In the Shadow of the Pines + Past Lives
This cycle showcases the cinematic works of filmmakers from East Asian diasporas, exploring North American identity in their films.
2 Academy Awards nomination, for Best Picture and Best Original Screenplay
In the Shadow of the Pines is an animated short documentary about a difficult father-daughter relationship. Drawing on childhood memories, Anne Koizumi, the filmmaker, explores her upbringing with her Japanese immigrant dad, who was also the janitor at the elementary school she attended.
Nora and Hae Sung, two deeply connected childhood friends, are wrest apart after Nora’s family emigrates from South Korea. Two decades later, they are reunited in New York for one fateful week as they confront notions of destiny, love, and the choices that make a life, in this heartrending modern romance.
Celine Song
Celine Song is a South Korean-Canadian filmmaker, playwright, and screenwriter based in the United States. Her play Endlings, which premiered in 2019 at the American Repertory Theatre, narrates the tale of three elderly Korean haenyeo women and a Korean-Canadian writer. In 2020, she directed a live production of Chekhov's The Seagull using The Sims 4 on Twitch for the New York Theatre Workshop, titled The Seagull on The Sims 4. She ventured into television as a screenwriter for the Prime Video series The Wheel of Time. Additionally, she penned the screenplay for her directorial debut film, Past Lives, earning an Academy Award nomination for Best Original Screenplay. Produced by A24, the film premiered at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival, garnering acclaim from critics who likened it to the works of Richard Linklater and Noah Baumbach.
