After she witnesses a shocking incident on a late night train ride, Chini is swept into a traumatic state of remembrance of her own past. The incident triggers flashbacks of Chini’s childhood in rural India. Destitute, and sent by her father to live with her uncle, life-changing events forever alter Chini’s perception of the world she lives in. Toggling between past and present, The Silence is a dynamic drama based on a true story that tackles taboos and courage within a pain-clouded atmosphere.

This film is part of the Silk Screen Film Festival. Admission is free to Pitt students with an ID. Rarely explored in film, Memories of the Wind tackles the Armenian genocide in a subtle, yet affecting way. Aram is a poet on the run in the winter of 1943. Suspected of being a communist sympathizer, he is forced to flee Istanbul during the latter half of World War II. He winds up in secluded expanse of forest on the Soviet-Georgian border where a boorish Turkish man named Mikhail and a beautiful young Russian woman named Meryem provide shelter.

This film is part of the Silk Screen Film Festival. Admission is free to Pitt students with an ID. Shy, closeted Korean-American teenager David must find a job to pay for his expensive SAT classes when his parents begin to struggle financially. David takes a position at a Korean spa his parents frequent for traditional scrubs, but the teenager soon discovers that there is much more to the spa than initially meets the eye. Shot on location in Los Angeles’ Koreatown, Spa Night dips its introverted lead into the sensual waters of the underground spa life.

This film is part of the Silk Screen Film Festival. Admission is free to Pitt students with an ID. Elza wishes to flee from her husband. The marriage is loveless and occasionally violent and her husband Dzhinga is a petty criminal, but Elza gets cold feet and returns to him. When Dzhinga does not return from an illegal fishing trip and is presumed dead, Elza must contend with this new, abrupt reality. Newly pregnant, she feels a powerful novel sense of freedom. The Gulls was shot on location in the Russian Republic of Kalmykia.

This film is part of the Silk Screen Film Festival. Admission is free to Pitt students with an ID. Lahore used to be a mecca of Pakistani culture, a thriving center of art, music and poetry. When the Islamic government took over, strict rules were imposed that made art a punishable sin. The Sachel Studio Jazz Ensemble help show a side of Pakistan rarely seen by Western audiences: a lively, colorful place, with cultural heart. When the group’s rendition of "Take Five" achieved viral status on YouTube, they are invited to play in New York City with jazz legend Wynton Marsalis.

This film is part of the Silk Screen Film Festival. Admission is free to Pitt students with an ID. Rarely explored in film, Memories of the Wind tackles the Armenian genocide in a subtle, yet affecting way. Aram is a poet on the run in the winter of 1943. Suspected of being a communist sympathizer, he is forced to flee Istanbul during the latter half of World War II. He winds up in secluded expanse of forest on the Soviet-Georgian border where a boorish Turkish man named Mikhail and a beautiful young Russian woman named Meryem provide shelter.

This film is part of the Silk Screen Film Festival. Admission is free to Pitt students with an ID. Elza wishes to flee from her husband. The marriage is loveless and occasionally violent and her husband Dzhinga is a petty criminal, but Elza gets cold feet and returns to him. When Dzhinga does not return from an illegal fishing trip and is presumed dead, Elza must contend with this new, abrupt reality. Newly pregnant, she feels a powerful novel sense of freedom. The Gulls was shot on location in the Russian Republic of Kalmykia.

This film is part of the Silk Screen Film Festival. Admission is free to Pitt students with an ID. Since the 1970s, hip-hop music has spread across all walks of life. Despite the movement, Asian rappers continue to be the minority. Bad Rap follows the careers of four Asian-American rappers and their struggles to create an identity and compete with mainstream rappers.

Directors: Jaeki Cho, Salima Koroma
Cast: Awkwafina, David Lee, Jonathan Park, Richard Lee
Language: English

This film is part of the Silk Screen Film Festival. Admission is free to Pitt students with an ID. Director M. Manikandan delighted Silk Screen audiences last year with his film Crow’s Egg and now he’s back with Crime is Punishment, a massive genre redirect. The film tells the story of Ravi, a mild-mannered collections agent who lives his life with no real drama. Without warning, Ravi finds himself in the middle of the murder investigation of his neighbor where his testimony could afford him the expenses of an eye transplant he so desperately needs.

The Organization of Chinese Americans (OCA) will be hosting their annual Chinese Cultural Festival on September 10. Learn more about Chinese culture though fun events, music, food, games, and more.