Time for Asean films to shine

The pandemic notwithstanding, it has been a stimulating year for Southeast Asian cinema. Reflective, heartfelt and oddball new titles from Indonesia, Cambodia, Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand have won major prizes or become critical favourites at international film festivals throughout 2021. Now, many of these films are coming to the big screen in Thailand as the Bangkok Asean Film Festival 2021 (BAFF) is set to open tonight.

With 15 feature-length films and a dozen shorts on the slate, the seventh edition of the festival that began as a regional showcase is expanding its horizon. Besides films from Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Laos (through France) and Thailand, the BAFF this year also includes one title each from China, India, Japan and South Korea. Three heritage films — from Myanmar, South Korea and Thailand –…