Skip to main content
Riceboy Sleeps film image, director Anthony Shim

Riceboy Sleeps

This event has passed

Raising her young son Dong-hyun (Dohyun Noel Hwang) in Vancouver’s suburbs in the 90s, So-young (Choi Seung-yoon), a South Korean immigrant and single mom, desperately wants to instill a sense of pride in the boy. In turn, he only wants to be considered “Canadian” in hopes of avoiding bullying at school. As Dong-hyun (now played by Ethan Hwang) grows older, his frustrations over knowing nothing about his father are only exasperated when So-young introduces a surrogate patriarch into his life. A cruel twist of fate sends the pair back to South Korea, where all will be revealed about the family’s history.

Elegantly interweaving social realism with fable-like sequences, Anthony Shim (Daughter, VIFF 2019) makes sublime use of Christopher Lew’s glorious cinematography and Andrew Yong Hoon Lee’s expressive score to craft a film that’s both emotionally and sensorially rich. Wedding autobiographical elements with more universal concerns, he likewise achieves an exquisite balance between Dong-hyun and So-young’s perspectives. The generosity extended to his characters makes the ensuing drama all the more rewarding.

 

Platform Award, TIFF 2022

 

Q&A Sept 30 & Oct 3

 

Presented by

Media Partner

Global BC Logo 

Director
Cast

Choi Seung-yoon, Ethan Hwang, Dohyun Noel Hwang, Anthony Shim, Hunter Dillon, Jerina Son

Credits
Country of Origin

Canada

Year

2022

Language

In English and Korean with English subtitles

Film Contact
Links
Content Warning

Racial Discrimination

18+

At Vancouver Playhouse

19+

At The Rio

117 min
Award Winners Drama

Book Tickets

This event has passed.

Missing VIFF? Check out what's playing at the VIFF Centre

Paprika

Dir. Satoshi Kon
90 min

A device capable of transmitting dreams falls into the wrong hands in this dazzling anime meta-movie from visionary filmmaker Satoshi Kon. The imagery here is never less than overwhelming; it's probably the greatest scifi movie of our times.

VIFF Centre - VIFF Cinema VIFF Centre - Lochmaddy Studio Theatre

Stealing Angel

Dir. Robert Guédiguian
101 min

In this humane comedy from Marseille filmmaker Robert Guédiguian a trusted caregiver takes advantage of her clients, stealing to support her grandson's piano lessons. When her theft is discovered the repercussions are surprising...

VIFF Centre - Lochmaddy Studio Theatre VIFF Centre - VIFF Cinema

Stop Making Sense

Dir. Jonathan Demme
88 min

Universally acclaimed as one of the greatest concert films ever made, the Talking Heads at their peak -- as selected by VIFF+ Premium member Adam PW Smith.

VIFF Centre - VIFF Cinema
Georgia O'Keeffe: the Brightness of Light
Georgia O’Keeffe: The Brightness of Light film image; painted reds, pinks, oranges, and yellows that combine to look like a flower

Georgia O'Keeffe: the Brightness of Light

Dir. Paul Wagner
118 min

Drawing on her copious correspondence and the world's leading scholars, this is a definitive documentary on the life and work of "the mother of American Modernism."

VIFF Centre - Lochmaddy Studio Theatre

Woman at War

Dir. Benedikt Erlingsson
101 min

This month's Talking Pictures screening is a rousing comedy about an Icelandic choirmaster waging a one-woman eco-war against the powers that be. Join us for free snacks and chit chat after the movie!

VIFF Centre - VIFF Cinema

The White Ribbon

Dir. Michael Haneke
145 min

A German village in 1913 is rocked by a series of macabre events. Michael Haneke's most expansive filmm a Palme d'Or winner, explores the roots of fascism.

VIFF Centre - VIFF Cinema

Credits

Executive Producer

Matt Kerr, Charlie Kerr, Giuliana Bertuzzi

Producer

Anthony Shim, Rebecca Steele, Bryan Demore

Screenwriter

Anthony Shim

Cinematography

Christopher Lew

Editor

Anthony Shim

Production Design

Louisa Birkin

Original Music

Andrew Yong Hoon Lee

Director

Anthony Shim headshot, Riceboy Sleeps director

Anthony Shim

Anthony Shim immigrated to Vancouver from Seoul with his family in the early 1990s. He began his career as an actor and served as the co-founder and artistic director of Blind Pig Theatre. In 2019, Shim made his first feature film Daughter, which had its world premiere at the Vancouver International Film Festival.

Filmography: Daughter (2019)