If you’ve ever pined over a what-could-have-been relationship, this sapphic charmer is a must-watch masterclass in yearning. On one of her last nights in Shanghai, twentysomething Asher (Yvonne Shuyu Zhang) asks Tori (Shu-Yi), her dance teacher, to meet up for a meandering coffee date. As the pair wander the city streets, their casual connection deepens. But as their feelings grow, dawn nears — as does Asher’s flight back to Los Angeles. 

With a slow-burn wistfulness, Ephemera revels in the beauty of a profound connection that, although fleeting, holds a life-changing weight. Measured, tender, and unafraid to sit with its characters, writer/director Shan Jiang’s queer romantic drama echoes the most achingly satisfying elements of Richard Linklater’s beloved Before trilogy and Wong Kar-wai’s 90s classics.