A directorial collaboration between brothers Xu Haofeng and Xu Junfeng, 100 Yards (2023) is a martial arts film set against the backdrop of a westernizing 1920s Northern China. When an influential martial arts master passes away and appoints his apprentice Quan as his successor, the master’s son An engages the apprentice in a power struggle that upheaves both their martial arts circle and the entire city.
Spanish director Belén Funes’ The Exiles (original title: Los Tortuga) peers at that fragile relationship through the lens of its two main characters as they attempt to strike a balance between their own perceptions of each other and reality.
Imagine you have spent years of your life with your partner, working together to maintain a family business. You’ve invested all the money you have and spent every day labouring all to have it taken away from you because your name is missing from one document. How far would you go to get it back?
With Lily’s severe lack of paternal love and Bob’s childless marriage, the film explores how the bizarre duo connect and fulfill each other's personal voids. Bob Trevino Likes It is a heartwarming and healing film about chosen families whose posts are always worth liking.
A coming-of-age adventure film, The Mountain (2024) follows a trio of Kiwi pre-teens in their journey for healing, culture, and heritage as they attempt to scale the glorious Mount Taranaki. I had the opportunity to speak with both Rachel House and Terence Daniel—a young actor making his debut through the role of Bronco, a sharp-minded Māori boy—on their personal influences, shooting experience, and thematic goals for the film.
All I’ve Got & Then Some (2024) is an autobiographical feature inspired by the life and events of star and co-director Rasheed Stephens. I had the opportunity to speak to Stephens and Tehben Dean—his talented co-director, co-writer, and cinematographer—about the filmmaking process, dreams, and what it means to tell a story so uncut and personal.
Chuck Chuck Baby is a musical comedy that centers on working-class women and their friendship and love. I had the chance to sit down with director and writer Janis Pugh on her first feature, set in Pugh’s hometown in Northern Wales.
Namjoon presents his uncensored feelings through an eclectic mix of genres and an exploration of whether he’s been living the right way as both Namjoon, a guy in his 20s, and RM, leader of world-renowned K-pop group BTS.
‘Muse’ is not Jimin saying, “I was sad, but now I’m happy and in love.” It is, instead, a refreshingly honest look at how one emerges from a low point—a cautious, curious exploration of how to love and be loved again.
The kids riding bikes, the crawling through gutters, the guardrails, the fence, the isolation in a crowd—when I saw “Domodachi,” I saw Hirokazu Koreeda’s 2023 film Monster echoing through every frame. It is a reference I did not expect and a word I have not related to Namjoon for a long time.
From the onset of the film, its protagonist—Kid, played by Dev Patel—is placed in the context of the animal-human-god trichotomy.
Crumb Catcher works with an absurd premise—what if a business pitch went really, really wrong?—and pushes it as far as it’ll go. I spoke with Chris Skotchdopole about the inspirations for his debut feature film, writing from a place of character, and what goes into a great car chase scene.