2019 SDAFF Spring Showcase is here!

The 9th Annual San Diego Asian Film Festival (SDAFF) Spring Showcase, presented by Pacific Arts Movement (Pac Arts) will be taking place on April 11-18 at the UltraStar Mission Valley. This year, a majority of the showcased films highlight South Asian and Southeast Asian stories. There will also be a special collection of milestone Filipino films shown as a part of the program “From The Claws of Darkness: Restoring Philippine Cinema”, which brings the second golden age of Philippine film to the big screen for audiences to enjoy once again, including “Moral,” “Himala,” and “Batch ‘81”and “Manila In The Claws of Light.” "With our extensive focus on new films from South and Southeast Asia and our retrospective of classics from the Philippines, we aim for nothing less than transforming the face of Asian cinema here in the United States,” says Pac Arts Artistic Director Brian Hu.

This year’s SDAFF Spring Showcase will also screen four films that shed light on queer Asian stories spanning time and place including “Ek Ladki Ko Dekha Toh Aisa Laga,” “Song Lang,” “Memories of My Body” and “First Night Nerves.”

PROGRAM HIGHLIGHTS

• FIRST NIGHT NERVES | Opening Night Film, April 11 An anticipated new play brings together rivals, Yuan Xiuling, returning to acting after a five-year retirement, and He Yuwen, the starlet who supplanted her as the queen of Hong Kong entertainment. Drama unfolds and past secrets are discovered both backstage and onstage in this comedic yet dramatic story by legendary director Stanley Kwan. 
• MANILA IN THE CLAWS OF LIGHT | Special Series, April 12 This year’s SDAFF Spring Showcase special series is From The Claws of Darkness: Restoring Philippine Cinema, a presentation of the some of the most important works of the second golden age of Philippine cinema and 1 of 3 a celebration of the 100 years of the country’s film history. Directed by Lino Brocka, “Manila in the Claws of Light” is the consensus pick as the greatest Filipino film of all time and bakes 1970s romanticism into gritty urban realism to create a sweaty noir masterpiece. 
• SWING KIDS | April 13 & April 16 Director Kang Hyoung-Chul (“Sunny”), paints a picture of the harsh reality of life in a POW camp set to the sound of persistent tap shoes during the Korean War. Featuring K-pop star Do Kyung-soo (D.O. of EXO) and Broadway star Jared Grimes, “Swing Kids” is a thrilling story of overcoming obstacles of oppression and war through dance. 
• EK LADKI KO DEKHA TOH AISA LAGA | Closing Night Film, April 18 As the first high-profile Bollywood film centering on a lesbian character, “Ek Ladki Ko Dekha To Aisa Laga” is a gorgeous drama testing the bonds of family with a comedy of misrecognition. Director Shelly Chopra Dhar not only is able to overcome an industry that is so invested in bloodlines, tradition, and marriage, but also reinvents the Bollywood film genre itself. 

COMPLETE SPRING SHOWCASE LINEUP 
● ARUNA AND HER PALATE ARUNA & LIDAHNYA (North American Premiere) – Indonesia, 106 mins, directed by Edwin*
● BATCH ‘81 ΑΚΩ 81 – Philippines, 108 mins, directed by Mike De Leon
● GO BACK TO CHINA – USA, 96 minutes, directed by Emily Ting*
● THE CROSSING 過春天 - China, 99 mins, directed by Bai Xue
● EK LADKI KO DEKHA TOH AISA LAGA - India, 120 mins, directed by Shelley Chopra Dhar
● FIRST NIGHT NERVES 八個女人一台戲 - Hong Kong, 100 mins, directed by Stanley Kwan
● HIMALA – Philippines, 124 mins, directed by Ishmael Bernal
● MANILA IN THE CLAWS OF LIGHT MAYNILA SA MGA KUKO NG LIWANAG – Philippines, 125 mins, directed by Lino Brocka
● MORAL – Philippines, 140 mins, directed by Marilou Diaz-Abaya*
● MEMORIES OF MY BODY KUCUMBU TUBUH INDAHKU (North American Premiere) – Indonesia, 105 mins, directed by Garin Nugroho
● MYSTERY KUNG FU THEATER – no details needed
● PHOTOGRAPH – India, 110 mins, directed by Ritesh Batra
● REZA (West Coast Premiere) – Iran, 94 mins, directed by Alireza Motamedi*
● SONG LANG (West Coast Premiere) – Vietnam, 100 mins, directed by Leon Le*
● SWING KIDS 스윙키즈 – South Korea, 133 mins, directed by Kang Hyoung-Chul
● WAITING FOR SUNSET KUNG PAANO HINHINTAY ANG DAPITHAPON (North American Premiere) – Philippines, 90 mins, directed by Carlo Enciso Catu* 

Ticketing Information Tickets General $12-15 | Student/Senior/Military $10

SPONSORS 
The 2019 SDAFF Spring Showcase is supported in part by funding from The City of San Diego Commission for Arts and Culture, the County of San Diego, the City of San Diego, McGregor and Associates, Wawanesa Insurance, Stella Artois, Southwest Airlines, AARP, Crab Hut Restaurants, DPI Direct, San Diego Chinese Women’s Association, Zion Market, KPBS, and The San Diego Union-Tribune.

ABOUT THE SAN DIEGO ASIAN FILM FESTIVAL SPRING SHOWCASE 
The SDAFF Spring Showcase is a week-long presentation of the best of Asian and Asian American cinema including a special Sunday series focusing on a specific topic or individual, held annually. Past showcases have presented a curation of films on the 40th anniversary of the Fall of Saigon in “Cinema Little Saigon,” the 75th anniversary of Executive Order 9066 in “Right to Resist” as well as the 100th anniversary of Philippine cinema in “From the Claws of Darkness.”

ABOUT THE SAN DIEGO ASIAN FILM FESTIVAL
The 20th Annual San Diego Asian Film Festival takes place from November 7-16, 2019. In 2018, the 10-day festival showcased over 160 independent and foreign films from more than 20 countries at six different venues across San Diego county. Over 15,000 people attended the star-studded red carpet awards night, screenings, Q&As, and panel discussions. The annual festival receives national and regional attention for its awards and premieres.

ABOUT PACIFIC ARTS MOVEMENT 
Pac Arts launched in 2000 when it debuted the San Diego Asian Film Festival, a presentation of Asian American and Asian international cinema. Rooted in the love of film and the arts, global citizenship, and Asian culture and communities, Pac Arts became an official nonprofit media arts organization in 2002, and is now one of the most significant exhibitions of Asian cinema in North America. Pac Arts presents major annual events celebrating Asian American Pacific Islander representation and storytelling: the SDAFF Spring Showcase (April), Chew The Scene (October) and the San Diego Asian Film Festival (November).