[mks_dropcap style=”letter” size=”48″ bg_color=”#ffffff” txt_color=”#000000″]”A[/mks_dropcap]s a film festival, we want to promote Asian cinema and Asian culture in conjunction with showcasing the hip, energetic face of modern Asia.” said Ms. Hui-Hui Pan, the managing director of the pan-Asian film festival CinemAsia when asked about what the purpose of the festival is.

This year is the 11th time the CinemAsia festival is taking place since its foundation in 2003. The festival was created with the intention of promoting Asian cinema and giving a voice to the Dutch-Asian immigrant experience, as well as explore LGBTQ stories and issues with an Asian topic.

“We would like to show that not all Asian are nerdy or have a certain stereotype, but instead show that Asia is extremely diverse, creative and with endless possibility”

The words of  Ms. Pan resonates with me on a personal level, being a part of a new generation of Asians, growing up in the globalized and ever-connected world. Living abroad means that certain stereotypes will follow, but this is not necessarily a negative thing. However, it is important to show that Asians are more than the stereotypes that we are associated with. This is what CinemAsia is trying to achieve, to show the diversity of Asia and Asian cinema to the world and capture the Asian diaspora that exists today by highlighting Asian creatives and creators worldwide. Using cinema as the medium to present a modern image of the booming Asia of today.

Photos: Linh Dinh/Final editor: Kyle Hassing