2009 New York Asian American International Film Festival

Asian CineVision (ACV) has announced the full lineup of feature films selected to screen at the 32nd Asian American International Film Festival (AAIFF). The festival will showcase 14 feature films and 50 short films during the weekend of July 23 - 26, 2009. You can get tickets here. Here's some of the highlights:

Opening Night - Claustrophobia (New York premiere)
Centerpiece Presentation - Children of Invention
Closing Night Presentation - Fruit Fly (New York Premiere)

Other Highlights include You Don’t Know Jack, White on Rice, Whatever It Takes, Paper Heart
World premieres: Pastry, Hubad

2009 New York Asian American International Film Festival (AAIFF) Trailer


Full Line up for Asian American International Film Festival

*Children of Invention* directed by Tze Chun (USA)
When their home is foreclosed on, the Cheng family moves into a unit in an unfinished apartment building, pushing mother and children to look for ways to pull in some extra income.

NYC Premiere of *Claustrophobia* directed by Ivy Ho (Hong Kong)
A sensitive and deceptively serene portrayal of five office colleagues’ relationships marks this intelligently crafted directorial debut by one of Hong Kong’s best-known screenwriters.

World Premiere of *Formosa Betrayed* directed by Adam Kane (USA)
FBI agent Jake Kelly’s investigation of a loved professor’s murder leads him to Taiwan, where he finds that the killers are part of a terrible web of politics that he only starts to cut through when he finds a friend in a local activist.

NYC Premiere of *Fruit Fly* directed by H.P. Mendoza (USA)
A naughty, fast-paced, punchy romp of a musical, Fruit Fly follows young performance artist Bethesda on her soul-searching journey to find a place for herself while trying her luck in the art scene.

World Premiere of *Hubad *directed by Mark Gray and Denisa Reyes (Philippines)
In a conservative community, theater director Andre tries to break new ground with a hyper sexual play. He faces obstacles in funding his project and working with his actors, but passion ignites between the two middle-aged leads as theater and life become intertwined.

NYC Premiere of *Karma Calling* directed by Sarba Das (USA)
The Raj family is definitely not comprised of stereotypical model minorities living the American Dream. On top of the family’s troubled finances, the family hosts a recently widowed relative who is an endless source of comic disasters.

NYC Premiere of *Li Tong* directed by Nian Liu (China)
A restless young girl loses her bus pass one day after school. Her meandering trip home is the thread of this poignant “day in the life” tale, which wends its way through the various homes, personae and urban landscapes of contemporary Beijing.

East Coast Premiere of *Manilatown* Is In the Heart directed by Curtis Choy (USA)
A documentary about the Manongs in San Francisco’s Manilatown and a look into the life of the late poet Al Robles, Manilatown Is In the Heart is a touching eulogy to an activist/historian who was outlived by the vanishing subject that he strived to preserve.

*Paper Heart* directed by Nicholas Jasenovec (USA)
Charlyne Yi doesn’t believe in fairytale-like romance but can’t deny that it may exist for others. With her friend and director, Nick Jasenovec, she sets out to film a documentary about true love.

World Premiere of *Pastry* directed by Risky Liu (Hong Kong)
The youngest of five daughters traces the story of her life through the weddings of her sisters. As each member of the family comes to terms with her own womanhood, a simple egg tart becomes the anchor of their experiences and emotions.

*Tibet in Song* directed by Ngawang Choephel (USA)
Ethnomusicologist Ngawang Choephel travels across Tibet to record and study the rich diversity of traditional folk songs but is arrested by the Chinese government for suspected espionage.

East Coast Premiere of *Whatever It Takes* directed by Christopher Wong (USA)
The first year of the Bronx Center of Science and Mathematics is documented in this film. With a stated mission of patching the cracks in the education system, it’s clear that the odds are stacked against it.

NYC Premiere of *White on Rice* directed by David Boyle (USA)
Hung up over his divorce and sharing a room with his 10 year-old nephew, Jimmy can’t even keep a job without help from brother-in-law, Tak. When Jimmy falls for Tak’s niece, Ramona, it seems like he may be heading for trouble, but all is not yet lost in this quest for love.

East Coast Premiere of *You Don’t Know Jack* directed by Jeff Adachi (USA)
Way before Harold and Kumar’s search for sliders, before we learned about Drifting in Tokyo’s parking structures, and before the All-American Girl Margaret Cho’s foray into network television, there was Jack Soo.