21-06-2023

SECOND PROGRAMMING PREVIEW: LA BASSA AND MIDNIGHT SESSIONS

The Asian Summer Film Festival, which takes place from July 18 to 23, continues to unveil the program of its 20th edition, now with the titles that will be part of FesNits at la Bassa and the midnight sessions at the Joan Triadú Civic Center. The most characteristic and multitudinous location of the festival offers meals, exhibitions and screenings dedicated to several Asian countries. This year it will be inaugurated with a night dedicated to China, followed by Japan, Thailand, South Korea and India, closing the festival with a session in which the awards will also be announced.

Every night a journey. The first night of the festival will have a key protagonist: Jackie Chan. The famous actor and action choreographer, with an extensive filmography behind him, heads the cast of Ride On and also of A Beauty Carved in Time, the short film that will precede it. In the opening film, directed by Larry Yang and distributed nationally by Cinemaran, Jackie Chan is a retired martial artist whose horse is stolen and has to embark on a road trip with his daughter and her boyfriend. An adventure, action and comedy film in which the Chinese actor proves that at 70 he is still in great shape. The session will be completed with a heartfelt declaration of love for cinema in the form of a short film. Yang Zi's A Beauty Carved in Time tells the story of an old movie buff who struggles with his memory by revisiting the films of (and with) his idol, Jackie Chan.

Wednesday night, July 19th, will be dedicated to Japanese culture with the Spanish premiere of the black action comedy Baby Assassins, the sequel to which can also be seen as a premiere at the festival, and Thursday night, July 20th, Thailand is featured with Inhuman Kiss: The Last Breath. Paphangkorn Punchantarak's film, which will have its international premiere at festivals, hybridizes a romantic plot with elements of horror, Thai folklore and mythology, revisiting the records of one of the great successes of the Asian Summer Film Fest, Pee Mak, and featuring spectacular visual effects

On Friday night, the 21, it will be the turn of South Korea with the fast-paced thriller Special Delivery, and on the last night, Saturday 22nd, the Indian film KBKJ (Kisi Ka Bhai Kisi Ki Jaan) will fill the Bassa's big screen with a colorful compendium of genres, action and dance choreographies in pure Bollywood style and a story about the eldest brother of a big family who refuses to get married to take care of his three brothers... until he falls in love. Farhad Samji's film is one of the great Indian titles of the year, produced by and starring Salman Khan.

Japanese horror, giant sharks and ninja action in midnight sessions. On Friday and Saturday night, the Joan Triadú Civic Center will host the midnight sessions of the festival, the first one dedicated to Japanese horror and the second one to ninja movies. Japanese producer Yoshinori Chiba, responsible for films by renowned directors such as Sion Sono and Takashi Miike, has chosen the Asian Summer Film Fest to present the first titles of his new company, Yabai-Ze!. They are Devil's Residents 2, by Katsumi Sasaki, Okamuro San, by Yujito Matsuno, and Ninja vs Shark, by Koichi Sakamoto. The first two will be screened on Friday night, starting at midnight, and promise to resurrect the most extreme and underground Japanese horror, while Ninja vs Shark will join the new film by one of the most beloved filmmakers of the Asian Summer Film Fest, Yoshihiro Nishimura, Samurai Ninja Onimanji. The two late-night sessions constitute the festival's most nocturnal program.

Share