Opening Screening: Where We Dwell

Eunice Faye Dionisio (Calgary, AB) YOUTH
Vancouver Premiere
Duration: 2:35

In Ballroom, Vogue movement is a language. We communicate with each other through the intricacies of our hands and the techniques we learned from our teachers in Ballroom. Storytelling is a huge part of it all and is used to connect to your peers and competitors, creating a community that allows for intimacy and togetherness.

Director, Cinematographer, Editor: Mat Harvey
Producer: Eunice Faye Dionisio
Dancers: Eunice Faye Dionisio, Shandie Ta, Justin Larioza, Roubert Dilidili
Jewelry: Brat Beadz
Music: "I Wanna Dance" by Artem Uzunov

Gabrielle Tyrie (Toronto, ON) YOUTH
Vancouver Premiere
Duration: 7:03

Inspired by the etymology of the word “versus”, “Versus, Versus, Verses” is a two-channel video combining dance, film and poetry. From the metaphorical to the literal the whole universe is whirring and turning. Using the visual motif of a spiral, artist and filmmaker, Gabrielle Tyrie and dancer Abdulla Hassan, collect the ways in which you can dance and render a turning system. 

Director, Writer, Narrator: Gabrielle Tyrie
Performer: Abdulla Hassan
Music: Sierra Weston and Gabrielle Tyrie

Niya Ahmed Abdullahi (Toronto, ON) YOUTH
Canadian Premiere
Duration: 7:45

Lost in a trance between conversations of the past, old worlds, and alternative realities. Marium is called for prayer during this journey home. Alas she tries, to find, her place.

Director, Writer, Producer: Niya Ahmed Abdullahi
Editor, Sound Design: Ella Saini
Director of Photography: Rividu Mendis
First AC: Isaac Tang
Colourist: Tarneem Allati
Starring: Marium Zakaria, Zeynab Neguse

Melissa Lam (Vancouver, BC) YOUTH
Duration: 1:36

“No Less Asian” explores the struggles and triumphs of being a 2nd Generation Asian-Canadian, portrayed through the medium of dance.

In honor of this year's AANHPI History Month in May, I wanted to showcase the rich diversity of the Asian-Canadian experience through the art of dance. As a Chinese-Canadian who grew up in Singapore and later moved to Vancouver, I faced my own challenges in navigating my cultural identity. Today, I feel more grounded and embrace my multicultural heritage. Dance provides a vibrant way to celebrate our unique stories, connect with our roots, and build a shared understanding with others.

Director, Editor, Mix Media Artist: Melissa Lam
Producer: Ann Dinh
DP, Cam Op: Stefan Feldmann
Post Supervisor: Bronwyn Davies
Sound Designer: Adam Johnson
Colorist: Tyson Rider
Designer: Andy Burdin

cát nguyên and Trâm Anh Nguyễn (Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam) YOUTH
Duration: 18:24
Content warning: Mention of violence, displacement

As queer trans and gender non-conforming children of the Vietnamese diaspora, society displaces us from not only a sense of belonging to our ancestral land, but also our own bodies.

Yet these bodies of ours are the vessels we sail to embark on a lifetime voyage of return to our original selves. It is our bodies that navigate the treacherous tides of normative systems that impose themselves on our very being. And it is our bodies that act as community lighthouses for collective liberation.

Ultimately, the landscape of our bodies is our blueprint to remembering, to healing, to blooming.

Director, Cinematographer, Producer, Voices Performer: Trâm Anh Nguyễn 
Writer, Lead Cast, Producer, Voices Performer: cát nguyên
Music Composer & Sound Designer: Trần Quốc Thịnh