GRADUATION
directed by Nayon Lee and Alicia Tang
Hong Kong | 2026 | 12 mins
Short
Synopsis
Graduation is a 2026 Hong Kong drama short and the debut film of Nayon Lee and Alicia Tang. Set within an upper-middle-class Hong Kong household, the film examines the often-invisible labor of domestic helpers through the lens of a family disrupted by the sudden death of their helper during the week of their son’s graduation. As Kai confronts death for the first time, he grieves the loss of a primary caregiver who played a formative role in his upbringing. The film seeks to shed light on the indispensable yet undervalued presence of domestic helpers in Hong Kong society.
Film information
Year: 2026
Country: Hong Kong
Runtime: 12 minutes
Language: English and Cantonese
Cast & Crew
Director: Nayon Lee, Alicia Tang
Screenplay: Nayon Lee
Producer: Caitlyn Tang
Cast: Ryan Tang, Freya Bargo, Bianca Lau
Screening schedule
Wednesday, November 18, 2026
5:00 PM
as part of NYFW Shorts Program
Cobble Hill Cinemas
265 Court St, Brooklyn, NY 11231
Language
English and Cantonese
About the Directors
Nayon Lee is a writer, director and editor whose work explores youth, social relationships and the intimacies of everyday life in Hong Kong. Her short film Smother (2022) received recognition at several international festivals, and she has worked in acquisitions and script development at Studio 292, Columbia University’s undergraduate film production house.
Originally from Hong Kong, Alicia Tang studies film at Columbia University in New York. Working across fiction and experimental forms, she explores questions of family, class and social inequality. Her previous projects include the experimental short Against the Tide and the music video CH(URAQT).
