# Riceboy Sleeps (film)

Riceboy Sleeps is a 2022 Canadian drama film, written, produced, edited, and directed by Anthony Shim. Based in part on Shim's own childhood, the film centres on So-Young (Choi Seung-yoon), a Korean immigrant single mother raising her teenage son Dong-Hyun (Ethan Hwang) after moving to Canada to give him a better life.

## Production

The film was shot in fall 2021, primarily in the Greater Vancouver Area with some location shooting in South Korea.
Shim shot the film primarily in long takes, avoiding the practice of shooting camera coverage or editing the scenes.

## Release

The film premiered in the Platform Prize program at the 2022 Toronto International Film Festival on September 11, 2022, and was named the winner of the program's award on September 18. It had its international premiere at the 27th Busan International Film Festival in October 2022.
The film was released in Canada on March 17, 2023, before expanding to more theaters in the following weeks. It released in South Korea on April 19, 2023.
In the US, the film was released direct-to-video on May 2, 2023.

## Critical response

On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 97% of 29 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 8/10. The website's consensus reads: "An emotionally impactful portrait of familial love, Riceboy Sleeps sees writer-director Anthony Shim reaffirming that the most personal stories are often the most universal."
Allan Hunter of Screen Daily wrote that the film "could almost be a companion piece to Lee Isaac Chung's Minari", and wrote that Shim "displays a sensitivity to the characters and the situations in which they find themselves. He never judges and Christopher Lew’s gently roving camerawork and single takes invite the viewer to lean in, observe and take stock of all the emotions at play. The changing aspect ratios (Canadian sequences are shot in 4:3) also reflect the confinement and openness of the different countries. And he is well served by his cast, with an impressive So-young capturing the determination and fortitude of a character who puts everything into giving her son a new and better life."
The film was named to TIFF's annual year-end Canada's Top Ten list for 2022.

## Awards

| Award | Date of ceremony | Category | Recipient(s) | Result |
| Busan International Film Festival | October 14, 2022 | Flash Forward Audience Award | Riceboy Sleeps | Won |
| Cinefest Sudbury International Film Festival | September 25, 2022 | Outstanding Canadian Film | Riceboy Sleeps | Won |
| Directors Guild of Canada | November 7, 2022 | Jean-Marc Vallée DGC Discovery Award | Riceboy Sleeps | Won |
| Toronto International Film Festival | September 18, 2022 | Platform Prize | Riceboy Sleeps | Won |
| Vancouver International Film Festival | October 7, 2022 | Best Canadian Film | Riceboy Sleeps | Won |
| Vancouver International Film Festival | October 19, 2022 | Audience Award, Northern Lights | Riceboy Sleeps | Won |
| Windsor International Film Festival | November 1, 2022 | WIFF Prize in Canadian Film | Riceboy Sleeps | Won |
| Palm Springs International Film Festival | January 16, 2023 | New Voices New Visions Award | Riceboy Sleeps | Nominated |
| Palm Springs International Film Festival | January 16, 2023 | Young Cineasted Award | Riceboy Sleeps | Won |
| Toronto Film Critics Association | March 8, 2023 | Rogers Best Canadian Film Award | Riceboy Sleeps | Won |
| Vancouver Film Critics Circle | February 13, 2023 | Best Canadian Film | Riceboy Sleeps | Nominated |
| Vancouver Film Critics Circle | February 13, 2023 | Best British Columbia Film | Riceboy Sleeps | Won |
| Vancouver Film Critics Circle | February 13, 2023 | Best Director of a Canadian Film | Anthony Shim | Nominated |
| Vancouver Film Critics Circle | February 13, 2023 | Best British Columbia Director | Anthony Shim | Won |
| Vancouver Film Critics Circle | February 13, 2023 | Best Screenplay for a Canadian Film | Anthony Shim | Nominated |
| Vancouver Film Critics Circle | February 13, 2023 | Best Actress in a Canadian Film | Choi Seung-yoon | Won |
| Vancouver Film Critics Circle | February 13, 2023 | Best Supporting Actor in a Canadian Film | Dohyun Noel Hwang | Nominated |
| Vancouver Film Critics Circle | February 13, 2023 | One to Watch | Dohyun Noel Hwang | Nominated |
| Vancouver Film Critics Circle | February 13, 2023 | One to Watch | Anthony Shim | Won |
| Glasgow Film Festival | March 13, 2023 | Audience Award | Anthony Shim | Won |
| Canadian Screen Awards | April 16, 2023 | Best Motion Picture | Anthony Shim, Rebecca Steele, Bryan Demore | Nominated |
| Canadian Screen Awards | April 16, 2023 | Best Director | Anthony Shim | Nominated |
| Canadian Screen Awards | April 16, 2023 | Best Lead Performance in a Film | Choi Seung-yoon | Nominated |
| Canadian Screen Awards | April 16, 2023 | Best Original Screenplay | Anthony Shim | Won |
| Canadian Screen Awards | April 16, 2023 | Best Cinematography | Christopher Lew | Nominated |
| Canadian Screen Awards | April 16, 2023 | Best Editing | Anthony Shim | Nominated |
| Asia Pacific Screen Awards | November 3, 2023 | Best Screenplay | Anthony Shim | Won |