When your interview starts with lots of laughter, you know that the conversation is going to be a delightful experience. Kevin Derek is an interesting person; he is smart, humorous and self-critical. But, above all, he is a thoughtful and very passionate, award-winning documentary filmmaker whose latest production More Than Miyagi: The Pat Morita Story…
Category: Documentary
“More Than Miyagi: The Pat Morita Story” Review
“Wax on, wax off”, almost every single generation is familiar with Mr. Miyagi’s famous words from The Karate Kid. Pat Morita, often known for his memorable role as the above-mentioned sensei, was a man of many talents, and what he managed to achieve during his life was incredible. The Karate Kid made Morita into a…
I am Samuel Review
The criminalisation of same-sex relationships in Africa is commonplace. In 2013, 38 African countries made homosexuality a crime under the law. Opposition to people of different sexual orientation has become more and more visible, with Kenya being one of those countries where homosexuality is criminalised and socially unacceptable; if convicted, a person could face up…
BlackStar Film Festival: Pier Kids Review
“You can’t choose your family”, or so the saying goes. But for many LGBTQ+ youth this simply isn’t the case, as Elegance Bratton’s hard-hitting and poignant documentary about homeless queer kids of colour shows.
BlackStar Film Festival Announces Full Lineup, Ticketing, and More for 2020 Festival
BlackStar Film Festival, the world’s premier celebration of Black, Brown, and Indigenous film and video artists, is pleased to announce the full lineup of films for the 2020 program, which will take place August 20-26, 2020. In response to COVID-19, the ninth edition of the festival will be presented entirely online this year. This year’s…
What Walaa Wants Review
‘Be careful what you wish for’ is the ominous phrase told to children all over the world when they are desperately grasping for something they don’t quite understand. In this case, young Walaa Khaled Fawzy Tanji wants nothing more than to gain a firm grasp of power in a world she has absolutely no authority…
3rd London East Asia Film Festival: Tropical Fish Review
Chen Yu-Hsun dishes up a lively and lovable comedy-drama with this New Taiwanese Cinema classic. Originally released in 1995, Tropical Fish encapsulates an authentic and personal look at Taiwanese approaches to family-living and the nation’s harsh school system. Mocking how concerned families are with school exams and how ludicrous the studying regime for adolescents can…
3rd London East Asia Film Festival: In Conversation with Kim Ji-young, Director of ‘Intention’
Kim Ji-young attracted audiences’ attention when he directed two documentaries: Fraser Report – Who Made South Korea Economics Grows Rapidly and Hundred Years’ War in Korea: Two-Face of Syngman Rhyee in 2012. A few years later, along with the help from investigative journalist Oh Hee-jung, he tackled the subject of the Sewol Ferry Disaster. Researched mostly in secret…
Destination Unknown Review
No one will ever give a truer account of the fight and life during the Second World War – or any war – like the people who survived it. Even 72 years after the WWII ended, we still get to hear reports of what happened from the handful of people who live to tell what…
“We Are X” Review
“If you put your everything into something, your life … you don’t lose. If worst comes to worst, you die.” (Yoshiki) 1975 was a formative year for one Yoshiki Hayashi, who – despite his life being limited by several ailments (and a severe case of asthma) – was a shining classical music prodigy; at the…
VIEW OF THE ARTS 