©Courtesy of The New York Asian Film Festival
The New York Asian Film Festival (NYAFF), celebrating its landmark 25th edition, will close with the North American premiere of the Chinese breakout smash Dear You. Co-presented by Well Go USA Entertainment, the Closing Night screening takes place on Sunday, July 26, 2026, at 8:30 PM at the SVA Theatre, ahead of the film’s North American theatrical release this September.
The film caps 17 days of celebrations across five New York venues, bringing NYAFF’s 25th anniversary edition and its lineup of more than 100 films from across Asia and the Asian diaspora to a memorable close.
A small family drama spoken in the Chaoshan dialect, known across much of Southeast Asia as Teochew, Dear You is built around qiaopi, the letters sent home by overseas Chinese families that connected loved ones across generations. Made without big stars or blockbuster aspirations, the film has become one of China’s biggest word of mouth hits of the year, earning more than 1.8 billion RMB (US$265 million) at the box office and turning newcomers Li Sitong and Wang Yantong into this year’s most memorable on-screen discoveries in China.
“I’m incredibly honored that Dear You has been chosen as the Closing Night Film,” says Director Lan Hongchun, “the film was born from hundreds of heartfelt stories of overseas Chaoshan elders I gathered while filming my documentary overseas; their quiet longing for family and home land became the soul of this film. I’m grateful to the festival for giving this story a platform to reach more viewers”
Influenced by the work of director Hou Hsiao-hsien, the film follows a young man who travels to Thailand in search of his long lost grandfather, only to uncover a family secret buried for decades. Led almost entirely by first time actors, including Li Sitong, Wang Yantong, Wu Shaoqing, Zheng Runqi, Wang Xiaohui, and Thai actress Usha Seamkhum, Director Lan Hongchun and members of the cast will be on hand to attend the Closing Night screening.
The festival is presented with major support from the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office in New York (HKETONY), The Ministry of Culture of Thailand and the Department of Cultural Promotion, Fundstrat Global Advisors, BitMine, award-winning airline Cathay Pacific, Taipei Cultural Center of TECO in New York, Korean Cultural Center New York (KCCNY), and Korean Film Council (KOFIC), whose partnership amplifies Asian cinema’s most vital voices.
