5 Asian short films you shouldn’t miss at the 71st Melbourne International Film Festival 2023

By Asian Film Festival on July 28, 2023 • ( Leave a comment )

These are five Asian short films you shouldn’t miss at the Melbourne International Film Festival which will take place in-person from August 3 – 20, 2023, and online from August 18 – 27, 2023.

**Chomp It!** by Lam Li Shuen, Mark Chua – Singapore | 2023 – 12 minutes | Australian Premiere

Screened at Rotterdam and New Directors/New Films, this highly original, arrestingly bizarre black comedy combines vivid colours, stylised set design and practical monster effects to reimagine Singapore’s political landscape as an 80s horror movie. Shot on evocative 16mm, Chomp It! is a scaly, surreal delight. (MIFF 2023)

Trailer:

**Snow in September** by Lkhagvadulam Purev-Ochir – Mongolia, France | 2022 – 20 minutes | Australian Premiere

Teenagers Devka and Anuka have an innocent flirtation. As they walk home from school to their dilapidated Soviet-era apartment block in Ulaanbaatar, their chats about transgressive manga court the risqué before dissolving into awkward giggles. But following a confusing encounter with a mysterious older woman, Devka’s burgeoning sexuality starts to take a darker turn. (MIFF 2023)

**The House of Loss** by Jinkyu Jeon – Japan, Korea | 2022 – 10 minutes | Australian Premiere

A young soldier is deployed to a nursing home for former veterans in South Korea. Outside, the world is determined to forget the horrors of the Korean War, but inside, the residents are still haunted by history. Inspired by personal experience, director Jinkyu Jeon has created an empathetic and eye-opening short that captures the double consciousness of PTSD, showing how horrific memories can continually intrude on the present. (MIFF 2023)

Trailer:

**Tomato Kitchen** by Junyi Xiao – China | 2022 – 9 minutes | Australian Premiere

Stepping outside for a cigarette during a collegial dinner at Tomato Kitchen, Lee accidentally discovers the bloody truth behind this bustling restaurant chain. Harnessing a retro aesthetic and noirish intrigue, Chinese director Junyi Xiao has created a malleable allegory about greed, consumption, sacrifice and … tomato rights. (MIFF 2023)

Trailer:

**Trial** by CLAUDE, Shin Hyejin – Korea | 2022 – 45 minutes | Australian Premiere

The sudden fear that arises when imagining the infinite nature of the universe comes from realising the finiteness and weakness of human existence. Trial is intricately designed for us to think about what we can have and what attitudes we can bolster as soon as the morality that we have built and the laws that history has established become totally powerless. Light and sound, which are constantly generated and dissipated over time, create a different dimension in space, opening up new environments. (MIFF 2023)

For more information, please visit: https://miff.com.au/