Animated Film Sweeps Top Prize at Hawaiian Film Festival

Japanese director Kadowaki Kōhei’s animated feature “We Are Aliens” won the Kau Ka Hōkū Award at the 46th Hawai’i International Film Festival on Nov. 1. The prize, presented by Hawaiian Airlines, recognizes an international filmmaker’s first or second feature. An international jury selected the winner from a list of nominees chosen by festival programmers.

The film had its world premiere at the Cannes Film Festival. It follows a childhood friendship that fractures over a minor incident, tracking the consequences of that break over three decades. The jury cited the film’s use of hand-drawn animation and rotoscoping to give childhood a physical presence. They also praised the dialogue for feeling overheard and for capturing the cruelty children learn from one another.

The jury, which included Samuel Jamier, Jesse Hawthorne Ficks, and Mia Lee Vicino, stated they unanimously gave the award to the film. They described it as an emotional force that should not be allowed in a first feature. The group also granted an honorable mention to “The Seoul Guardians.”

At a separate gala held on Oct. 29 at the Halekulani Ballroom, the festival honored several industry figures. Sung Kang, best known for his role as Han in “The Fast & the Furious” franchise, received the Halekulani Maverick Award. Kang wrote, directed, produced, and stars in “Drifter,” which was named the audience favorite narrative feature. In that film, a janitor reconnects with a community through competitive drifting.

Ke Huy Quan accepted the Halekulani Golden Maile Career Achievement Award. Quan rose to fame as a child actor in “Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom” and “The Goonies.” He stepped away from acting to work on stunt choreography before returning with an Oscar-winning performance in “Everything Everywhere All at Once.” He recently voiced Gary De’Snake in Disney’s “Zootopia 2” and will return for a third installment. His memoir “Never Say Die” was published in September.

Nainoa Thompson, CEO of the Polynesian Voyaging Society, received the Halekulani Legacy Award. In 1980, Thompson guided a voyaging canoe from Hawai’i to Tahiti without modern instruments, becoming the first Native Hawaiian to do so in centuries. Other recipients included Luciane Buchanan, who took the New Vanguard Award, and screenwriter Bryson Chun, who received the Leanne K. Ferrer Trailblazer Award.

The festival opened on Oct. 21 at the Hawaii Theatre. Screenings continue in Kapolei, Maui, Moloka’i, Hawai’i Island, and Lāna’i through Nov. 15. Executive director Jean H. Lee said the winners reflect the strength and diversity of cinematic storytelling in the region.