62nd Zlín Film Festival – Asian Presence

By Asian Film Festival on May 24, 2022 • ( Leave a comment )

These are the Asian films that will be screened during the Zlín International Film Festival for Children and Youth which will take place from May 26 until June 1, 2022 in Zlín, Czech Republic.

International Competition of Feature Films in the Children’s Category

**Gandhi & Co.** by Manish Saini – India | 2021 – 101 minutes

Mintoo & Mitra (both 11) are known for two things: their penchant for mischief and their friendship with Bharat Bhai, who is an embodiment of all the teachings of Gandhi. When Mintoo proclaims Mahatma Gandhi as his role model, he soon starts mimicking Gandhi’s behavior but he is nowhere close to accepting Gandhi’s values. His deception earns him rewards but little does he know how his behavior is leading him into troubled waters. Bharat Bhai takes it upon himself to teach the unprincipled boys a valuable lesson in honesty and harmony. As he rolls up his sleeves to watch events unfold, all he can hear is the voice of Gandhi saying “In a gentle way you can shake the world”. (ZFF 2022)

**Maika** by HamTran – Vietnam | 2022 – 105 minutes

Things could be better for 8-year-old Hung, who is grieving the loss of his mother, who died a year ago. His relationship with his father is strained, his best friend is moving away, and to top it all off, a greedy landlord is bullying his father to force them out of their apartment. He finds solace by watching the night sky from the roof of his apartment building. One night, he witnesses a meteor shower and an errant falling star that lands in the nearby countryside. He investigates, but instead of finding a fallen star, he meets a new friend, and he decides to do everything he can to help her. MAIKA is inspired by the 1978 children’s TV show “Spadla z oblakov” that became extremely popular on constant reruns in Vietnam in the early ’90s. With gorgeous scenery, a fast-paced narrative, and charismatic performances, this Vietnamese sci-fi film for kids is a fun-filled adventure that touches on universal themes of friendship, family, and compassion. (ZFF 2022)

International Competition of Feature Films in the Junior Category

**Rickshaw Girl** by Amitabh Reza Chowdhury – Bangladesh, US | 2021 – 110 minutes

Daring and determined, teenager Naima longs to earn money for her poor Bangladeshi family, but her unrivaled artistic talent is of little use. When her father grows gravely ill, Naima feels she has no choice but to leave her small village for the bright lights of Dhaka. In the big city, Naima finds the same economic, societal and gender pressures faced by most young girls in Bangladesh. She cleverly disguises herself as a boy and takes the difficult job of a rickshaw puller. When her gender is revealed and her livelihood vanishes, Naima finds an unconventional solution to her problems. (ZFF 2022)

**The Tenant** by Sushrut Jain – India, USA | 2021 – 112 minutes

Bharat is a 13-year-old boy struggling with adolescence in a conservative Mumbai suburb. When Meera, a beautiful cosmopolitan woman from the big city, moves in next door, she immediately causes a stir. Bharat is drawn to her and pursues an unlikely friendship. But when he stumbles upon a dark secret from Meera’s past, Bharat is forced to choose: Is she a woman of bad character like everyone says, or is she the smart, sensitive person he knows? (ZFF 2022)

International Competition of Feature Films in the Youth Category

**Scoundrels** by Aditya Sarpotdar – India | 2022 – 120 minutes

Unaad is a coming-of-age story about three teenagers from Harne, a small coastal fishing town in Maharashtra. Shubya, Bandya, and Jameel are three friends who while away their time roaming around town and have no I am in life. The locals consider them the scoundrels of the town as these boys are known to get into trouble. This is the story of the phase in their lives that changes them forever. (ZFF 2022)

World Children’s Film Panorama

**So Long Summer Vacation** by Bo Ren – China | 2021 – 96 minutes

Left along during summer vacation in the late 1980s, Chen Xiaojin kills time by inventing all kinds of fun and play by himself. While wandering on the streets in the little town, he makes friends with another only child, Xu Bin. When the two hang out by river, Chen almost drowns, which results in severe punishment. The summer vacation never seems to end. (ZFF 2022)

Screening Dates:
June 1, 2022 | Wednesday | Golden Apple Cinema 4 | 14:00 pm

Beyond the Childhood Horizon

**Two Friends** by Prasun Chatterjee – India | 2021 – 111 minutes

The aftermath of the Babri Mosque demolition and the Bombay blasts in India, 1992-93, found its violent echoes even in a remote village of West Bengal adjacent to the India-Bangladesh border where the story unfolds. A story of friendship between two little boys (Palash and Safikul) belonging to two warring religious communities, Hindu and Muslim. (ZFF 2022)

Screening Dates:
June 1, 2022 | Wednesday | Golden Apple Cinema 6 | 17:30 pm

Festival Laurels from Around the World

**The Hill of Secrets** by Lee Ji-eun – South Korea | 2022 – 122 minutes

A coming-of-age story about Myung-eun, an emotionally sensitive 12-year-old girl. Through the power of writing, she gradually gains a better understanding about herself and her family. (ZFF 2022)

Screening Dates:
May 31, 2022 | Tuesday | Golden Apple Cinema 2 | 15:30 pm

Brainz VR Cinema

**Clap** by Keisuke Itoh – Japan | 2021 – 13 minutes

How can clapping give someone confidence? In a gentle interactive story, the audience helps by clapping to encourage the little boy on his journey to becoming a respected dancer. (ZFF 2022)

**Poison** by Loseem Yi, Cooper Yoo – South Korea | 2021 – 9 minutes

How viruses are created has been discussed in all media for the last two years. But what do viruses really want from us, how do they work, and how can we defend ourselves against them? In this VR project, the audience becomes a virus in order to answer their own burning questions. (ZFF 2022)

**The Sick Rose** by Tang Zhi-zhong, Huang Yun-hsien – Taiwan | 2021 – 17 minutes

The whole country is engulfed in a pandemic. A little girl is unhappy that her mother has to go to the hospital every day to take care of the sick. But one day, Mommy does not come home from work. Will the girl find her in a city unrecognizably transformed? (ZFF 2022)

**The Starry Sand Beach** by Nina Barbier, Hsin-Chien Huang – France, Taiwan | 2021 – 15 minutes

An immersive scientific fairy tale leads us to the primordial microorganisms of this planet – the Foraminifera.. There are three chapters in which the finest mysteries of the ocean and the greatest mysteries of the universe are revealed. (ZFF 2022)

International Competition of Students Film Zlín Dog

**Girl in the Water** by Shi-Rou Huang – Taiwan | 2021 – 7 minutes

While looking at a peeled wall and scar, a woman recalls some of the ups and downs of love. Femininity and its inner temporal consciousness. (ZFF 2022)