film

Stories from Kazakhstan, Iran, Hong Kong and beyond hit Barcelona screens this month thanks to the 7^th edition of the Asian Film Festival. Hosted at Cinemes Girona and Filmoteca and totaling 100 full-length films, plus shorts and documentaries, this is the festival’s most ambitious program to date.

Opening proceedings on October 30^th is Ayka by Sergey Dvortsevoy, an intense drama about a Kyrgyz woman trying to survive in Moscow after abandoning her newborn. Another highlight is Oliver Chan’s Still Human, the story of a disabled Hong Kong pensioner and his Filipina employee, and the retrospective dedicated to Japanese director Yasujirô Ozu.

Running from October 30^th, this year the festival also holds an Off-Festival at CaixaForum from October 4^th focused around Iranian cinema, with screenings of recent productions including Mazdak Mirabedini’s Footwork, about an actor returning to Tehran after failing to achieve his American dream.

(A session costs €4 at CaixaForum and the Filmoteca or €6 at Cinemes Girona)