2022 IN-PERSON FILMS
The in-person festival comes to Austin from April 14th - 17th with screenings held at Austin Film Society. Bringing 22+ South Asian selections, including the U.S Premiere of Cannes debut and Asia Pacific Screen Awards Prize Winner, Rehana, and the first Southwest and Texas screenings of many of the past year's greatest international hits, the 7th Indie Meme Film Festival is an unmissable film event.
With selections spanning from horror to social drama, coming of age tales to incisive documentaries, Indie Meme offers acclaimed but hard to find world cinema for all ages and tastes.
Texas Premiere
Texas Premiere
ANY DAY NOW
Finland I 2020 I Finnish, Farsi, English I 82 mins I dir. Hamy Ramezan
In Finland, a tight-knit Iranian family await the decision on their asylum application. Meanwhile, their 13-year-old son begins junior year and everyday life goes on - from days at the lake to apartment feuds & silent dance parties.
Program includes short film: CHAI
Jussi Award - 'Best Actor'
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BARAH x BARAH (12 x 12)
India I 2021 I Hindi I 118 mins I dir. Gaurav Madan
Following a photographer of the dead in Varanasi, Barah x Barah is poignant look at the life in one of the oldest Indian cities as it undergoes seemingly imperceptible but steady changes.
*Director Gaurav Madan + Sunny Lahiri (Cinematographer) in attendance
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LAST FILM SHOW
Texas Premiere
India I 2021 I Gujarati I 110 mins I dir. Pan Nalin
A 9-year-old boy in a remote village in India begins a lifelong love affair with cinema when he bribes his way into a rundown movie palace and spends the summer learning in the projection booth.
*Director Pan Nalin in attendance
'Audience Award' (2nd Place) - Tribeca Film Festival
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Texas Premiere
A NIGHT OF KNOWING NOTHING
India I 2021 I Hindi, Bengali/Bangla I 97 mins I dir. Payal Kapadia
In this docu-drama hybrid, the love letters of a young film student, L, to her estranged lover are juxtaposed with the drastic changes to campus life and the political landscape in India, which result in student protests and uprising.
Cannes Film Festival - 'Best Documentary'
Southwest Premiere
MIDWIVES
Myanmar I 2022 I Burmese, Rakhine I 91 mins I Documentary I dir. Hnin Ei Hlaing
Hla is the Buddhist owner of a medical clinic in Myanmar, while Nyo Nyo, her young apprentice, belongs to the persecuted Rohingya Muslim community. Amidst civil unrest, the women support and challenge one another as they work to provide steady healthcare.
Sundance Film Festival - 'Special Jury Award for Verite Filmmaking'
LUNANA: A YAK IN THE CLASSROOM
Texas Premiere
Bhutan I 2019 I Dzhongka I 107 mins I dir. Pawo Choyning Dorji
Ugyen, a reluctant young teacher, just wants to finish his final year of service and move to Australia to pursue music. But when he's assigned to the world's most remote village school, he must reconsider his path and ties to his homeland.
Academy Award Nominee '22 - 'Best International Feature'
REHANA
U.S Premiere
Bangladesh I 2021 I Bengali, Bangla I 107 mins I dir. Abdullah Mohammad Saad
In this powerfully-acted thriller, an assistant professor at a medical college finds her life thrown into chaos when she witnesses an unexpected incident involving a female student and becomes involved in the case.
Program.
*Lead Actress, Azmeri Haque Badhon, in attendance
Bangladesh's Official Oscar Submission
Winner - 'Best Actress' - Asia Pacific Screen Awards
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PEBBLES (KOOZHANGAL)
Texas Premiere
India I 2021 I Tamil I 75 mins I dir. P.S Vinothraj
A young boy follows his alcoholic father on a quest to find his mother, who has run away from his domestic abuse. The two cross the arid landscape by foot and bus, unsure of what they will do when they arrive.
India's Official Oscar Submission
*Director P.S Vinothraj in attendance
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RK/RKAY
Austin Premiere
India I 2021 I Hindi 95 mins I dir. Rajat Kapoor
A frustrated filmmaker can't get his latest feature to click. Things take a turn for the worse when the lead character he also plays runs out of the edit and into real life.
* Director and lead actor, Rajat Kapoor, in attendance
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SHORTS PROGRAMS
Shorts Program 1 - It's The End of the World, And I Feel Fine
From sisters surviving a post-apocalyptic Bangladesh to a middle schooler altering reality with her magic eyelashes, these bold, visionary shorts follow characters to the ends of their regular world and beyond, into the new ones their shaping.
FEATURING:
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An Early Spring (dir. Pramati Anand I 38 mins)​​
A village girl befriends a solo female backpacker.
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Moshari (dir. Nuhash Humayan I 22 mins)
In future Bangladesh, sisters face a vampiric threat.
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A Coup ( dir. Areeba Naveed I 7 mins)
A girl comes out to her biased psychiatrist.
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Dal Bhat ( dir. Nemil Shah I 29 mins)
A boy learns a secret about his identity.
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Baahar (Outside) ( dir. Prakshi Malik I 13 mins)
A school admission causes family conflict.
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Local Middle Schooler (dir. Sanjna Bharadwaj I 11 mins ) A middle schooler's magic eyelashes are coveted by her friends and the US government.
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Shorts Program 2 - Locals and Long Distance
A selection of locally made and international shorts that touch on the distances between people - in time, space, and circumstances - and how they are bridged. Includes 3 projects by Texas local filmmakers as well as the world premiere of Hindi language drama, The Blind Date, and the Southwest Premiere of the gorgeous Mono No Aware.
​Read More...
FEATURING:
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Mono No Aware (dir. Koushik Sarkar I 20 mins)
On a field trip, a girl reflects on life's changes.
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The Blind Date (dir. Mihir Dhiraj Upadhyay I 17 mins)
A blind couple go on a significant beach date.
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Hot Chocolate ( dir. Lila Mali I 3 mins)
A son reflects on a family tradition after moving out.
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Testimony of Ana ( dir. Sachin Dheeraj I 24 mins)
A woman recounts the abuse of a modern witch hunt.
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Turning Point ( dir. Rakhesh Raveendran I 15 mins)
An immigrant father drinks too much and faces a frightening consequence.
SHORTS + FEATURE PAIRINGS
Bambirak
Germany I 2021 IUSA I German, Dari (Afghan) I 14 mins I dir. Zamarin Wahdat
When 8-year-old Kati stows away in her father's delivery van, Faruk must juggle his responsibilities as a single dad while holding down his first job in a new country.
Sundance '21 - Best International Fiction Award
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Screens with: REHANA
Chai
USA I 2021 I English, Persian I 8 mins I dir. Arshum Rouhanian
With the grand opening of their chai stand, Iranian siblings, Sanam and Reza are faced with the unexpected competition from their neighbors' hot chocolate stand.
Screens with: ANY DAY NOW
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Grasshoppers Sleep Here
India I 2021 I Malayalam I 8 mins I dir. Balaram J
When a mowing man comes to cut down the grass in a field, he finds a girl is sleeping there - determined to protect the insects who call it home.
U.S Premiere
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Screens with: LUNANA: A YAK IN THE CLASSROOM
Miniaturist of Junagadh
India I 2021 I Hindi, Urdu I 29 mins I dir. Kaushal Oza
1947. The ravages of Partition compel
an artist to sell his ancestral home and move to Pakistan. When the man buying the house learns of the artist's invaluable miniature collection he schemes to get ahold of it, but all is not what it seems.
Winner - Best Short Film - NYIFF
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Screens with: RK/RKAY
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