The New York Asian Film Festival will show more than 50 features this year, after opening with the world premiere of Wai Ka-Fai’s Written By.

Wai Kai-Fai attended Friday’s opening night of the film, about a man who dies in an accident but tries to cheer up his widow and daughter, while his daughter also tries to get through mourning by writing fiction about the family.

The festival is also launching a new Rising Star Asia Awards, with recipients So Ji-Sub and Kong Hyo-Jin both in New York for the presentation.

Programme highlights include The Forbidden Door by Indonesia’s Joko Anwar; When The Full Moon Rises by Malaysia’s Mamat Khalid; If You Are The One by China’s Feng Xiaogang; Vampire Girl Vs. Frankenstein Girl by Japan’s Yoshihiro Nishimura; Breathless from Korea’s Yang Ik-June; and Cape No. 7 by Wei Te-shang of Taiwan.

Special guests at the festival will include Nick Chin, Mak Hei-Yan, Sion Sono, Tak Sakaguchi, Daisuke Goto, and Noboru Iguchi.

The Hong Kong Never Dies programme will include 10 new titles.

This year’s jury includes producer Karen Chien, Sony Pictures Classics’ Matt Harvey, critic Glenn Kenny, writer/director J.T. Petty, and IFC.com’s Alison WIllmore.

NYAFF, presented by Subway Cinema, started June 19 and will run through July 5 at the IFC Center and Japan Society.

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