Eight Asian films were awarded at the Fantasia International Film Festival which took place from July 20 – August 9, 2023 in Montreal, Canada.

New Flesh Competition for Best First Features (Debut Films)

Special Jury Mentions

The first amongst her tight-knit group of friends to hit puberty, 12-year-old Zaffan (Zafreen Zairizal) can feel her body changing. In the small rural village in Malaysia where her life is structured around the strict rhythms of school and the rules of Muslim faith, this could become a problem… A terrifying problem. Soon, a panic spreads across town. A monster is rumoured to be roaming the woods. Zaffan, further ostracized by her peers for her nascent otherness, is pushed to the brink. She resorts to a radical solution: to accept the woman she is becoming and to embrace the animal within… and without. (Fantasia 2023)

Jury’s Statement: “Right from the first scene, Amanda Nell Eu had us cheering for the compelling, irreverent adolescent protagonist (Zafreen Zairizal) fighting against the expectations of her peers and family as well as the conservative norms of Malaysian society at large. It was funny, feral and fantastical while maintaining an uncompromising feminist perspective.”

Trailer:

It’s New Year’s Eve. Illuminated by a deluge of fireworks, a grieving Wu Jie (Janine Chang) sits alone in her car, holding a gun to her chin. But before she can bring herself to pull the trigger, a scream tears through the night… and her detective instinct kicks in. A woman has been murdered — her heart and a finger missing — and it’s soon discovered that she’s not the first, nor the last, of a string of foreign workers whose mutilated bodies are found in desolate places around the city. Driven by a dutiful urge to bring justice to those nameless women, Wu Jie chooses to push aside her own inner demons and sets off on the killer’s trail with the help of her newly appointed rookie partner (Chloe Xiang). Along the way, they meet You-Sheng (Ethan Juan), a man torn between the need to protect his job as an illicit employment broker and a desperation to find his missing girlfriend… Could he possibly be involved with the killings? (Fantasia 2023)

Jury’s Statement: “From the opening fireworks, The Abandoned mesmerised us. Its unrelenting darkness never obscures the film’s beating heart, voice for marginalised populations, and the genuine empathy for its characters anchored by a stunning lead performance in Janine Chang.”

Trailer:

International Short Film Competition

Best Short Film

Acclaimed production designer and director Whammy Alcazaren tells of the swelteringly hot acid trip of a sex-obsessed, terminally-online gay man and his conveniently placed cat. A cocky commentary on censorship, dictatorship and repression. – Ariel Esteban Cayer

Jury’s Statement: “BOLD EAGLE soars to the top. The rare species of short film that seizes you, the viewer, like its prey—however reluctant or unwilling you might have been—and once it has you in its talons, it toys with you, assaults you, shocks you, delights you, and somehow still manages to pack a deep emotional punch. A one-of-a-kind gem of a short that will sear itself on your mind with images you can never unsee, right from the opening butthole. Beautiful.”

Trailer:

Outstanding Performance

An office worker is forced to sign up for early retirement, only to be plagued by horrifying visions of his family’s contemptuous gaze. SHOULDER is a very relevant work about the fear of becoming irrelevant. Truly chilling imagery plunges the viewer into the psyche of a man swept under the rug. – Translation: Rupert Bottenberg

Jury’s Statement: “Lim Hyojin is given the tough assignment of conveying emotion in a silent film, void of dialogue – and he knocks it out of the park. Expressed through eyes and body language, he puts on such a natural, believable performance, emoting humour, melancholy, angst, and nailing the controlling themes of the short: the weight of impending retirement and universal fear of becoming irrelevant.”

AXIS: Satoshi Kon Award for Excellence in Animation

Best Feature Film

All Ryota Miyagi ever wanted was to be a great basketball player like his older brother. He has loved the sport ever since he was a kid, and he’s now carrying on his brother’s legacy by playing for the Shohoku High School basketball team as their point guard. He may be small, but don’t let his size fool you — he’s full of speed and energy on the court. Filled with determination and passion, he and his team are ready to take on the challenge of the Inter-High School National Championship. To claim the highest victory in the tournament, they have to go up against the Sannoh Kogyo High School team, the current ruling champions. Basketball has always given them a sense of purpose, and they’ll do whatever it takes to win the game. (Fantasia 2023)

Jury’s Statement: “For our selection for best animated feature this year, our choice boiled down to this film for its clever and well-executed interplay between highly-relatable human drama, the exhilarating, breakneck editing of the numerous action sequences that are peppered throughout the story, and for its creative and technical use of animation. A gem of a film through and through that enriches an already existing franchise, while at the same time remaining open to viewers who never have never seen or read any of the previous, existing material. We are happy to present this year’s Satoshi Kon Award for Excellence in Animation for best animated feature to The First Slam Dunk.”

Trailer:

Special Jury Mention

In a mysterious world where humans and demons coexist, it has been a lifetime since humans ruined the environment and fell into a state of constant war. A parched desert now covers the globe, and water is the most precious resource. The Royal Army, serving under the King, controls the only known source of water. Those transporting the vital fluid through the dry wastelands find themselves beset by demons (who get thirsty too, you know). Among them is Beelzebub, the demon prince, son of Satan himself — and you know Beelzebub is a bad one because he doesn’t respect bedtime, and often doesn’t brush his teeth. When the stern, no-nonsense Sheriff Rao visits the demons’ village, and asks for their help in locating a fabled oasis (thus bypassing the tyrannical king’s control of all remaining water), it’s Beelzebub and the grizzled old demon Thief who join him on this desperate, dangerous quest. They’re not long out of town when their troubles really begin! (Fantasia 2023)

Jury’s Statement: “Lastly, we do have a very special honourable mention to make. This feature was selected for the vast scope of its narrative, ecological message, rich character back-stories and overall sense of adventure. An adaptation of the manga from 2000, the film not only addresses heavy-handed topics of environmental degradation and political corruption, but also masterfully balances them with stunning animated sequences of battle set amongst a backdrop of desert vistas and valleys, all the while incorporating themes of betrayal and redemption for characters who are an absolute blast to watch. We are delighted to present this year’s Special Jury Mention for Satoshi Kon Award for Excellence in Animation to Sand Land.”

Trailer:

Best Short Film (Silver Award)

Humble deliveryman A abandoned his career as an architect after a terrible personal loss, but one day, an old woman solicits his services. She wants him to build her last home, on the spot where she grew up, in his unique way. You see, A constructs houses out of objects linked to his clients’ most precious memories. He declines initially, wary of his own tragic recollections, but a gift with special properties from the kindly granny convinces him to help her. A resonant, magical, flawlessly crafted tale about confronting grief, finding peace, and the joy of giving, from the eminent South Korean studio VCRWORKS, creators of the memorable web series RHYTHMENS. – Rupert Bottenberg

Jury’s Statement: A story about ageing, memory and trauma told through the lens of an architect fulfilling the final wish of an elderly woman searching for a home. The animation treats the subject matter with whimsy and melancholy, beautifully coloured and realised through simple but evocative line drawings. The sounds and textures created throughout transport the viewer to a fantastical maritime setting. The film is a beautiful pondering of familial love and loss.

Best Short Film (Bronze Award)

A probe hurtles forth towards its inevitable fate, collecting the sights and sounds of the enormous cosmos it traverses. A project guided by noted Kolkata studio Ghost Animation (WADE), Neeraj Bhattacharjee’s meticulously crafted cosmic voyage is accompanied by Mumbai artist Noni-Mouse’s astounding, extraterrestrial soundscape/score. – Rupert Bottenberg

Jury’s Statement: “Bronze goes to a film without dialogue that follows a probe floating through space. The worlds it visits are breathtaking. The filmmaker uses an extremely wide aspect ratio and utilises the horizontal plane in the most imaginative ways. It is a feat to tell a story using images alone – this love letter to space and science and music transports you.