Surrey, British Columbia - Sher Vancouver is proud to announce the release of three new short films as part of the Emergence: Out of the Shadows documentary project. The films, Amar’s Story, Jag’s Story, and Kayden’s Story, focus on the experiences of LGBTQ+ individuals coming out in the South Asian community in Metro Vancouver and the reactions of their parents. The three short films contain never before seen footage from the production.
The short films were made possible through the support and sponsorship of the BC Arts Council, RBC, the Port of Vancouver – Vancouver Fraser Port Authority, BCGEU, and the Enchante Network.
All three films are available for free viewing on YouTube on the official Sher Vancouver channel.
Amar’s Story, Jag’s Story, and Kayden’s Story were directed by Vinay Giridhar and are each under 30 minutes long. They provide powerful and moving accounts of the challenges and triumphs faced by LGBTQ+ individuals coming out in the South Asian community. The films are the ideal length to facilitate classroom discussions. DVD copies of the documentary are also available for sale through social justice educational distributor Moving Images Distribution of Vancouver.
Emergence: Out of the Shadows has been a multiple award-winning documentary, and an official selection at nearly 50 established film festivals around the world, including an Academy Award, BAFTA, and five Canadian Screen Award qualifying festivals, such as the Vancouver Asian Film Festival, Vancouver Queer Film Festival, and the Vancouver International South Asian Film Festival where it was the Closing Night Film and picked up Best Documentary. It has also had over fifty screenings in schools in British Columbia. The documentary was broadcast on three television stations in Canada on Knowledge Network, TV Ontario, and OUTtv.
The Emergence: Out of the Shadows official website at https://emergencefilm.net/ provides further information about the project, including a Teacher’s Discussion Guide for the film which anyone can download for free.
Alex Sangha, founder of Sher Vancouver, expressed gratitude towards the official sponsors of the short films for their support and generosity. Sangha also invited organizations interested in a screening and discussion of the film to get in touch with Sher Vancouver. Envision Financial funds the Screenings In Schools Program in Surrey, Delta, and Langley.
The three short films are available to view on YouTube through the following links:
Amar’s Story - https://youtu.be/e7FEMIXuoGw
Jag’s Story - https://youtu.be/sphBx4biw6g
Kayden’s Story - https://youtu.be/7CGVn6f0r-c
Schools also have the option of booking a screening with the 81-minute film festival version and 58-minute broadcast television version.
Films about coming out in the South Asian community are essential as they help raise awareness and understanding about the unique challenges faced by LGBTQ+ individuals in this community. By providing a platform for these voices to be heard, Sher Vancouver and the Emergence: Out of the Shadows project hope to inspire greater acceptance and support for LGBTQ+ individuals across all communities.
For further information, please contact: Alex Sangha Founder of Sher Vancouver
Email: info@shervancouver.com Website: https://www.shervancouver.com/