Adelaide Film Festival and OzAsia Festival are bringing the latest, contemporary Asian films to cinemas near you.

This year’s selection includes two award-winning films from India, including the first Indian film to compete at Cannes Film Festival in 30 years, plus the biggest crowd pleasers from the Berlin International Film Festival and more.

Highlights include:

  • All We Imagine as Light (France, India, Netherlands, Luxembourg, 2024)

Directed by Payal Kapadia

This year’s Cannes Grand Prix winner, the lambent All We Imagine as Light, is a dreamy romantic drama following the quest for love by two women nurses, one older with a husband abroad and the younger in the first throes of desire. The director who won Best Documentary at Cannes in 2021 represents Mumbai both observationally and as a dreamscape.

  • Black Dog (China, 2024)

Directed by Guan Hu

After a decade in prison, Lang returns to his hometown near the Gobi Desert Beijing's 2008 Olympics preparations. After unexpectedly bonding with a dog marked for bounty, he resolves to protect other strays. A compelling tale of redemption, distinguished by both its deadpan humour and magnificent cinematography, Eddie Peng's powerful performance anchors this neo-noir western.

  • Crossing (Sweden, Denmark, France, Türkiye, Georgia, 2024)

Directed by Levan Akin

Lia, a retired teacher from Georgia, embarks on a quest to find her long-lost niece, Tekla.

She meets Achi, a wayward youth looking for any escape. This unlikely pair travel to Istanbul searching for her missing niece. In the bustling city they meet Evrim, a lawyer fighting for trans rights. Directed by the visionary behind And Then We Danced, this compelling film promises to tug at your heartstrings until the very end.

  • My Favourite Cake (Iran, France, Sweden, Germany, 2024)

Directed by Maryam Moghaddam and Behtash Sanaeeha

Seventy-year-old Mahin lives alone in Tehran since she was widowed thirty years ago. After she opens herself up to new romance with divorced taxi driver Faramarz, what begins as an unexpected encounter quickly evolves into an unpredictable, unforgettable evening.

  • Nocturnes (India, USA, 2024)

Directed by Anirban Dutta and Anupama Srinivasan

In this mesmerising, meditative documentary, a scientist treks the Eastern Himalayas’ high rainforests uncovering the hidden world of a wide array of moth species, attracted to the screens and lights set up nightly. Winner of Sundance’s craft award, this documentary awakens us to the beauty of moths, and the impact of climate change on an interrelated ecosystem.

More information from the 2024 OzAsia Festival edition of WeekendPlus: