Daily Archives: December 7, 2011

The Purple Onion teaser

The Purple Onion teaser

The Purple Onion is a new dramatic comedy in production about a Chinese American, amateur comedian in San Francisco, whose life slowly falls apart after his immigrant mother moves in with him after being evicted due to foreclosure. Here’s more about the movie:

The Purple Onion is an intimate comic drama film about Jeanie, played by Chinese Academy Award nominated actress Kechun Li in her American film debut, in her role as a lonely Chinese immigrant and long time resident of San Francisco, who like many SF residents has lost her home to foreclosure. With no other option she moves in with Johnny, played by long time local-favorite comedian Edwin Li, who plays her 24-year-old American-born son. Johnny meets his mother’s arrival with reluctance as he struggles enough trying to make ends meet at a restaurant day job while pursuing his passion for standup comedy by night. This unlikely “odd couple” is forced to confront their generational, cultural and personal differences, and most of all they must finally come to terms with a recent family tragedy.

The Purple Onion is a feature length movie in development, written, produced and directed by Mathew Szymanowski. No timeline is set yet for the release of this film. The film is now seeking funding. Learn more here.

The Purple Onion teaser 1

The Purple Onion teaser 2

Children of the Trains trailer

Children of the Trains trailer

Filmmaker Barbara Grandvoinet has been working on a documentary for the past 5 years. This documentary presents an inspiring story of transformation. Junk-yard train cars become locations of learning and abandoned street children become hopeful youth. In 1999, Railway Police Commander Jarumporn Suramanee requested to use abandoned train cars to teach homeless children basic skills. It has now become a collective effort by the Railway Police to serve, protect, shelter, and educate homeless children living in Bangkok. The library train has become a home base, as well as a transition point, for homeless street children and troubled youth who live in and around Bangkok. The film follows the daily encounters of the street children and the cops. It brings to light the daily struggle the cops face to feed, clothe, and educate the children, and the battle to make their teaching sustainable for the children and for themselves.

Children of the Trains trailer