10 Must-see short films from the 14th Diaspora Film Festival 2026

By Asian Film Festival on May 22, 2026 • ( Leave a comment )

These are ten short films you shouldn’t miss at the Diaspora Film Festival which is taking place from May 22 – 26, 2026 in Incheon, South Korea.

A Little Regret in Helsinki by Haohao Qiaoshi Liu – Finland | 2025 – 14 minutes

A Chinese girl returns home to Helsinki, with a desire to reassess her feelings about home, perfection, friendship, and regret. A tender dialogue is raised between father and daughter. (Mubi)

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Alone in Tehran by Amen Sahraei – Iran | 2025 – 15 minutes

During the Israeli attacks on Iran and the evacuation of Tehran, she had no choice but to stay behind. In a silenced, nearly abandoned city, with nothing but her phone, she began to record the final days that felt like the end of everything. This is a war diary, raw, fragmented, intimate, and real. It captures the dread and beauty of surviving through isolation, violence, and the haunting quietness of a vanishing world. Shot in the streets and indoors during the active conflict, this film is not only a testimony to survival, but to the act of documenting when all else collapses.

Ban Dal (Half-moon) by Sin Hae-sup – Switzerland | 2026 – 22 minutes

Annette, a Swiss woman, accompanies her adopted son to South Korea to meet his biological mother. But the reunion confronts both mothers with unspoken emotions, old wounds, and the question of what it truly means to be a mother. (Mubi)

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Bora by Li Qian – China | 2025 – 40 minutes

On a journey to scatter her grandmother’s ashes in her mother’s hometown, a 26-year-old Korean-Chinese girl reconnects with her estranged mother, torn between leaving and staying. (Mubi)

Hip Hip Hooray! by Kim Ju-one – Korea | 2026 – 21 minutes

The film follows Ksenia’s spunky daily life and the troupe’s journey toward their ballet performance. The children portrayed are no different from those found anywhere else in Korea: some give their absolute best, while others quietly fulfill their roles with nonchalant faces. Simply watching these children from diverse backgrounds come together to dance provides reason enough to watch this film. If one’s eyes well up during their performance, it is likely because we can faintly glimpse the future these children will build together. (Park Joonho)

Homeless Christmas by Lee Jaein – Korea | 2026 – 30 minutes

Minsu, a country girl, arrives in Seoul without her phone or any money. Facing the prospect of spending Christmas homeless, she decides to head to the only address she knows in the city, the home of her first crush. This marks the directorial debut of rising star Lee Jaein, who has been garnering attention through films such as Svaha: The Sixth Finger and HI-FIVE, as well as numerous TV series. After a long period of personal preparation, she both directed the film and played the lead character, drawing on aspects of herself in shaping the role. (Central Park Films)

I Wish, Lucky by Shin Jungyun – Korea | 2026 – 13 minutes

I Wish, Lucky follows Sara, a Korean overseas adoptee who experiences profound cultural and linguistic disconnection upon returning to Korea and meeting a local relative. While a Korean folktale reference highlighting this alienation underscores their inability to communicate, the film shows Sara eventually finding a moment of connection through universal, trans-linguistic images.

My Scarred Move by Park Nayoung – Korea |2025 – 13 minutes

In the documentary short My Scarred Move, director Park Na-young explores the psychological impact of a nomadic childhood dictated by a father’s military career, examining how frequent relocation fosters a permanent sense of being an outsider. The film highlights the personal trauma of displacement and the familial divide created when a patriarch’s career decisions erase a child’s sense of belonging and agency. The narrative serves as an incomplete, yet courageous, confession and a pledge toward personal healing.

Nowhere, Somewhere by An Huilin – Korea | 2026 – 21 minutes

Park Lim, who grew up alone in China, wanted to stay and work in Korea to continue receiving the maternal love she lacked as a child, even now. However, she and her mother clash over their differing views on discrimination.

We Were the Scenery by Christopher Radcliff – USA, Canada | 2025 – 15 minutes

In 1975, soon after the end of the Vietnam War, Hoa Thi Le and Hue Nguyen Che fled the country on a small boat. After nine days at sea, they docked in the Philippines, where they were utilized as background extras for “Apocalypse Now.”” (Mubi)

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