North American Premiere
Haunting, mysterious, and mournful, Chong Keat Aun’s film explores the persecution of the Malaysian Chinese. The first part of Chong’s story concerns May 13, 1969, the day when racial mob violence in Kuala Lumpur led to many killings—mostly of Chinese people. In the second part of the film, set in 2018, middle-aged Ah Eng (Wan Fang) leaves her husband to embark on a mysterious quest. Chong deliberately keeps the story somewhat murky for much of the film’s running time, but when the connections are revealed during a graveside conversation, what emerges is clarifying and powerful. Snow in Midsummer is a film of protest, but it’s many other things as well: an examination of grief, a complex sociological portrait, a work that gracefully explores the possibilities of the long take… Perhaps best of all, it’s a loving depiction of traditional Chinese opera, with the first part of the film set among the milieu of live performance and the second part paying a wistful tribute to the art form.
Community Partner
Wan Fang, Pearlly Chua, Rexen Cheng, Pauline Tan, Peter Yu, Alvin Wong
Malaysia/Taiwan/Singapore
2023
Panorama
In Malay, Mandarin and Cantonese with English subtitles
Book Tickets
Indigenous & Community Access
Credits
Producer
Kew Soon Wong, Gene Yao, Wai Thong Chow, Jennifer Jao
Screenwriter
Keat Aun Chong
Cinematography
Jerry Hsu
Editor
Ai Chen Goh
Production Design
Bao Shan Chiang
Original Music
Kah Hoe Yii, Keat Aun Chong
Director
Keat Aun Chong
Chong Keat Aun is an award-winning Malaysian writer-director. His first short Cemetery of Courtesy was shortlisted for the 22nd Busan International Film Festival. His directorial debut The Story of Southern Islet earned him the award for Best New Director and the FIPRESCI Prize and NETPAC Prize at the 57th Golden Horse Awards in 2020.
Filmography: The Story of Southern Islet (2020)
Missing VIFF? Check out what's playing at the VIFF Centre
Chez Jolie Coiffure
Having immigrated to Belgium from Cameroon, Sabine manages Chez Jolie Coiffure. Her salon patrons, many of them undocumented immigrants, are not only be made to feel beautiful but can also escape the daily difficulties and harsh realities of their lives.
No Other Land
Deemed by many critics one of the essential films of 2024, a multiple festival award winner and a nominee for the Academy Award for Best Documentary, No Other Land is a reminder that mass expulsion is by no means a new reality for Palestinians.
Atlantics
In Dakar, Ada loves Souleiman but has been promised to another man. One night, Souleiman and his co-workers leave the country by sea. Several days later, a fire ruins Ada's wedding and a mysterious fever starts to spread. It seems Souleiman has returned.