ASEAN Films: Reflections of Power and Struggle of Human Agency

Abstract

                This article analyses 10 ASEAN documentary films, short films and experimental films which were exhibited from 21 to 23 June 2019 in the SAC ASEAN Film Festival 2019.
                The analysis indicates that ASEAN films reflect 4 social issues in ASEAN countries, that is, industrial capitalism, diaspora, political and economic conflicts of space, and death and a struggle against death. This cinematic reflection reveals social concerns in the ASEAN region. Meanwhile, films also mirror human wills and challenges to those social issues and problems. In addition, my analysis makes visible how film artists portray ASEAN communities with their viewpoints and so-called ASEAN aesthetics.