Film Screening: Riceboy Sleeps
Date: Nov. 23, 2022
Time: 7:30 p.m. – 10:30 p.m.
Location: Off-campus
In collaboration with our community partner Oakville Festivals of Film and Art (OFFA), we invite you to join us at Film.Ca in Oakville, Ont. for a screening of Riceboy Sleeps, followed by a Q&A with some of the film’s cast and crew.
Numerous key Canadian films have addressed the trauma of immigrating to this country, but few have been as emotionally devastating as Anthony Shim’s assured, moving Riceboy Sleeps. After losing her husband, So-young (Choi Seung-yoon) relocates to Canada in the 1990s with their young son, Dong-hyun (Dohyun Noel Hwang as a child, Ethan Hwang as a teenager) in tow. There, they must fight for acceptance and respect. Dong-hyun is brutally bullied by his classmates, and he isn’t helped by the timid, distinctly Canadian racism of his teacher and principal, who consider the family “troublesome.” At work, So-young battles loneliness, and racist and sexist comments. As they negotiate with their separate circumstances, the rift between mother and son grows. Unwelcome news sparks an unplanned return to South Korea — and the in-laws So-young hasn’t spoken to in many years — but might open up the possibility of mutual understanding.
Compassionate and poetic, Riceboy Sleeps has the emotional scope of a classic Bildungsroman, signalling the arrival of a significant new Canadian filmmaker.
Join us after the film for a Q&A with cast and crew.
Date: November 23, 2022
Time: 7:30 p.m. EST
Location: Film.Ca, 171 Speers Road in Oakville
Price: Free