22nd New York Asian Film Festival

The 22nd New York Asian Film Festival was held in New York on 14 July with North American premiere of South Korean film Killing Romance by Lee Won-suk, who attended the screening in person. In the 22nd edition seventy eight titles were screened in person. The lineup included eight world premieres, nine international premieres, thirty-two North American premieres, three U.S. premieres, and sixteen East Coast/New York premieres. Films from various genres from Hong Kong, Japan, China, South Korea, the Philippines, Malaysia, Indonesia, Taiwan, Thailand, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Singapore, Vietnam, the United Kingdom, and the United States were screened.

In Star Asia Awards category, Asian stars were honoured with various awards such as: Louis Koo a Hong Kong actor, singer and film producer with Extraordinary Star Asia Award; Junji Sakamoto, a Japanese film director, with Screen International Star Asia Lifetime Achievement Award; Ryohei Suzuki, a Japanese actor, with Screen International Rising Star Asia Award; and Lee Hanee a South Korean actress, model, classical musician, with Best from the East Award.

The festival was closed on 30 July with Anthony Stacchi's animated Netflix film The Monkey King. It is the first time the festival has partnered with Netflix for the world premiere of a film, which was held before the August 18 worldwide release on Netflix. Malaysian film Abang Adik by Jin Ong won the Uncaged Award for best feature film. It is a directorial debut feature of Jin Ong and follows two orphaned brothers whose bond is tested after a brutal accident. The Audience Award was awarded to Taiwanese film Marry My Dead Body, a LGBTQ+ story from director Cheng Wei-hao. In his closing speech the NYAFF Executive Director and President of the New York Asian Film Foundation Samuel Jamier said, “2023 marked a giant leap forward for the festival, in terms of audience size (with a 35% increase in attendance, and the largest number of sold out screenings), numbers of films and guest filmmakers and actors (over 100 guests from Asia), a major partnership with Netflix and a whole new, expanded pool of donors.”

Jury

 * Po-Chih Leong: British-Chinese film director. He has worked in England, Hong Kong, and the United States.
 * Rebecca Choi: VP, Narrative Film at Archer Gray, a media company in New York City, New York.
 * Anna Isabella Matutina: A filmmaker, documentarian and editor based in the Philippines.
 * Chieko Murata: Co-producer at The Japan Broadcasting Corporation, (NHK)
 * Donsaron Kovitvanitcha: A film writer, critic, journalist and independent film producer based in Thailand.
 * Ko Mori: A film producer and the founding CEO of Los Angeles-based Eleven Arts Studio.
 * Lauren Yee: An American playwright, screenwriter and TV writer whose many acclaimed plays include Cambodian Rock Band and The Great Leap (2018).

Screening venues

 * Film at Lincoln Center
 * Walter Reade Theater
 * Asia Society
 * Barrymore Film Center, Fort Lee, New Jersey
 * LOOK Dine-In Cinemas

Films showcase
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Films by country or region
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Uncaged Award for Best Feature Film Competition
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 * Highlighted title indicates the Uncaged Award for best feature film winner.