The Roxbury International Film Festival, now in its 22nd year, held its first virtual film festival, from September 30 through October 5. It is currently New England’s largest film festival celebrating people of color from around the globe, and this year’s festival featured three movies directed by artists of Asian background. The films “The Little Goddess,” “Furthest From,” and “A Knight’s Tour” were respectively directed by Gauri Adelkar, Kyung Sok Kim, and Marvin Choi. According to a press statement from Roxbury International Film Festival director Lisa Simmons, the festival’s focus on honoring diversity is particularly relevant during this time.
“We are excited to continue our commitment to bringing the best in truly independent stories that celebrate the lives of underrepresented people around the world,” wrote Simmons. “Now more than ever is the time for these stories and these filmmakers to be championed for creating films that unearth histories, bring issues to the forefront, counter preexisting narratives, and champion change.”
Adelkar’s film “The Little Goddess” blurs the line between fiction and documentary, as the story, shot in rural India, is based on the actual lives of a family of folk artists that she observed. The narrative follows the trajectory of a twelve-year-old girl named Durga, who stars in her family’s local staging of mythological tales — a performance they put on to earn money. When Durga is approached by a man who offers to feature her in a real movie, if she travels to the city of Kolkata, she begins to wonder if she can transcend the boundaries of her impoverished life and fulfill her dreams. Meanwhile, her parents worry about her safety.
“She goes on a journey of realizing that she’s not yet ready to leave her home,” said Adelkar. “I often see so many coming of age stories that are essentially saying that if you can escape your current world, you will find answers to all the questions that you have. … Often, families like this are portrayed as oppressive, but I’m interested in characters that are more grey and not black and white. I wanted to show what this family is going through and how dreams and reality clash with each other on a daily basis.”
The movie “Furthest From,” directed by Kim, is told through the eyes of Jessie, a young Black girl living in a trailer park. When a water contamination issue strikes the park, her friend Lucas and her own family are forced to come to terms with leaving home behind. The story examines the topic of coping with change and loss, as Jessie learns to accept the idea of outgrowing her childhood memories. Kim said he made important stylistic choices when creating the film: for example, he used a moving handheld camera for the scene where Jessie is outside and playing with friends to convey a sense of freedom. For the more somber scenes, like when she is inside with her family, Kim used a stationary camera.
“There are two themes throughout this movie,” said Kim. “The first one is that there will be changes in your life that are sometimes unavoidable, that may scare you. It doesn’t matter if you’re a child or a grown-up — it will make you feel anxious and worried. … The second theme was about being able to apologize to other people. When you’re growing up, especially when you’re younger, it’s hard to apologize properly. But in order to not hurt other people’s feelings, you have to learn to say ‘sorry.’”
Choi’s film “A Knight’s Tour” is a character study that features two Black men who form an unlikely friendship. In a post-apocalyptic world ravaged by a pandemic, a young man, J.D., stumbles upon the cabin of a hermit, Henry, in the countryside. The two form a bond that changes them both, though their relationship is fraught with suspicion and paranoia. The movie gets its title from a game called “a knight’s tour” that Henry teaches J.D. to play using a chessboard. One must move the knight piece in a sequence to as many spaces as possible while allowing for its eventual return to the original position. The game is a metaphor for the paradox of a situation both characters find themselves in.
“The knight’s tour, both as a title and as a puzzle, meant a few things,” said Choi. “A knight is the only piece that moves in a very odd way. A lot of people equate J.D. as potentially being a knight. He’s a very odd presence in Henry’s life. From a mechanical point of view, I wanted there to be a puzzle that could both be solitary and also two-player. … The other thing that comes out psychologically is that it’s actually not a particularly difficult puzzle. … But Henry has never figured it out. I wanted that to imply that Henry is the type of person who would try the same approach again and again. He doesn’t know how to change. … But J.D. is hyper adaptive and able to figure things out — strange, dangerous new situations — very quickly.”
Adelkar said that being part of a festival that celebrates people of color was a meaningful experience for her. Film has the power to break down barriers and draw people together, she said.
“For me, it’s important to screen my work at film festivals that bring communities, especially communities of color, to watch films,” said Adelkar. “I make films about people of color, and I want people of color to come watch my films. The Roxbury International Film Festival offers that platform and brings in the Boston community.”
