Embrace Your Power with Kelly Hu and George Takei

Center for Asian Americans United for Self Empowerment (CAUSE) launches its get-out-the-vote public service announcement, “Embrace Your Power,” to encourage Asian Pacific Americans (APA) to vote in the November 4th election.

Gearing up for the 2008 Presidential Election, CAUSE has teamed up with some of Hollywood’s finest to create an important message targeting Asian Pacific Americans to vote, participate and lead in America! “Embrace Your Power” is a 30-second film featuring prominent APA actors Kelly Hu (X-Men 2) and George Takei (Star Trek). Talented director George Huang and the phenomenal crew showed their commitment to the APA community with their voluntary efforts and dedication to this project.

In 2004, CAUSE teamed up with Kelly Hu to create the PSA “The Least Likely,” targeting APAs between the ages of 18 to 25 who are the least likely to vote, and they were urged to change that negative image by registering and voting. Kelly Hu’s passionate commitment to the APA community has brought her back for the second PSA, “Embrace Your Power” which has the same empowering message to the APA community to get out and vote.

Embrace Your Power with Kelly Hu and George Takei

BBC Sports 2008 Olympic Monkey Movie

BBC Sport recently released a two-minute animation for the upcoming 2008 Olympic Games. The concept is based upon the traditional Chinese folklore 'Journey to the West' with a twist turning it into a "Journey to the East" and the Beijing Olympics. The animation and music were specially produced by Jamie Hewlett and Damon Albarn - the team behind Gorillaz. There has been mixed reactions to the video. What do you think of the video?

BBC Sports 2008 Olympic Monkey Movie

Together At Last by Wong Fu Productions

This is an engagement video Wong Fu Productions made for their friends Eddie and Sarah who recently got married this summer! They have a great story. Eddie lived in LA, Sarah lived in Taipei. For 4 years they had to deal with this distance in their relationship, always having to fly back and forth. Finally, the two are Together At Last. The song used is "Say it Again" by Marie Digby. The video is quite entertaining and very clever.

Together At Last by Wong Fu Productions

Cooking Bamboo Shoots with Joi Ito

Boing Boing tv takes you with Joi Ito to cook up some delicious takenoko (竹の子), young bamboo shoots. You may know Joi Ito as a serial entrepreneur, a twittering globetrotter VC, a World of Warcraft junkie, or the CEO of Creative Commons, but he has a more traditional side, too.,br>
In this video, Joi Ito welcomes us into his back yard in Japan, where he and his partner Mizuka teach us how to hunt for and prepare this traditional seasonal delicacy from a lush bamboo forest. The episode is accompanied by an original score composed by Grammy, Academy Award, and Golden Globe-winning composer, Ryuichi Sakamoto.

Watch Cooking Bamboo Shoots with Joi Ito


Here's the recipe for TAKENOKO (Young Bamboo Shoots):
--------------------

How to slice:

Cut tip of takenoko at an angle. Cut vertical to down middle to front.

"Akunuki" process to remove bitter taste:

In a large boiling pot add:

* Dried Chili X 3
* Rice "Nuka" husks 2 handfuls

Cold water 2 liters

Add takenoko with the cuts and husks. Full heat from water for approximately 20-40 min (until you can stick a chopstick into the takenoko). Lower heat as it comes to a boil. After completed, cut heat and leave over night.

The next day, remove husks and cut to smaller pieces and boil for 10 min.
Making "Wakatakeni":

Make 2 cups stock from "Kobu" (seaweed) and "Katsuo" (Bonito flakes). Add Thin Soy Sauce - 3 table spoon, Sugar - table spoon, Sake - 2 table spoon. Add takenoko and boil for 8 min. Add "Wakame" (seaweed) and boil for additional 2 min.

Top with "Kinome" (Japanese herb) and eat as it is OR

Make Takenoko rice:

Make stewed Takenoko above but use "Oage" (dried tofu) instead of "Wakame". Take the sauce from Wakatakeni" and add as flavor to rice in a rice cooker and prepare rice normally. After rice is done, add the stewed takenoko and oage and mix. Enjoy.

Note: "cups" are Japanese size cups which are 200ml or 200cc.

Tokyology with Carrie Ann Inaba

TOKYOLOGY is a documentary exploring contemporary Japanese pop-culture. Vicariously experience the diverse and colorful attractions of the world's largest city, as Carrie Ann Inaba (Dancing with the Stars) guides you through the legendary crowds of Tokyo.

Have fun at the blasphemous Christon Cafe, sneak behind the scenes at a Japanese Rock TV show that pretends it's shot in Los Angeles, stroll around fashionable Harajuku, go clubbing with outrageously costumed goths, or end the night at a super-stylish hair salon that is open for business until eight in the morning.

But there's more to Tokyo than crazy nightlife and entertainment: from anime to architecture, political art to gaming, from shopping and style to the Cherry Blossom festival, the city has something for everyone, and its share of surprises, too!

Buy Tokyology DVD

Tokyology with Carrie Ann Inaba

4960 by Wing-Yee Wu

4960 by Wing-Yee Wu made it into the YouTube Screening Room. The New York based director was recently invited to represent the United States as part of "Festival Internazionale del Cinema di Frontera" in Italy.

Synopsis:

The faster you run, the more likely you are to stay alive.
Aida and Josef try to communicate between the distance from Point A to Point B. An exposed space, clearly visible to snipers, prevents them from doing so. Set during the Sarajevo siege, shot in NYC, award winning short film 4960 earned Jury comments: "Brutal, riveting, fearless . . . Profound depiction of human hunger for connection, scathing social commentary . . . Dead on convergence of ethics and aesthetics."

Watch 4960 by Wing-Yee Wu

Yellow Sticky Notes

We spotted this film in the YouTube Screening Room. Yellow Sticky Notes is a fun animated short. After realizing that yellow sticky note "to do" lists were consuming his life, animation filmmaker Jeff Chiba Stearns decided to visually self-reflect on his filmmaking journey by animating on the same sticky notes that caused him to ignore major world events for the last nine years. Animation meditation is blended with image, text, and an original musical score by Genevieve Vincent through the creation of a classically animated experimental film that was drawn straight ahead with only a black ink pen on over 2300 yellow sticky notes. His latest award-winning film, Yellow Sticky Notes, winner of the 2008 CAEAA for Best Animated Short Subject and Golden Sheaf for Best Animation at the 2008 Yorkton Short Film and Video Festival, is currently traveling on the international film festival circuit. You can also catch Yellow Sticky Notes as part of the Spike and Mike’s Sick and Twisted Festival of Animation 2008 tour.



Jeff Chiba Stearns is an award-winning Canadian independent animation filmmaker, writer and artist, born in British Columbia, Canada, of Japanese and European heritage (actually a mix of Japanese, English, Scottish, Russian, and German). Using various formats like animation, documentary, and experimental, Jeff enjoys creating works aimed at children and adults that combine different philosophical elements together to create humorous, inspiring, and entertaining stories. Watch Yellow Sticky Notes


Add Yellow Sticky Notes ad your MySpace friend.

2008 DC APA Film Trailer Contest

javascript:void(0) Publish Post The 9th Annual DC Asian Pacific American (APA) Film Festival is coming up this September and they neeed your help. DC APA Film and Scion Motors have partnered up again this year to bring you the 2008 DC APA Film Festival Trailer Contest, now in its third year. It's all pretty simple. You make a 30-second trailer promoting their festival. Your trailer may be highlighted on their site and included as part of their promotional efforts for the festival. The Grand Prize winning trailer will also be screened before most -- if not all -- screenings throughout the festival. And if that's not incentive enough for you, they're awarding cash prizes to the top two finalists, $600 to the grand prize winner and $200 to the first runner up. For details and rules, go here.

Here's last year's winner for the 2007 DC APA Film Trailer Contest

72 Hour Film Shootout Award Winners Announced

Here's the list of winners announce today for the 5th Annual 72 Hour Film Shootout Award:

GRAND PRIZE WINNER
Team Big Egg
“No Holding Back”

1ST RUNNER-UP
Team Fish Grenade
“Drain”

2ND RUNNER-UP
Team Color TV
“Cold War”

TOP TEN FILMS
(Alphabetical Order by Team Name)

Azn Rejects
“Suspense’s How to Jedi Mind Trick the B*tches”

Big Egg
“No Holding Back”

CinemAsia
“Say Goodbye”

Color TV
“Cold War”

Fish Grenade
“Drain”

Inspirasian
“First Goodbye Cleaning Agency”

Last Minute Films
“Killer Headline”

Sans Humor
“A First Goodbye”

Vision
“Say Goodbye”

White Rabbit
“Miles Apart”

INDIVIDUAL AWARDS

Best Actor
Rain Noe
Team Color TV, “Cold War”

Best Actress
Tess Paras
Team Color TV, “Cold War”

Best Cinematography
Nara Garber
Team White Rabbit, “Miles Apart”

Best Direction
Derek Shimoda
Team Fish Grenade, “Drain”

Best Editing
Derek Shimoda
Team Fish Grenade, “Drain”

Best Story
CinemAsia, “Say Goodbye”

Most Original Use of Theme
Team Color TV, “Cold War”

Audience Award
Team Grace, Wtf, “Discard”

Chinatown Award
Team Zeitgeist ArtWorks, “Spofford Alley”

Congrats to all the winners!!

Watch the extended version of "Suspense’s How to Jedi Mind Trick the B*tches" by Azn Rejects

72 Hour Film Shootout voting closes today

The 72 Hour Film Shootout Audience Award voting closes at 11:59pm EST, Friday, July 11. The awards are live this Sunday, July 13, at Asia Society, New York City. The ceremony begins at 12:30pm. Find out who will be in The Top 10 Films, who will be the Best Of, who will win the Chinatown Award, who will claim the Audience Award, and who will be crowned Grand Prize Winner.

You can still vote here.
Watch some behind the scenes footage from Killer Headline

72 Hour Film Shootout voting begins

After being delayed by a couple days, the voting for the 5th Annual 72 Hour Film Shootout has now started. The theme this year was "a first goodbye". There are almost 40 shorts for viewing and voting for the audience awards, so cast your online ballots from July 2-July 11. You are allowed to vote ONCE, and ONLY ONCE. You must pick YOUR FAVORITE, and can ONLY VOTE FOR ONE FILM. You can watch and vote here.

We noticed the site keep going up and down, so be patient. (Maybe there is too much traffic for the site to handle!!)

Watch last year's People’s Choice Shootout Awards "SECRET CHINESE SECRET"

72 Hour Film Shootout Entries

72 Hour Film Shootout competition ended on Monday and has now entered the judging phase. The Judging Panel includes producer Karin Chien (The Motel), director Michael Kang (The Motel), editor/producer Jean Tsien (Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon), director/writer Alice Wu (Saving Face), Executive Director of Primetime Casting for ABC Entertainment Marci Phillips, director Benson Lee (Planet B-boy), actor Sung Kang (The Motel and Ninja Assassin), writer/film festival programmer Grady Hendrix (New York Asian Film Festival).
Here's more information about the judging

The Round One Judging Panel will consist of AAFL 72 Hour Shootout staff. Entries will be judged based on filmmaking ability, production value, originality, successful incorporation of the theme, and overall creativity. Out of the original submission pool, the Top 15 films will be selected to advance to the final round of judging. In addition, the Round One Judging Panel will nominate up to five films or persons for each of the individual award categories.

The Final Judging Panel (Round Two) will select the Top 10 films, two (2) Finalist Prize Winners, and one (1) Grand Prize Winner. Entries will be judged based on filmmaking ability, production value, originality, successful incorporation of the theme, and overall creativity. All of Individual Awards will be determined by the Final Judging Panel.

72 Hour Film Shootout Entries are starting to pop up on YouTube. You can see one from Team Suprise Film and another from Team Stubborn Cat. The theme for this year was "A first goodbye"

"Foreign Exchange" - Team Suprise Films

"A Frist Goodbye" - Team Stubborn Cat

FREE YOUR STORY Contest

THE CHALLENGE
Beyond event coverage and filmmaker interviews, the Center for Asian American Media (CAAM) Channel provides a platform for emerging artists everywhere to connect with a worldwide audience interested in works by or about Asian Americans. Their latest digital initiative challenges you to tell your story without the constraints of space or time. Ten applicants will be chosen, six will compete, and one finalist will win a brand new HD camera and one year Supporter level membership to CAAM.

THE DETAILS
CAAM and Toyota Matrix are looking for 6 emerging storytellers to explore ideas of activity and movement in this exciting digital age. In a 5-7 minute piece in any film/video genre, allow your vision to take flight across time and space, from real to virtual, from inertia to motion. To drive your story, imagine you have a powerful Toyota Matrix device that moves your narrative forward - and keeping with the theme, this object is as open to interpretation as your story. Whether you use the actual vehicle or a Matrix-shaped portal, free yourself to delve into any subject matter - from immigration stories to voter voices to global issues. We challenge you to make the most interesting and insightful works and prove that creativity knows no boundaries.

Deadline is Monday, June 23, 2008 at 8PM PST.

WHAT YOU WIN
Grand Prize Winner* receives a HD video camera.

*Restrictions apply. See Contest Rules and Regulations for more details.

HOW TO ENTER
1. Create a one (1) minute video introduction, telling us who you are and why you should be chosen to compete for the grand prize. Be original, creative, and resourceful. Use anything to capture that video: web cam, camera phone, digital camera, etc. Videos need to be one minute or less. One introduction video per contestant.

2. Email michella[at]asianamericanmedia[dot]org the following information:
- Your Name
- Age
- Address
- Phone number
- A brief written bio
- 3 - 5 URLS for samples of works (all sample works must be online, youtube, google, myspace, personal sites, etc.)
- A short treatment (no more than 300 words) for the video you would make if you were chosen to compete in the Toyota Matrix FREE YOUR STORY Video Challenge

You have to be eighteen (18) years of age or older and a legal resident of the fifty (50) United States. To be able to participate, all entrants will be registered as CAAM Fans. CAAM Fan is a free membership to the Center for Asian American Media. For more information and benefits of CAAM Fan, click here.

3. Upload your video introduction here. YOUR NAME MUST BE IN THE TITLE OF YOUR UPLOADED WORK.
(Accepted video file formats are: .WMA, .MP3, .MPEG, .DV, .MPG, .MOV, .GCELP, .WAV, .WMV, .QT, .MP4, .AVI, .AMR-NB, .MOD, .3G2, .ASF, .3GP, .FLV, .MOVIECLIP. The maximum video length is 1 minute. Maximum file size is 100MB.)
If you have trouble uploading contact michella[at]asianamericanmedia.org.

4. Deadline is Monday, June 23, 2008 at 8PM PST
No entries or videos will be accepted after the deadline. Please make sure to allow enough time to upload your video.

JUDGING
1. The Top 10 Most Resourceful, Creative and Energetic applicants, selected from all the submissions by the FREE YOUR STORY CAAM Judges, will be posted on www.asianamericanmedia.org on Tuesday, July 1, 2008 at 5PM PST. Public Internet Voting will then determine the six finalists that advance to the video challenge round.

2. Voting Officially Ends Monday, July 21, 2008 at 5PM PST.

3. The six finalists of the FREE YOUR STORY Contest, chosen by Public Internet Voting, will be announced on the www.asianamericanmedia.org on Wednesday July 22, 2008.

4. The six finalists will then have three weeks to each make a 5-7 minute video about activity and movement using the Toyota Matrix object. Their final video deadline is August 12, 2008 at 5PM PST. The six videos will be posted on www.asianamericanmedia.org on August 13, 2008.

5. The FREE YOUR STORY jury will determine the winner by August 22, 2008. The winner will be featured on www.asianamericanmedia.org by August 25, 2008 and screened at a TBA outdoor screening in early Fall 2008.

Here's a short video from the assistant director of the San Francisco Asian American Film festival put on by CAAM.

72 Hour Film Shootout begins

The 5th Annual 72 Hour Film Shootout kicks off now. Teams only have 72 hours (June 20-23, 2008) to write, shoot, edit, and complete short films up to five minutes in length. This weekend will be a busy for shootout teams. Judges for the competition include Sung Kang (Finishing the Game, Fast and Furious 3: Tokyo Drift, Ninja Assassin) and Benson Lee (Planet B-boy).

The theme for the 2008 72 Hour Film Shootout is "A first goodbye". Also the competition has added a separate award category sponsored by The Museum of Chinese in America's (MOCA) Chinatown Film Project. If you include Chinatown as location or narrative device in your film, you are eligible to be considered for the "Chinatown Award"

Good Luck to everyone!!!

Here's Tanju Chopra (Punching at the Sun) giving you some motivation

At Musing's End

We showed you the trailer for At Musing's End this week, but now Wong Fu Productions has officially released the At Musing's End short that showed at Cannes.

Everyone daydreams. But what's in a daydream? It's a little bit of care-free imagination mixed with real life experiences- and topped off with a pinch of idealism. Sometimes the most interesting and meaningful moments we have are the everyday happenings that are easily forgettable. In the end, these moments are the true treasures that we cherish. In this short narrative, we see the evolution of Robin and Adams' romance through the highs and lows of their relationship.

Official Selection of the 2008 Cannes Film Festival Short Films Corner

Written and Directed by Wesley Chan
Produced with Philip Wang and Ted Fu
Featuring Mimi Chao, William Yu, and Po Fung
Music by Jesse Chui, Henry Tsai, and Moby

At Musing's End part 1 of 2



At Musing's End part 2 of 2

At Musing's End trailer by Wong Fu Productions

At Musing's End - Written and Directed by Wesley Chan

This short film was screened at Cannes a couple weeks ago. Wong Fu Productions will release the short online as two parts on June 15, 2008.

Watch the trailer for At Musing's End

5th Annual 72 Hour Film Shootout call for entries

The 5th Annual 72 Hour Film Shootout which will take place this year from June 20-23, 2008. The Shootout is a nationwide competition where filmmaking teams are given a common theme at the start and have 72 hours to write, shoot, edit, and complete short films up to five minutes in length. Teams compete for cash and prizes and the chance to have their films screened at film festivals, both nationally and internationally.

The intention of this competition is to create opportunities for Asian Americans to demonstrate their talent, gain exposure in the entertainment industry, and impact the visibility of Asian American stories and characters in film and television. One of the Shootout requirements is that at least one key production member (e.g., director, producer, or writer) and a principal actor from each team must be of Asian descent.

The 5th Annual 72 Hour Film Shootout begins on Friday, June 20, 2008, at 8pm. The competition theme will be announced at the New York City launch party to be held at White Rabbit Lounge (145 East Houston Street, New York, NY) and simultaneously posted online at 72hourfilmshootout.com at 8pm. The Top 10 Shootout films will screen at the New York Asian American International Film Festival organized by Asian Cinevision (July 10-19, 2008), the First Annual Philadelphia Asian American Film Festival (October 24-30 2008), and a special screening event organized by NYC-based Aspire Asian Film Circle.

AND…

AAFilmLab together with the Museum of Chinese in America (MoCA) have added a special award category to this year’s Shootout: The Chinatown Award! Films that incorporate a Chinatown as a location or narrative device are entered into the “Chinatown Award” category. Selection of the winning film will be decided by both MoCA and AAFilmLab. The Chinatown Award will be comprised of in-kind services totaling $3000 from Deluxe New York. (The inclusion of the Chinatown element in a film has no bearing whatsoever on judging for other award categories.)

And what will this year’s Theme be? Find out June 20 at 8pm (EDT)…

Last year's theme was "Elizabeth Ong is missing". See some of the winners from last year. Here's "You've Got Male" by Team 100% (Grand Prize Winner)


Here's "Secret Chinese Secret" by Team Foreign Image (2nd Runner Up and People’s Choice Winner)

8th Annual Slant Film Festival in Houston

This weekend only experience the 8th Annual Slant Film Festival. For the 8th year, Aurora Picture Show presents Slant, an eclectic showcase of the best in emerging Asian American cinema. The festival runs for 3 days this year. Catch all the action at:

Aurora Picture Show
800 Aurora Street
Houston, TX

Opening Night Films - Shorts - May 30 @ 8pm
What do missed connections, using bananas as weapons, and a little girl´s persistence in selling cookies have in common? Nothing, until we brought them together for Slant! This program of experimental and narrative films weaves together the humorous and the poetic. Some films tackle stereotypes, while others travel through memory and longing.

Getting to Nobu - May 31 @ 8pm
Join Slant veteran and our favorite TV personality, Nobu Adilman, for a special show-and-tell screening of his short films and television shows. Nobu is the co-producer of Food Network Canada's Food Jammers and Invention Nation. His career has included writing for network television (Emily of New Moon, Cold Squad), acting (Trailer Park Boys, Parsley Days), hosting CBC’s Smart Ask! for two years, guest hosting CBC’s late night program, ZeD, and pop culture reporting on CBC Newsworld’s Play.

Documentary Showcase - June 1 @ 8pm
In this program of documentaries, family members hold on to each other and their memories even when outside forces try to tear them apart.

Here's what you can expect from Slant 8. Watch the teaser for Slant Volume 1 DVD - Asian American Short Films

APA Month Day 23 - director Justin Lin

Chinese American director Justin Lin learned his trade form the UCLA Film School. The film that put him on the map was "Better Luck Tomorrow". This film made waves at The Sundance Film Festival when a member of the audience asked how Justin & co. could "make a film as so empty and amoral for Asian Americans and for Americans". Movie critic Roger Ebert stepped up and defended the film. In 2002, Justin made it on Variety Magazine's "Ten Directors to Watch". From independent films, he jumped into Hollywood films. His first studio picture was Annapolis, which was greeted with mixed reviews, but found an audience in DVDs. His next film was "The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift," which took in almost $160 million worldwide. This was an amazing feat considering this was a whole new cast from the original "The Fast and the Furious". Drifting became the "in" thing. Justin Lin went back to indie flix by directing the hilarious "Finishing the Game: The Search for a New Bruce Lee". Currently, Justin Lin is filming "The Fast and the Furious 4"

Watch this short documentary "BUILDING A JOURNEY: FROM BETTER LUCK TOMORROW TO FINISHING THE GAME" - Part 1 of 3:


Part 2 of 3:


Part 3 of 3:

Wong Fu Productions and Far East Movement at Cannes

Wong Fu Production's "A Peace of Home" was selected to Cannes Film Festival Short Films Corner. Wong Fu is headed to France not only to showcase their new shorts at the festival but to also host a special event with special guest Far East Movement.

Watch "A Peace of Home" from Wong Fu Productions

A Pressured Future

A Pressured Future by Julianne Sobejana

This Mother's Day keep in mind that our parents just wants what's best for us. Most parents have great expectations for their children, but what happens when their hopes clash with their children's own aspirations? Although this film is from a Filipino point of view, you can replace Filipino with any other Asian race and the main topics of the film will still hold true. This short film was part of Reel Voices 2007 from the San Diego Asian Film Festival.

Watch A Pressured Future:

Call Center the movie

While researching "Kissing Cousins", we found that director Amyn Kaderali has posted his short film "Call Center" on youtube. The hilarious short film on outsourcing has been seen by over 2 million viewers. (see the official website). The youtube version is preceded by the trailer for "Kissing Cousins". Due to length, the short film has been split in two parts, so don't forget to check out part II. You can watch the short below: