Opening tonight, the 3rd edition of the MINT Chinese Film Festival returns to Keswick until Sunday, February 23rd.
The festival will bring over 30 of the best Chinese and Asian films, featuring curated film programmes and screenings, a festival gala, exciting UK, EU, and world premieres, director Q&As, an inspiring curatorial workshop and an industry drink co-hosting with Women X Film Festival.
Alongside the film festival, enjoy the first-ever outdoor Asian Arts & Craft Market, along with a series of complimentary cultural activities.
Here’s what to expect.
The opening gala is a special She-themed event, featuring two highly anticipated Chinese films, accompanied by drink receptions. The premiere of Chinatown Cha-Cha, a road trip documentary about a Chinese American senior dance group, with an on-site Q&A with director Luka Yuanyuan Yang and a Swing dance performance after the screening. Immediately afterwards is the classic Tssui Hark fantasy film Green Snake.
The 22nd sees a screening of Alice Wu’s romantic comedy Saving Faceand if it’s classics you’re looking for then Sunday will be a presentation of Wong Kar-wai’s absolutely iconic and heartbreaking In the Mood for Love.
One of the highlights of the festival will be the premiere of Lou Ye’s An Unfinished Film, a meta-film that combines documentary and fiction, where the real film crew play themselves and footage from Ye’s previous films are clipped into a movie that’s about making a movie during the COVID-19 pandemic. It’s the sort of must-watch meta nonsense I love.
On top of this, horror will be making an appearance in the form of the Malaysian film Tiger Stripes,a body horror that made waves in its native Malaysia after certain sections were removed from the film.
Lastly, the festival’s competition strand sees films from varied parts of Asia, including Japan (Desert of Namibia), Iran (Shahid) – another docufiction, Vietnam (Cu Li Never Cries), and South Korea (Time to be Strong).
If you’re in the Lake District Area, be sure to check it out. Tickets can be found here,
The Asian Cinema Critic 