I’m a huge fan of horror, fantasy, and sci-fi, and if there’s one area of North American filmmaking I hardly see many talents of Asian descent in, it’s in genre. But with the creature body thriller Last Call now just having its world premiere at the 2025 SXSW Midnight Short Program on Sunday, March 9, writer & director Winnie Cheung created one hell of a mark as a visionary filmmaker to look out for with this incredible short film that is an homage to David Cronenberg, David Lynch, and Wong Kar-wai while creating an indelible unique stamp of her own.

Claudia Chow lives for the rush — reckless rides, wild nights, and adrenaline-fueled chaos. But her mind is haunted by visions of a seductive Serpent Woman, whispering, “Your body is my body.” When a high-speed crash sends Claudia spiraling between reality and illusion, her nights grow darker and more unhinged. The Serpent Woman’s voice becomes impossible to ignore, leading Claudia on a journey of desire, destruction, and transformation.

This short film was five years in the making but the world Cheung creates in Last Call is breathtaking and horrifying at the same time in a chaotic kaleidoscope that you can’t take your eyes off from. With Celia Au (who is also a producer for this project) as Claudia Chow and Matilda Sakamoto as the Serpent Woman, you have two fantastic ANHPI actresses giving it their all to help make Cheung’s delightfully twisted vision come to life.

Without realizing it, I’ve seen some of Winnie Cheung’s work before as I’ve watched her animated short film Albatross Soup on a random film festival viewing and looking through her filmography, there is no question that genre is very much a passion for Cheung. Her passion and her hard work has culminated into Last Call, the short film makes a clear case that one can push boundaries in storytelling without needing a massive budget.

But indie filmmaking is an excruciating affair especially when working on a tight budget so can you just imagine if she did have the resources to create these kind of films on a larger scale? With the success of Coralie Fargeat‘s The Substance, there is a call heard loud and clear that there very much needs to be more women-led driven genre films as it stands shoulder to shoulder with the overly male-dominated realm and ESPECIALLY women of global majority. A24, Neon, Blumhouse, are you watching? Take a chance with Cheung.

Huge thanks to Molly Acayan and the Tremendous PR team for the digital screener opportunity as they continue to do excellent work amplifying and showcasing truly exciting and innovative artists in the ANHPI community!