir. Jaun Francisco Salazar, Australia)

Every dry season, a 1.5km bamboo bridge has been built across the Mekong River to the island of Koh Pen in Cambodia. Every year, the bridge is dismantled in the wake of the monsoonal tides and recycled for the following year. In 2017, this bridge was built for the last time when a massive new government funded concrete bridge was inaugurated as the country embraces China’s One Belt One Road initiative.

JUNGLE GUARD (dir. Ouch Makara, Cambodia)

Portrays the life of a unique Buddhist monk community that has voluntarily assumed the role of protector of a large parcel of natural forest and its indigenous wildlife, fish and related resources.

NEIGHBORS TOGETHER – CAMBODIA ENVIRONMENT (Cambodia)

A series of three short documentaries made in Cambodia as part of the Klahan 9 (BBC Media Action) program focusing on environment: PLASTIC WASTE by Yiv Chhoy / RAISED BED GARDENING AND FAST FLOOD by Theng Panha / RAINWATER HARVESTING by Theng Panha.

VDP SHORT DOCUMENTARIES

The Visual Documentary Project (VDP) was started in 2011 by the Center of Southeast Asian Studies (CSEAS), Kyoto University to offer a platform to young Southeast Asian directors to share their realities through documentaries. The project aims to build bridges between the filmmaking communities and the academia in Southeast Asia.

ENVIRONMENT IN SE ASIA

WOMEN OF THE FOREST by INSHALLAH P. MONTERO (Malaysia) / THE SILENCE OF THE SUMMER by MAI DINH KHOI(Vietnam) / ECHOES FROM THE HILL by JIRUDIKAL PRASONCHOOM, PASIT TANDAECHANURAT (Thailand) / MORE THAN A TREE by PHILIPP DANAO, KHIN MYANMAR (Myanmar) / THE LAST GENERATION by DARANG MELATI Z, RIZA ANDRIAN(Indonesia).

A RIVER SCREAMS FOR MERCY (dir. Tom Fawthorp, UK)

Exploring the effects of damming a great river such as the Mekong, this film highlights the dangers of their effects on biodiversity and fish populations, which millions of people rely on each year. An increase in damming operations is threatening to upset this delicate source of food in the near future, so what are the potential problems this may cause and are there any solutions to this?

BEHIND INDIA. A LOOK FROM THEIR SOCIAL MOVEMENTS (dir. Fernando Vera Moreno, Spain)

Behind the contradictory realities that coexist in India today, are an increase of inequalities and the violation of fundamental rights to a large part of its population, especially of tribeswomen and of the lower castes who fight to make changes.

SEEDS OF PERMACULTURE: TROPICAL PERMACULTURE (dir. Greetje Mulder, Rogier Van Der Voort, Netherlands)

An interactive documentary about permaculture in the tropics. Set against a beautiful Thai backdrop, the film takes a look at two permaculture education centers where visitors from all over the world come to educate themselves to be self sufficient, produce no waste, build their homes and gardens, but most of all they learn to build communities.

RIVERCIDE: THE SECRET SIX (dir. Kim Byeong-ki, South Korea)

The Grand Canal project, Four Major Rivers Project, was one of the key pledges of former President Lee Myung Bak. When this project was confronted with national opposition, he withdrew saying that he was carrying out a project to save the four rivers. It was a lie.

I DREAM OF SINGAPORE (dir. Lei Yuan Bin, Singapore)

The heartfelt, observational documentary I DREAM OF SINGAPORE interweaves the natural worlds and cityscapes of Bangladesh and Singapore. It poetically observes the broken bodies, stoic faces, surveilled dormitories, and sprawling construction sites that make up the migrant-labour flow from one of the world’s poorest countries to one of the richest.

ME AND MY BEAUTIFUL BODY (dir. Stephane Lambert, Thailand)

Me and My Beautiful Body is an experimental collage of interviews and castings of young and beautiful online influencers from Thailand. It is a fierce look into the mind of young adults.

INSTANT BADASS (dir. Andy Funnel, Thailand)

In less than two years, the Bangkok fight club movement has grown from a few friends fighting on the street to professionally run events with large crowds. This rapid growth has been fueled by the intense interest in an event unlike any other. Dozens of young men can, for the first time, express themselves through raw violence, without any repercussions.

THE SAKO TAPES (dir. Machiel Van Den Heuvel, Netherlands)

A film about Sako, an eccentric Indonesian man with Chinese roots. Sako is struggling with his past. He is traumatized because of the murder of his innocent father, who was one of the approximately half to a million alleged communists that were killed in the transition period to the Suharto regime in Indonesia in 1965.

THE TREE REMEMBERS (dir. Lau Kek Huat, Taiwan)

Derived from the proverb “What the axe forgets, the tree remembers”, this film presents the current situation in Malaysia where a racist policy is still practiced and the victims have been forced to remain silent.

YUKIKO (dir. Young Sun Noh, France)

“Can you mourn for a person of whom you have no memory?” This is the question that comes up in this calm kaleidoscope of intimate impressions and associations that connect three women: director Young Sun Noh, her mother, who was born and still lives in Korea, and her Japanese grandmother, who traveled to Seoul during the Japanese occupation of Korea to join her Korean lover.

VDP SHORT DOCUMENTARIES

The Visual Documentary Project (VDP) was started in 2011 by the Center of Southeast Asian Studies (CSEAS), Kyoto University to offer a platform to young Southeast Asian directors to share their realities through documentaries. The project aims to build bridges between the filmmaking communities and the academia in Southeast Asia.

VDP: JUSTICE IN SE ASIA

THROUGH SONGS, WE SHARE STORIES by DONY PUTRO HERWANTO (Indonesia) / AN UNQUIET LAND by NGUYEN THI KHANH LY (Vietnam) / SCREAMING GOATS by THUNSKA PANSITTIVORAKUL (Thailand) / THAT NIGHT by JEREMY LUKE Bolatag (Philippines) / UNSILENT POTATO by SEIN LYAN TUN (Myanmar).

VDP: POPULAR CULTURE IN SOUTHEAST ASIA

THE CAMBODIAN THEATRE by SOPHEAK MOEURN (Cambodia) / RITO RITO by NGUYEN NGOC THAO LY (Vietnam) / THE FIGHTER by MARJITO ISKANDER TRI GUNAWAN (Indonesia) / COSPLAYER by YINGSIWAT YAMOLYONG (Thailand) / RAPTHAI by SAKUNEE JIRAKAN, WITCHAYOOT PONPRASERD, SARUN KOSITSUKJAROEN (Thailand).

CHINA MAN (dir. Jerrel Chow, Singapore)

At the age of five, Ek Kiat left his family and village in China to be adopted by new parents in Singapore. This drastic transition led to a troubled childhood, as he grew up with the self-inflicted pressure to suppress his past.

TRAILER BOYS (dir. Yusri Sapari, Singapore)

Muhammad Irfan Rafi eh is a key member of Abam2 Trailer Singapura, a community of heavy vehicle drivers in Singapore. This film explores how young truck drivers in Singapore such as Irfan find ways to break stereotypes and improve how society perceives them through their day to day work and their trailer club.

TWO ISLANDS (dir. Nicole Lim Xuan, Singapore)

Two Islands is a short documentary that follows Kylie Woon, an ethnically Singaporean-Chinese 28-year-old, who has strong feelings of displacement after years of growing up overseas in Western states.

GREY FEATHER (dir. Sophea Kim, Cambodia)

Sarita is a young Cambodian girl. She is in a relationship with Sam, a young Australian man who settled down in Cambodia. To Sarita, Sam is a symbol of freedom, freedom that has always been something missing in her life. But when cultural duality leads to different paths of life, choices have to be made.

FLEE (dir. Kelvin Ung, Hong Kong)

Two sisters must escape the ravages of war with an infant in tow, but unfortunate circumstances hinder their way and require them to make impossible choices to stay alive. Based on true events.

CALIFORNIA DREAMING (dir. Sreylin Meas, Cambodia)

Two women from different backgrounds encounter one another at an oceanfront resort and discover a hidden bond that ties them together, allowing them to escape from their realities.

PROJECT PARALYSIS (dir. Vi Peou, Cambodia)

During the investigation of his sister’s supernatural disappearance, Veda discovers that the gates of hell has been opened. Now he must face a horde of evil to save not only his sister but also Cambodia.

BITTER MELONS (dir. Thavary Krouch, Cambodia)

The pain we hold, and the growth we experience when we learn to let go. Sophia, a female line cook is tasked with delivering bitter melons to her estranged father. The delivery doesn’t go as planned, but through personal encounters and challenges involving the bitter melons, she is forced to confront her past and connect with her heart, tribe, and cultural roots.

FLAVOR OF AMOK (dir. Sey Sembath Sipsinapanh, China)

A love story between two young people and the ritual of passage is only a starting point for the love story. It is inspired by the visit of the Chinese envoy Zhou Daguan in the 13th century to the Kingdom of Angkor.

SHORT FILMS INTERNATIONAL #1

BURN by KWOK YONG [Malaysia] A CLOWN’S TALE by ALEXANDER FRANK [Germany] HEVI by MOHAMMAD SHAIKHOW [Iran] SECRET LIVES OF ASIANS AT NIGHT by KEVIN WANG [USA] SEE MY GHOST PASSING AWAY by YANN PICHOT [France] NUMBERS by ZHIWEI LI [China]

SHORT FILMS INTERNATIONAL #2

COME ON by AL-JHUN VIRGO [Philippines] COBALT BLUE by AUNG PHYOE [Myanmar] NO ONE IS CRAZY IN THIS TOWN by WREGAS BHANUTEJA [Indonesia] DOSSIER OF THE DOSSIER by SORAYOS PRAPAPAN [Thailand] A WOMB by SUBARNA THAPA [Nepal]

CARTOONS OF THE WORLD for ADULTS

Discover a world of colors and emotions. A diverse selection of animated short stories from around the globe, including a mix of techniques and style, from manga to experimental, depicting in many different ways themes of happiness, corruption, memory, love, migrations…

THE LEVERS by BOYOUNG KIM (South Korea) / SONG SPARROW by FARZANEH OMIDVARNIA (Iran) / YUUKAI-ANNA by KAICHI SATO (Japan) / HIDDEN ZONE by NG CHEE CHONG (Malaysia)