These are our fifteen recommended films from the Osaka Asian Film Festival which is taking place from March 1 – 10, 2024 in Osaka, Japan.

13 Bombs by Angga Dwimas Sasongko – Indonesia | 2023 – 143 minutes

Jakarta is the site of maximum carnage as terrorists hold the city hostage with 13 bombs. Their campaign starts when an armoured bank car is blown open for people to loot and escalates to a bombing of the financial district. Motivated by anger over corruption in business and government, they demand Bitcoins or else more bombs will go off. Counter-terrorist forces struggle to keep up and forcibly enlist Oscar and William, the founders of the country’s largest cryptocurrency exchange, to aid their investigation. [Jason MAHER]

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A Weather Report by Kajino Yu – Japan | 2024 – 110 minutes | World Premiere

18-year-old Hikaru has just graduated from high school and she has travelled alone from Niigata to Tokyo to meet the father she has never known without telling her mother. Her parents originally met in Shinjuku but after parting, her mother Mayumi left the city and gave birth to and raised Hikaru alone while her father Naohide stayed put and became a scriptwriter of a hit TV romance drama. Despite being able to imagine and write moving works of fiction, the reality of having an illegitimate child leaves him bewildered and, out of guilt, he tries to get involved in Hikaru’s life again while balancing responsibilities to his current girlfriend and avoiding upsetting Mayumi. [Jason MAHER]

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All the Songs We Never Sang by Chris Rudz – Japan | 2023 – 115 minutes

When 17-year-old Natsumi departs Tokyo for the sun-kissed tiny island her mother fled, it is with the intention of reconnecting with her mother’s twin sister, Reiko. The two were ama-san (traditional pearl divers) of such note that they earned the moniker of “mermaids.” However, Natsumi turning up on her aunt’s doorstep unannounced unleashes a tidal wave of resentment from Reiko as bitter memories are dredged up. Still, Natsumi is undeterred and dives into the local culture with the aim of healing family wounds while also getting herself out of some trouble. A slickly-made and warm-hearted family drama buoyed up by ama culture and 80s City Pop ensues. [Jason MAHER]

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Blue Imagine by Matsubayashi Urara – Japan, Philippines, Singapore | 2024 – 93 minutes

Noel is an aspiring actress and a victim of sexual assault. When she enters “Blue Imagine,” a share house for women who have been abused or harassed, she begins a slow process of renewing her confidence, helped along by the camaraderie found with other inhabitants who have suffered similar experiences. Gradually, she regains her courage and begins to speak out for herself and others even in the face of prejudice aimed at women. When the director who assaulted her is accused of abuse by another woman, Noel decides to confront her past. [Jason MAHER]

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Brush of the God by Murase Keizo – Japan | 2024 – 74 minutes | World Premiere

His story follows a schoolgirl named Akari Tokimiya and the fantastical adventure which occurs when she visits the memorial service of her grandfather Kenzo, a master special effects man. She has unhappy memories of the old man and his passion projects, the last of which he died during the making of. At the memorial service, she meets classmate Takuya, a tokusatsu superfan, and a strange person named Hozumi, the star of the movie Kenzo was making when he died. Hozumi has with him a prop from the film, the titular “Brush of the God,” which transports Akari and Takuya into the world of the movie where they face fearsome Kaiju, including the legendary Yamata-no-orochi who is attempting to destroy everything. If they are to survive and get back to their homes, Akari and Takuya must find out the secret of the movie. [Jason MAHER]

Everyphone Everywhere by Amos Why – Hong Kong | 2023 – 90 minutes

Around the time Hong Kong was handed over to China, three schoolmates, Chung, his girlfriend Ana, and best friend Raymond, record messages on their mobile phones to act like time capsules and promise to reunite in the future. 20+ years on and Chung, an egotistical designer on the make, Ana, a woman unhappily married to a slimy accountant, and Raymond, a dodgy sales rep, find their lives may not have turned out as hoped and their new phones dominate their days…  [Jason MAHER]

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Hyphen by Jopy Arnaldo – Philippines | 2023 – 94 minutes

Love is all a matter of timing. It’s also a matter of understanding. These are ideas that Japanese filmmaker Makoto and his translator Jamie circle around as they escape relationship problems while at a film festival in Bacolod, the Philippines.

Makoto intends to save his family but is haunted by an affair his wife had two years prior to his meeting with Jamie, a young woman who has just called off her engagement with a man who she feels never truly understood her. These two people who feel misunderstood hang out while working on subtitling Makoto’s film and find solace in street food, discussing language, and each other. As they talk, they grow closer. However, it’s no good meeting the right person too soon or too late and their time at the festival is brief. [Jason MAHER]

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Memories of His Scent by Higashi Kahori – Japan | 2024 – 92 minutes | World Premiere

High school girl Hinoki has a keen sense of smell. Perhaps it has something to do with her father, who ran a coffee bean roasting store. This sets the quiet and contemplative girl apart from others. When she reads a notebook left behind by her late father, she discovers that he had written his impressions of the films he had seen at mini-theatres across Japan. However, one mini theatre, the location of which is unmarked, has notes on smells and impressions. Inspired to find it (and without telling her mother), Hinoki decides to venture forth and visit the cinemas her father had visited, handing out coffee beans to people she meets, all while searching for her father’s fading scent. As she does so, over the course of her laidback and slightly melancholy adventure she becomes a little more mature. [Jason MAHER]

Not Friends by Atta Hemwadee – Thailand | 2023 – 130 minutes

Pae has a dilemma: get into university or work in the family’s flour mill. Alas, he is more capable of being craven and egotistical than smart. These qualities make him a compelling protagonist to follow as he tries to get into a university via a short film contest. His subject is classmate Joe, a nice guy who died in a tragic accident. Pae aims to make a poignant film that plucks the heartstrings of the university admission committee but he has no filmmaking experience and never really knew Joe. He has to fake it to make it, roping in Joe’s true friend, Bokeh, classmates and parents who all have high expectations. Thus begins a mad movie-making mission that Pae stakes his future on…[Jason MAHER]

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Out of the Shadow by Ricky Ko – Hong Kong | 2024 – 90 minutes | World Premiere

Chu Po is a sprightly teenage girl with a strong sense of justice but her mother, Tao Kuen Ying, would rather they keep a low profile in the fishing town of Tai O. However, people are in need and Po decides to take action after learning a little karate. She soon becomes an internet heroine but keeps it a secret from Tao until she gets in over her head when she comes to the aid of Pastor Hung and his handsome son, Man Chun, who find their church is the front of a drug ring. This is when Tao reveals a secret crime-fighting history of her own. [Jason MAHER]

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Snowdrop by Yoshida Kota – Japan | 2024 – 98 minutes | World Premiere

In a story told straight and with restraint we watch Naoko Hanami. She quit her job to look after her dementia-stricken mother Kiyo while the health of her father, Eiji, worsens with age. Struggling alone, she presents a stoic face to the world, too quiet and maybe too scared to speak up for herself. Finally, she turns to the city office to apply for welfare which is where caseworker Munemura, a genuine and sympathetic person, starts to investigate Naoko to see if she qualifies for help. [Jason MAHER]

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Solids by the Seashore by Patiparn Boontarig – Thailand | 2023 – 93 minutes

The beautiful landscape and traditional customs of a seaside town in the south of Thailand inform the setting and form a backdrop for a tentative romance between Shati, a local Muslim woman from a conservative family eager to marry her off, and Fon, an outgoing activist-turned-visual artist who has returned to the area to put on an exhibition of her work. As Shati guides Fon around the hills and beaches, they discuss environmental issues, share past experiences, and discover a mutual attraction. However, same-sex relationships aren’t easily accepted. Torn between duty and desire, Shati must choose which path to follow to forge her own identity. As a critical point approaches, Shati is reminded of the old cautionary tales from her childhood told by her late and beloved grandmother as they begin to resonate with her life. [Jason MAHER]

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Swimming in a Sand Pool by Yamashita Nobuhiro – Japan | 2024 – 87 minutes | World Premiere

It is summer vacation but high schoolers Kokoro and Miku have been instructed by their PE teacher, Yamamoto, to clean the swimming pool. The pool has been drained of water and it is covered with sand from the baseball team’s field next door. Thus, under the blazing sun, they are meant to sweep the sand but distractions abound as Chizuru and Yui join them and stray in their path. Together, they initially discuss school life, love and makeup but it isn’t long before their worries begin to overflow and their thoughts intersect…[Jason MAHER]

The Missing by Carl Joseph E. Papa – Philippines | 2023 – 90 minutes

Eric is an animator who lives in Metro Manila. He is close to his mother Rosalinda and has a crush on his coworker Carlo. Most excitingly, it seems the feeling is mutual. What makes him different is that he has no mouth and gets by with a whiteboard and text. Despite this, he and Carlo look to be on lock for a date. This is when Rosalinda calls Eric and asks him to check on his uncle who seems to have gone missing. Eric and Carlo go and check only to find the uncle dead. When Carlo goes for help, Eric is abducted by an alien who first visited him as a child…[Jason MAHER]

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Undertaker by Thiti Srinuan – Thailand | 2023 – 125 minutes

Strange things are afoot in the village of Non Khun, Thailand. A pregnant woman named Baikhao has hung herself and has come back as an angry spirit haunting various people, driving some to death. With this supernatural set-up, a slacker comedy involving the laidback villagers getting spooked and a tragic romance centred on Baikhao’s ex-boyfriend, Siang, occurs as he tries to keep in touch with her via astral projection. Caught in the middle is Joed, a returnee from Bangkok who is too caught up in law school exam practice to see the horror haunting his small town. All the better for him since he is scared of ghosts, but since his father, Sak, is the last undertaker in the region and knows all superstitions, it is only a matter of time before Joed is dragged in and faces Siang and his addiction to visiting his love Baikhao in the spirit world. Alas, with life, you only die once but with love, you die multiple times…[Jason MAHER]

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More information: https://oaff.jp/en/