Category Archives: filmfestival

2012 Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival (LAAPFF)

2012 Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival (LAAPFF)

The 2012 Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival (LAAPFF) runs May 10 – 20, 2012 at the Director’s Guild of America (DGA), CGV Cinemas located in Koreatown, and for the first time, the Art Theater in Long Beach.

As Southern California’s largest and most prestigious film festival of its kind, the Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival launches the celebration of Asian Pacific Heritage Month through this year’s slate of 188 films from both Asian Pacific American and Asian international directors from over 20 countries. Over the past 28 years, the Festival has presented over 3,500 films and shorts by Asian American and Asian international artists. This year, 46 feature films and 142 shorts will be showcased throughout the 10-day fest. The Festival will feature many returning filmmakers and producers who continue to make films and still hold true to their own voices as exemplified by amazing curated programs, special presentations and sneak previews of upcoming commercial releases, and the launch of two new programs for the production of new Asian American content.

SHANGHAI CALLING
The festival kicks off with the Los Angeles premiere of SHANGHAI CALLING, directed by Daniel Hsia. Hsia is a 2003 alumnus of Visual Communications’ Armed With A Camera Fellowship. Starring international hearthrob Daniel Henney (X-MEN ORIGINS: WOLVERINE; THREE RIVERS) SHANGHAI CALLING is a romantic comedy about modern-day immigrants living in an unfamiliar land. When an ambitious New York attorney (Daniel Henney) is sent to Shanghai on assignment, he immediately stumbles into a legal mess that could spell the end of his career. But with help from a beautiful relocation specialist, a well-connected foreign businessman, a clever but unassuming journalist, and a street-smart assistant, he might just save his job, discover romance, and finally learn to appreciate the many wonders of Shanghai. This is Hsia’s feature-length directorial debut, and co-stars Eliza Coupe (HAPPY ENDINGS) and Bill Paxton (BIG LOVE, HAYWIRE). Filmmaker, cast and crew to attend screening.

SUNSET STORIES
SUNSET STORIES, directed by Silas Howard and Ernesto M. Foronda, will be the festival’s Centerpiece Presentation. Foronda is also a Visual Communications’ Armed With A Camera fellow, and the writer/producer of the 2002 hit, BETTER LUCK TOMORROW. This is Foronda’s feature-length directorial debut. SUNSET STORIES, starring Sung Kang (FAST FIVE; NINJA ASSASSIN) and Monique Curnen (CONTAGION; THE DARK KNIGHT), takes you on a ride of a uniquely L.A. story of love and control. SUNSET STORIES had its world premiere at the South By Southwest Film Festival in mid-March.

The festival’s International Centerpiece is the Sundance award-winning VALLEY OF SAINTS, directed by Musa Syeed and produced by Nicholas Bruckman. The film is an India/USA production bringing to the screen the beautiful landscape of Kashmir. The story follows a young tourist boatman and his best friend, as they try to run away from the provincial life in their lake village. A military curfew and political uprising derail their plans, and the two young men must wait it out deciding on a new plan. VALLEY OF SAINTS won two major awards at Sundance – World Cinema Grand Prize and the Alfred P. Sloan Award.

YES, WE’RE OPEN
The Saturday Night Gala slot, reserved for a crowd-pleasing film every year, will be filled by sex comedy YES, WE’RE OPEN from Bay Area screenwriter H.P. Mendoza and director Richard Wong. A contemporary spin on a classic predicament, YES, WE’RE OPEN takes an intimate look at liberal San Francisco lifestyles over dinner and drinks with a side of infidelity.

Award-winning director Tsao Jui-Yuan’s JOYFUL REUNION will screen as the festival closing night presentation. A follow up to Ang Lee’s EAT DRINK MAN WOMAN, JOYFUL REUNION introduces us to familial bonds that surround a vegetarian restaurant. It is definitely a ‘foodie’ film about relationships, family ties and showcases Taiwanese and Chinese regional cuisines that will leave your mouth watering.

This year, for the first time, the LAAPFF expands to Long Beach during the Closing weekend, where Film Festival award-winners and a showcase of Pacific Islander works will be presented at the historic Art Theater of Long Beach. The oustanding films kick off with Venice and Sundance favorite THE ORATOR (O le Tulafele), directed by Tusi Tamasese and closes with SIONE’S 2: UNFINISHED BUSINESS (sequel to SAMOAN WEDDING) directed by Simon Bennet. Other highlights include Hawaiian documentary PAPA MAU: THE WAY FINDER, directed by Na’alehu Anthony; Eco-awareness documentary THERE ONCE WAS AN ISLAND (Te Henua e Nnoho), directed by Briar March; Cambodian American feature TWO SHADOWS directed by Greg Cahill; Festival favorite GOLDEN SLUMBERS directed by Cambodian French director Davy Chou about the golden and lost era of Cambodian cinema, which was eventually destroyed by the Khmer Rouge regime.
Through the LAAPFF, VC will also launch two major programs that will expand the organization’s artist services in a major way:

First, the C3 Project Market, a first-of-its-kind program, is a unique opportunity for filmmakers of Asian descent to showcase their narrative feature project to Financiers, Producers, Production Companies, Agents, Managers and Industry Executives enabling them with the contacts, information and confidence they need to make their film. On May 12-13, Industry participants will have the ability to discover new talent and voices, including winning a cash prize of $5000 for the best project pitch.

In addition, the VC Film Development Fund, underwritten by Comcast, was created to nurture established filmmakers with their next film project. The Fund is a multi-year program, wherein VC will select six filmmakers and will serve as Executive Producers to develop narrative feature-length projects, as well as financing up to $100,000 of the budget. The six filmmakers chosen for the Fund will be announced at the Opening Night of the Festival.

This year’s competition of Asian American feature films reflect a varied group of compelling story tellers from both documentary and narrative genres.

The 2012 documentary competition line-up includes:
CHINA HEAVYWEIGHT – Yung Chang
GIVE UP TOMORROW – Michael Collins
MR. CAO GOES TO WASHINGTON – S. Leo Chiang
RESTORING THE LIGHT – Carol Liu
SEEKING ASIAN FEMALE – Debbie Lum
UPLOADED: THE ASIAN AMERICAN MOVEMENT – Kane Diep
WHERE HEAVEN MEETS HELL – Sasha Friedlander

The 2012 narrative competition line up includes:
THE CRUMBLES – Akira Boch
HANG LOOSE – Ryan Kawamoto
I AM A GHOST – H.P. Mendoza
KNOTS – Michael Kang
MODEL MINORITY – Lily Mariye
PARADISE BROKEN – James Sereno
SALAD DAYS – Hiram Chan
SHANGHAI CALLING – Daniel Hsia
SUNSET STORIES – Ernesto M. Foronda, Silas Howard
SURROGATE VALENTINE 2: DAYLIGHT SAVINGS – David Boyle
TWO SHADOWS – Greg Cahill
VALLEY OF SAINTS – Musa Syeed
VIETTE – Mye Hoang
YES, WE’RE OPEN – Richard Wong

Shanghai Calling Trailer

Yes, We’re Open trailer

2012 Asian American Showcase in Chicago

2012 Asian American Showcase in Chicago
The Gene Siskel Film Center and the Foundation for Asian American Independent Media (FAAIM) present the 2012 Asian American Showcase, April 6 through 19, 2012 in Chicago. The festival encompasses comedies and dramas, probing documentaries, provocative shorts, and an array of special activities, all showcasing a wealth of talent on the Asian American scene. In addition, the art exhibition “100 Years,” featuring work by Chicago artists Wang Frank Yefeng, Cheng-Yung Kuo, and noted Chinese brush painter Qigu Jiang opens in the Gallery/Café on Friday, April 6, with a reception from 6:00 pm to 9:00 pm. The exhibition is presented in conjunction with Chicago’s Chinatown Centennial Celebration.

Opening Night Film: Daylight Savings (aka Surrogate Valentine 2)
Closing Night Film: Yes We’re Open
Other Films of note: No Look Pass, Knots, Among B-Boys, I Am Ghost, Salad Days, In the Family, Jake Shimabukuro Documentary, Resident Aliens, and Restoring The Light

Get tickets here

Yes We’re Open Trailer

2012 San Francisco International Asian American Film Festival (SFIAAFF)

2012 San Francisco International Asian American Film Festival  (SFIAAFF)
credit: Dim Sum: A Little Bit of Heart (1983).
Directed by Wayne Wang. Photo by Nancy Wong.

The San Francisco International Asian American Film Festival is a presentation of the Center for Asian American Media (CAAM), the largest festival and organization of its kind in North America. CAAM is dedicated to presenting stories that convey the richness and diversity of Asian American experiences to the broadest audience possible. CAAM achieves this by funding, producing, distributing and exhibiting works in film, television and digital media, exposing audiences to new voices and new communities, thereby advancing our collective understanding of American experiences.

Characterized by its youthful energy, forward‐looking programming, and legacy in social activism and education, SFIAAFF has earned its title as San Francisco’s fastest‐growing film festival. Along with its strong local resonance, the festival has important national and international ties and reaches a diverse audience from across the Asian diaspora. Over the past 30 years, SFIAAFF has played a vital role in introducing emerging filmmakers and actors who have gone on to commercial success, such as Wayne Wang, Sandra Oh, John Cho, Mira Nair, Ang Lee, Deepa Mehta, Justin Lin, and Gurinder Chadha, to name a few.
With an emphasis on live events, multimedia performances, and ventures into the culinary and gaming worlds, the Festival unabashedly welcomes new media platforms with the spirit of curiosity—over the past 3 years, SFIAAFF has produced HAPAS.US, a social‐networking site for mixed‐race Asians; Filipino or Not?, an iPhone game that challenges notions of racial ambiguity; and Climbing Sacred Mountain, a game that teaches young women the tenants of teamwork. It’s no wonder that SFIAAFF has gained a reputation for fostering bold new talent and lifting marginalized voices.

Opening and Closing Nights—WHITE FROG & PRISON DANCER in San Francisco, and KNOTS in San Jose

White Frog
White Frog: SFIAAFF is proud to open the Festival with the World Premiere of WHITE FROG, director Quentin Lee’s much buzzed‐about new feature. The film stars Booboo Stewart (The Twilight Saga) as high school freshman Nick, a young boy with Asperger’s syndrome who is often neglected and misunderstood by his seemingly perfect family. This powerful drama by director of The People I’ve Slept With and Flow, boasts some of the most influential and recognizable Asian American talent today, including B.D. Wong (Law and Order), Harry Shum Jr. (Glee), and Joan Chen (this year’s Festival Spotlight Honoree).

Prison Dancer
Prison Dancer: The Festival in San Francisco is capped seven days later with the World Premiere of Closing Night Presentation PRISON DANCER, dir. Romeo Candido. Based on the YouTube sensation that featured Philippine prisoners dancing to Michael Jackson’s “Thriller,” this cuttingedge, web‐based musical series paints a fictional portrait of the people behind the event, from a flamboyant, destined‐to‐be‐choreographer and his gay minions to a pair of star‐crossed lovers kept apart by the prison’s walls. This evening of “performative cinema” will include video, live performances by cast members, and maestro‐led audience participation.

Knots
Knots: Paradise isn’t quite for lovers in Michael Kang’s refreshing new Hawai’i‐based, islandpowered
romantic comedy KNOTS, SFIAAFF’s San Jose Opening Night Gala Presentation. Director Michael Kang’s (The Motel and West 32nd) third feature further demonstrates his directorial range in this fresh take on family ties and romantic entanglements. After a break‐up, marriage‐phobic Lily (Kimberly‐Rose Wolter, who also wrote and produced the film) skulks back to Hawai’i where she finds herself back at the wedding planning business run by her two unlucky‐in‐love sisters and her oft‐divorced mother. Filmed across Oahu and with a score by Hawai’ian phenom Jake Shimabukuro (the subject of SFIAAFF’s Special Presentation).

Jake Shimabukuro DocumentarySpecial Presentation —Jake Shimabukuro Documentary
CAAM is proud to present the World Premiere of its new documentary on ukulele virtuoso Jake Shimabukuro. The film follows Jake around the world on tour and visits home to his native Hawai’i, where he has risen from local hero to international star. Widely recognized as “the Jimi Hendrix of the ukulele,” Jake Shimabukuro captivates audiences, and peels away stereotypes. Emerging filmmaker Tadashi Nakamura (whose acclaimed films include Yellow Brotherhood, Pilgrimage, and A Song For Ourselves) provides an insightful portrait of this first‐class musician, backstage, at home, on the road, and into his early days. The event includes a special performance by Jake, as well as an on‐stage Q&A and VIP reception with Jake and special guests.

Spotlight on Joan Chen
Each year, SFIAAFF recognizes an individual who has made an indelible contribution to the Asian American experience through film; we are delighted to announce our 2012 honoree is the oneand‐ only actor/director Joan Chen. Born and raised in Shanghai, Chen was a teenager when she won China’s Best Actress award for Little Flower (1980). In the early eighties, she moved to the U.S. and became a star in Bernardo Bertolucci’s The Last Emperor (1987), winner of nine Academy Awards. Over the past decades, she has become a constant in mainstream and independent film and television, including Alice Wu’s Saving Face (2005), Ang Lee’s Lust, Caution (2007), Jia Zhang‐ke’s 24 City (2008) and David Lynch’s Twin Peaks. She has also been a Bay Area resident since the mid‐‘90s.

SFIAAFF will host a reunion screening of SAVING FACE, with many cast and crew in attendance, and Chen’s acclaimed directorial debut XIU XIU: THE SENT‐DOWN GIRL (1998), preceded by an intimate on‐stage conversation with Joan.

SPECIAL PRESENTATIONS: A Look Back & New Initiatives
SFIAAFF is proud to present a slate of Special Presentations that honor the legacy of Asian American founders, while highlighting the next generation of media forerunners.

Cherylene Lee: SCENES FROM A MEMOIR WITH CHERYLENE LEE presents an on‐stage reading by the showbiz pioneer from her soon‐to‐be‐released memoir, Just Like Really, and a conversation with her sister Virginia and film historian Stephen Gong, Executive Director of CAAM. Nakamura Family: Perhaps no family has made a greater impact on Asian American media than the Nakamura family: Robert A. Nakamura, his wife Karen Ishizuka, and their son Tadashi. Over a period of four decades, they’ve illuminated the experience of the Japanese in America and campaigned for the importance of diversity and community representation in media. The program will feature clips from some of the Nakamura’s key works, as well as the family in conversation with film historian Stephen Gong, Executive Director of CAAM.

Nice Girls Crew: Sheetal Sheth, Michelle Krusiec and Lynn Chen star in this raunchy Bridesmaidsmeets‐
Arrested Development comedy series. Sophie (Chen), Leena (Sheth), and Geraldine (Krusiec) have been true “frenemies” since elementary school. As grown‐ups, the ladies reunite in a book club where subjects of interest include sex, cannibalism, drugs and more. A CAAM production, NICE GIRLS CREW was created/written by Festival staffer Christine Kwon and directed/written by filmmaker Tanuj Chopra (Punching at the Sun).

Competitions Feature First‐Time Breakouts, Compelling Portraits
The heart of the festival, SFIAAFF presents the best in new Asian American cinema in its Narrative and Documentary Competition sections. This year’s Narrative Competition includes eight new works, including the critically acclaimed indie feature IN THE FAMILY (dir. Patrick Wang), a delicately woven story about child custody, “two‐Dad” families and parental loss and SURROGATE VALENTINE 2 (dir. Dave Boyle), the sequel to last year’s Closing Night hit and starring local musician Goh Nakamura. Other competition films include BANG BANG (dir. Byron Q), a portrait of a resilient Vietnamese teenager looking for a way out of the gang life; psychological thriller I AM A GHOST, directed by local stalwart H.P. Mendoza (Fruit Fly) and an impressive debut by Mye Hoang in VIETTE, the coming‐of‐age story of a young Vietnamese woman.

The Documentary Competition features eight compelling and insightful portraits, including GIVE UP TOMORROW, (dir. Michael Collins), a harrowing and incredible journey through the Philippines criminal justice system; LOVE CRIMES OF KABUL (dir. Tanaz Eshaghian), a heartbreaking portrait of Afghanistan’s “moral prisoners”; NO LOOK PASS (dir. Melissa Johnson), the story of a professional basketball player as she negotiates personal fulfillment and her traditional Burmese family; MR. CAO GOES TO WASHINGTON (dir. S. Leo Chiang), a portrait of the first Vietnamese American to become a member of Congress; and MRS. JUDO: BE STRONG, BE GENTLE, BE BEAUTIFUL (dir. Yuriko Gamo Romer), the inspiring story of 98‐year‐old Keiko Fukuda who is one of only four people in the world to hold the highest black belt in Judo.

SFIAAFF @ 30
Entering into its 30th year, SFIAAFF is excited to delve into a decade of maturity, promise and adventurous new beginnings. To capture the breadth and vitality of our stories, this year’s vibrant programming includes Present/Future: A Summit on Asian American Media, a town hall featuring a diverse set of thinkers to speak on the changing landscape and opportunities facing Asian American media makers; the Cook, Groove, and Play Salons, symposium‐style gatherings where artists working in different mediums will demonstrate their creative process and work with the audience to create a cultural object; and a variety of educational offerings, including a screening of the Himalayan Youth Voices Project, an intensive media literacy workshop for youth from Bhutan, Nepal, and Tibet, and a free screening of TIBET IN SONG (dir. Ngawang
Choephel).

Official SFIAAFF30 Jury
Comcast Narrative Competition: Benson Lee (Director, Planet B‐Boy), Priya Giri Desai (Producer, Match+) & Robynn Takayama (Producer, Apex Express)

Documentary Competition: Vincent Pan (Executive Director, Chinese for Affirmative Action), Brian Hu (Artistic Director, San Diego Asian Film Festival) & Momo Chang (freelance journalist)

Emerging Filmmaker Award (New!) Wajahat Ali (Playwright and Journalist, The Domestic Crusaders), Anderson Le (Director of Programming, Hawaii International Film Festival) and Skye Christensen (Executive Director, Ninth Street Media Consortium)

The last two awards at SFIAAFF30 include the Verizon Audience Awards and the Loni Ding Award for Social Issue Documentary.

World Premieres
WHITE FROG (dir. Quentin Lee)
PRISON DANCER (dir. Romeo Candido)
JAKE SHIMABUKURO DOCUMENTARY (dir. Tadashi Nakamura)
YES, WE’RE OPEN (dir. Rich Wong)
I AM A GHOST (dir. H.P. Mendoza)
VIETTE (dir. Mye Hoang)
THE CRUMBLES (dir. Akira Boch)
MR. CAO GOES TO WASHINGTON (dir. S. Leo Chiang)
MRS. JUDO: BE STRONG, BE GENTLE, BE BEAUTIFUL (dir. Yuriko Gamo Romer)
NICE GIRLS CREW (dir. Tanuj Chopra and a CAAM production)

Yes We’re Open Trailer

Asian American Women in Hollywood and Beyond

Asian American Women in Hollywood and Beyond

Last year, the San Diego Asian American Film Festival had a panel about Asian American actors in Hollywood. This year, during the 2011 San Diego Asian American Film Festival, they created one about Asian American women in Hollywood.

Since the days of Anna May Wong, Asian American actresses have had a continued presence in cinema, from icons of the Orient to Oscar-nominated actresses to directors and producers behind the camera. As technologies, demographics, and audiences transform, so too do representations and opportunities for Asian American actresses to hone and showcase their art. This panel brings together a legendary professor of Asian American Studies and two actresses who have become familiar faces in film and TV — and who will star together in next year’s Yes, We’re Open.

Panel:
Lynn Chen (Saving Face, Surrogate Valentine)
Sheetal Sheth (Looking for Comedy in the Muslim World, The Trouble with Romance)
Elaine H. Kim (Professor, Ethnic Studies, UC Berkeley; Director/writer, Slaying the Dragon: Reloaded)
Moderated by Leeva Chung (Professor Communication Studies University of San Diego

Asian American Women in Hollywood and Beyond

2011 Toronto Reel Asian International Film Festival

2011 Toronto Reel Asian International Film Festival

The 2011 Toronto Reel Asian International Film Festival commemorates its 15th anniversary with a series of new initiatives to recognize the organization’s 15-year history, including free screenings, larger venues to accommodate growing audiences, a multi-venue media art installation, special guest filmmakers from across Asia and the world, and a major expansion into Richmond Hill. From November 8-13 (Toronto) and November 18-19 (Richmond Hill), the festival will present more than 55 films and videos from over 12 countries, including Taiwan, South Korea, Japan, China, Hong Kong, Vietnam, the United States and Canada.

This year marks 15 years of celebrating the incredible diversity of the communities of Toronto. As the city’s Asian population has grown, Reel Asian has experienced increasing demand for its multi-cultural and diverse offerings, and has expanded its reach beyond downtown Toronto to Richmond Hill, Markham, and Scarborough, reaching new audiences in their own neighborhoods.

• OPENING NIGHT GALA: LOVER’S DISCOURSE (Hong Kong 2010, Canadian premiere, director Derek Tsang in attendance)
• CENTREPIECE PRESENTATION: JUMP ASHIN! (Taiwan 2011, Canadian premiere, director Lin Yu-hsien in attendance)
• CLOSING NIGHT GALA: BUDDHA MOUNTAIN (China 2010, Toronto premiere, guest in attendance)

Other films of note include Saigon Electric, Surrogate Valentine, Fullmetal Alchemist movie: THE SACRED STAR OF MILOS, and Pearls of the Far East.

Reel Asian also embarks on its largest venture to date – a weekend film festival at the Richmond Hill Centre for the Performing Arts from November 18 to 19. After several successful presentations at the centre, Reel Asian is eager to bring the festival to the Town of Richmond Hill, a major supporter of the festival and independent film. As part of our initiative to reach new audiences beyond the downtown core, Reel Asian recently presented films such as Last Train Home (Lixin Fan) and Merry Go Round (Clement Cheng) to over one thousand excited audience members in the 905 area.

2011 Toronto Reel Asian International Film Festival

2011 Vancouver Asian Film Festival

2011 Vancouver Asian Film Festival

The 2011 Vancouver Asian Film Festival (VAFF) will take place on November 3-6, 2011, at the Cineplex Odeon
International Village Cinemas in Vancouver. Over 3,000 audience members are expected to attend the four-day
festival. Among the many films of 2011 VAFF is opening film ALMOST PERFECT, starring Kelly Hu of X-MEN 2 fame and Hong Kong celebrity Edison Chen, who will be in attendance at the opening along with award-winning director Bertha Bay-sa Pan. This romantic comedy, stars Kelly Hu (X-Men 2) as the thirty-something “go-to” daughter in a dysfunctional Asian American family who keeps fixing everybody’s problems but forgets to have a life of her own.

Centerpiece film ASHES is its main actor Ajay Naidu’s directorial debut and he will be in attendance for the screening. It is a cautionary tale of mental illness, greed and the definition of family both real and imagined. A story of two brothers living in the inner city, one descends into the grips of manic-depressive schizoid disorder, while the other, Ashes, absconds from his responsibility and tries to become a wealthy drug dealer. Fraught with contradiction, the story is a meditation on how easy it is to fall through the cracks of today’s health-care system and how we ultimately find grace in the face of suicide.

The closing night presentation SURROGATE VALENTINE, which stars San Francisco musician and rising star Goh
Nakamura, and will be shown on Sunday, November 6 at 7:30 pm. Lead Actress Lynn Chen will be in attendance. In SURROGATE VALENTINE, Goh Nakamura’s life of solitude is disrupted when he is hired to teach TV actor
Danny Turner (Chadd Stoops) how to play guitar for an upcoming film. Together, the two embark on a hilarious West Coast adventure involving live gigs, groupies, shotgun wielding record exes and an unexpected friendship. Along the way, Goh discovers that Danny may be the missing puzzle piece in his life-long chase for Rachel (Lynn Chen), the one that got away.

Other highlights of interest includes loads of short films, Slaying the Dragon Reloaded: Asian Women in Hollywood and Beyond, The Learning, The Potential Wives of Norman Mao, and more.

Get more info and ticket information here.

2011 Vancouver Asian Film Festival