The Manhattan International Film Festival (MIFF) is an annual cultural initiative of the World Youth Alliance (WYA) seeking to recognize promising young directors committed to exploring the depth of the human condition. The 7th MIFF was held at Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in NY (TECONY) again on March 25th with an opening reception and film screenings.
This year’s film festival started with an opening remarks by the Taiwan Ambassador Lily Hsu with an outstanding performance by the pianist David Chang. Lord Leomer Pomperada, the President of World Youth Alliance since October 2015, was in attendance to thank TECONY for all the supports throughout the years.
World Youth Alliance also celebrates its 20 years anniversary at this year’s film festival. WYA began in 1999 when 21-year-old Anna Halpine stood up for human dignity during a conference at the United Nations. Since then, WYA has grown to include tens of thousands of members around the world with six regional offices, all dedicated to the defense of the dignity of the person through education, culture, and advocacy.
This year, young filmmakers from Mexico, the Philippines, the United States, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom were selected based on the following criteria: Content and Relevance to WYA’s Mission, Technical Excellence, and Overall Quality. The roster of finalists for 2019 tackled the topic of human dignity through exploring themes like migration, war, death, sickness, and more. Aside from their differing countries of representation, finalists’ age and experience range from as young as 16 years old to multi-awarded veterans in the film industry. Previous films recognized by the festival have examined themes relating to family, community, suffering, empathy, the pursuit of happiness, truth, and the transcendent.
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