Jia (film)

2023 Australian short film

Jia

Film poster

Directed by| Vee Shi
Written by| Vee Shi
Produced by| Vee Shi
Taysha McFarland
Nicholson Ren
Starring| Sel Hiew
Tyler Jenkins
Peter Isaac Koh
Cinematography| Nicholson Ren
Edited by| Vee Shi
Shannon Michaelas
Music by| Luna Pan

Production
company

Niu Studios

Release date

* 15 January 2023 (2023-01-15)

Running time

| 15 minutes
Country| Australia
Languages| English
Mandarin
Budget| $15,000

Jia is a 2023 Australian short film written, co-produced, directed, and edited by Vee Shi. It was co-produced by Nicholson Ren and Taysha McFarland, with Nicholson also serving as the film's cinematographer. The film premiered at Flickerfest in 2023,[1] and was nominated for Best Short Film at the 13th AACTA Awards.[2]

## Plot

[edit]

A grieving Chinese mother travels to Australia and embarks on a road trip with Eric to remember her late son. Ming's conservative values are tested when she learns that Eric was her son's lover.

## Cast

[edit]

* Sel Hiew as Ming Yu
* Tyler Jenkins as Eric Hughes
* Peter Isaac Koh as Yao Chen

## Production

[edit]

Jia received a $15,000 grant from AACTA, through their Pitch: Focus program. This also provided the addition of loaned equipment from Sony. [3] The film was inspired by the director's personal relationship with his mother and was shot in a week across various locations in Victoria, Australia.[4]

## Accolades

[edit]

Award  | Category  | Recipient(s)  | Result  | Ref.

|
|
|
|

AACTA Awards | Best Short Film  | Jia | Nominated  | [2]
Screen Producers Australia Awards | Short Film Production of the Year  | Jia | Won  | [5]
AWGIE Awards | Short Film  | Vee Shi | Won  | [6]
Australian Directors' Guild Awards | Best Direction in a Student Film  | Vee Shi | Tie  | [7]
Flickerfest Awards | Best Direction in an Australian Short Film  | Vee Shi | Won
Best Actor  | Sel Hiew | Honoured  | [8]
Melbourne Queer Film Festival Awards | Best Australian Short Film  | Vee Shi | Won  | [9]
St Kilda Short Film Festival | 2024 Top Short Films  | Jia | Honoured  | [10]
Iris Prize | Youth Jury Award  | Jia | Won  | [11]
Stellar Short Film Festival  | Best Performance  | Sel Hiew | Won  | [12]
Heart of Gold International Short Film Festival  | Best Australian Film  | Jia | Won  | [13]
Sardinia Queer Film Short Film Festival  | AGedO Special Award  | Jia | Won  | [14]
Sony Catchlight Film Festival  | Best Cinematography (Fiction)  | Nicholson Ren | Finalist  | [15]
Canberra Short Film Festival  | Best Cinematography  | Nicholson Ren | Won  | [16]
Melbourne Multicultural Film Festival  | Best Short Fiction Film  | Jia | Honoured
People's Choice  | Jia | Won  | [17]

## References

[edit]

1. ^ "Jia". Flickerfest. Retrieved 24 December 2024. "World Premiere"
2. ^ a b "AACTA Award for Best Short Film". AACTA. Retrieved 24 December 2024.
3. ^ "2022 AACTA Pitch: Focus". AACTA. Retrieved 24 December 2024. "Vee Shi and his team, earned $15,000 in development funds and an extensive suite of complimentary film equipment from Sony to complete their winning short film concept, JIA."
4. ^ Tan, Christy. "A director's secret letter to his mother". ScreenHub. Retrieved 18 February 2025. "they filmed over seven days and across 842 kilometres"
5. ^ "22nd Annual SPA Awards: all the winners". ScreenHub. Retrieved 24 December 2024.
6. ^ "Meet your winners of the 56th Annual AWGIE Awards". Australian Writer's Guild. Retrieved 24 December 2024.
7. ^ "2023 ADG Awards Winners Announced". Australian Directors' Guild. Retrieved 24 December 2024.
8. ^ "FLiCKERFEST 2023 AWARDS ANNOUNCED". Flickerfest. Retrieved 24 December 2024.
9. ^ "33rd MQFF Awards – November 2023". Melbourne Queer Film Festival. Retrieved 24 December 2024.
10. ^ "2024 Top Short Films". St Kilda Film Festival. Retrieved 24 December 2024.
11. ^ "Young Hearts wins Iris Prize Best Feature award". Iris Prize. Retrieved 20 February 2025. "Jia, by Vee Shi, wins the Iris Prize Youth Jury Award"
12. ^ "Festival Archive". Stellar Short Film Festival. Retrieved 20 February 2025. "Jia (Vee Shi) Best Performance Sel Hiew"
13. ^ "Our 2024 Heart of Gold International Short Film Award Winners". Instagram. Retrieved 20 February 2025. "Jia"
14. ^ "Sardinia Queer Short Film Festival – Edition of 2024". Sardinia Queer Film Expo. Retrieved 20 February 2025. "AGedO Special Award: Jia"
15. ^ "Finalists announced for Catchlight Film Festival 2024". Photo Review. Retrieved 20 February 2025. "Jia – Nicholson Ren,"
16. ^ "Canberra Short Film Festival". Instagram. 15 February 2024. Retrieved 20 February 2025. ""Jia," directed by Vee Shi, winner of Best Cinematography last year"
17. ^ "Multicultural Film Festival 2023". Victorian Multicultural Commission. Retrieved 20 February 2025.

*[Ref.]: Reference(s)