Meeting new people can make anyone a little nervous. Asian CineVision is here to help! We're launching the 33rd Asian American International Film Festival and your new romance all in one event. Up for speed dating? Here is your chance to enjoy the happy hour specials at Forbidden City, meet your cinema soulmate (or a really good movie buddy) and win festival tickets for that first real date.
If you happen to be a pair of film aficionados, then the sparks of romance will already be flying. Register if you're seeking a fling with the ultimate lovers: film and culture.
Pre-registration is required. Limited spaces available.
Marvel Studios is trying something a little different to rustle up the money for Iron Man 3 and help it become a huge hit not just in the United States, but in the increasingly important foreign market. As announced last week, they're teaming up with China's DMG Entertainment to co-produce the film and release it in China, with scenes also scheduled to shoot in the country that's famously restrictive for releases of non-Chinese movies. The co-production deal will allow Iron Man 3 to be treated like a native film, meaning the box office returns in that country of 1.3 billion could make this co-production deal pay off in spades.
In a world torn by a war between vampires and angels, a human vigilante on the hunt for her missing sisters is lured into the den of a vampire.
This is a sneak peek trailer for an 11 minute action short film which is currently on the film festival circuit. The short is a prequel to a feature film of the same name currently in development. If you liked the trailer or enjoyed the film at a festival, we'd really appreciate it if you'd give us a Like on Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/bloodtraffick) and spread the word to your friends!
In growing numbers, experts say (there is always an experts somewhere) a highly educated children of immigrants to the United States are uprooting themselves and moving to their ancestral countries. They are embracing homelands that their parents once spurned but that are now economic powers.
Some, like Mr. Kapadia, had arrived in the United States as young children, becoming citizens, while others were born in the United States to immigrant parents.
Enterprising Americans have always sought opportunities abroad. But this new wave underscores the evolving nature of global migration, and the challenges to American economic supremacy and competitiveness.
In interviews, many of these Americans said they did not know how long they would live abroad; some said it was possible that they would remain expatriates for many years, if not for the rest of their lives.
Their decisions to leave have, in many cases, troubled their immigrant parents. Yet most said they had been pushed by the dismal hiring climate in the United States or pulled by prospects abroad.
Disney's announcement on Monday that it will make Iron Man 3 in partnership with a Chinese company is the latest sign that movie studios are warming to China's new openness.
For decades, China has capped the number of foreign films it allows into the country. Until recently, the limit was 20, but in February Chinese officials announced that they are increasing the quota to 34.
China said it will also allow foreign studios to garner a greater share of box office revenue. Foreign companies can now expect to earn 25 percent of their movies' ticket sales in China, up from between 13.5 and 17.5 percent.
The changes are a significant move for a bureaucracy that is leery of outside cultural influences and competition from foreign films. The change could affect everyone from action movie fans in Guangzhou to Hollywood's most powerful filmmakers.
The relaxing of China's strict rules comes at a price for US studios. The world's most populous nation wants foreign studios to bring their movie making know-how to China by forming joint ventures with Chinese studios.
The Linsanity that Jeremy Lin touched off this winter has faded, a casualty of the New York Knicks point guard’s drop in productivity and the recent knee surgery that ended his regular season.
But the surreal period in which a former bench warmer led the Knicks on a seven-game winning streak while helping a lot of headline writers show off will live on, at least if Hollywood has anything to do with it.
Lin is the subject of a documentary that is being pitched to distributors in Hollywood by agency CAA; footage is currently being assembled.
(Article by G. Allen Johnson is a San Francisco Chronicle)
The decision to honor Joan Chen at the 30th San Francisco International Asian American Film Festival makes sense in just about every way. She came to the United States about 30 years ago, when the festival was getting off the ground. She's lived in San Francisco for some two decades. She is an international star.
But the Asian American part of it?
"I'm very happy, because at least through half of my stay in the United States, I never felt this Asian American thing is my thing," Chen says over lunch at a Cow Hollow restaurant. "I'm Chinese. I felt more like a sojourner. But ever since I've had kids here, it's different. I've identified myself more with Asian Americans.
"I now feel very honored to be a part of it."
Three Chen
New York, NY – Feb 07, 2012— Two of Hollywood’s top Asian Pacific American actors star in the follow-up film to the 2008 hit, “Journey to the Center of the Earth.” Chinese-Filipino American actress/singer Vanessa Hudgens (Disney’s “High School Musical” series) and Samoan American Dwayne Johnson (“Fast Five”) take center stage in this year’s anticipated family adventure film, JOURNEY 2: THE MYSTERIOUS ISLAND. The 3D movie is a New Line Cinema presentation of a Contrafilm production and will be distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures, a Warner Bros. Entertainment Company. The film will be released in IMAX® theaters worldwide on February 10, 2012. For more information about the film, visit http://www.themysteriousisland.com.
First Asian American Serial Killer Movie Begins Fundraising Drive on New Crowd-Funding Site USA Projects
Los Angeles, CA. December 1, 2011 – The filmmakers responsible for independent hit, The People I've Slept With, are joining together again to make Chink, the first Asian American serial killer movie. It is the directorial debut of Stanley Yung, the film is written by Koji Steven Sakai and produced by Stanley, Koji, and Quentin Lee. The film stars Jason Tobin (Better Luck Tomorrow and The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift) and Eugenia Yuan (Memoirs of a Geisha and The Eye 2).
They are hoping to raise at least ten thousand dollars to cover production expenses on USA Projects, created by United States Artists to expand its mission of investing in America’s finest artists. They plan on beginning production in the spring of 2012.
KAFFNY Urban, NYC’s unique film & music event returns to the 30′ outdoor LED screen at the Big Screen Plaza in midtown, also viewable from Bar Basque and FoodParc. Urban serves as a platform for local and international artists to promote their projects to new and diverse audiences in New York City. Momofuku Milk Bar will provide a special treat as well as a signed copy of the new Momofuku Milk Bar cookbook. The event is FREE and OPEN TO THE PUBLIC.
Quentin Lee's "Today Has Been Weird"
World Premieres on Friday 11/4/2011 @ 9:15PM
At Vancouver Asian Film Festival and on Youtube worldwide!
Vanouver/Los Angeles - In May 2005, a young Xanga blogger Simon Sek Man Ng's final blog entry shocked the internet community and helped the New York police solve his own murder. As a fellow Xanga blogger and filmmaker at that time, Quentin Lee was simultaneously shocked, saddened and moved by his murder.
When offered to do a CAN$500 commissioned short for the Vancouver Asian Film Festival, Quentin decided to adapt Simon's story into a short as an ironic love story to the collection of "Love Letters to Vancouver" celebrating the 15th anniversary of Vancouver Asian Film Festival, the oldest North American Asian festival in Canada, that screened Quentin Lee and Justin Lin's first feature Shopping for Fangs as their closing night feature in VAFF's very first edition in 1997.
Inspired by a true story, "Today Has Been Weird" chronicles an unexpected day of a vlogger. It's a mystery that portrays a truly mysterious true crime in memoriam of Sek Man Ng, a young Chinese immigrant teenager whose unexpected death has faded in our memory.
A Glimpse of our ANBM Source Press going backstage at the AAIFF festival, they got to meet some of the Festival seeing and short film directors. Enjoying the event and working experience the lively atmosphere.
A Special thanks to Amy Guo and Shuchun and another unamed contributor for the fantastic media coverage on the event. Also a special thanks to Juliana Wang, the marketing manager for AAIFF looked after our crew.
Movies Reviewed: Love Comes, 72 Hour Shootout, A Day Less Ordinary, The Lulu Sessions, Saigon Electric, Quattro Hong Kong, Cuny Shorts, Never Stop Believing, Love Doesn't Live Here Anymore, and the Wedding Palace.
The One to Watch Award was presented to director Namgyal Wangchuk Trichen Lhagyari for his short film MY COUNTRY IS TIBET. Eligible films screened in the FOR YOUTH BY YOUTH: AGE AIN’T NOTHING BUT A NUMBER shorts program, which featured films directed by young adults ages 15-21. Lhagyari, a seventeen-year-old Tibetan refugee and descendant of the first Tibetan Dharma King, is fueled by a sense of responsibility to his people to present his message through film.
The Audience Choice Award for Documentary Feature was presented to TALES OF THE WARIA, directed by Kathy Huang. This humorous and touching documentary explores a unique community of men in Indonesia who live openly as women. Known as warias, these individuals must balance their identity with intimacy, and their Islamic faith.
The White House Initiative on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders announces the launch of its “What’s Your Story?” video challenge. The challenge aims to explore the personal stories of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders (AAPIs) across the country who have impacted their community through their dreams, experiences, and dedication to a cause.
Our stories define who we are.
Tell us how your unique experiences have shaped who you are today. Are you a passionate advocate of green and health initiatives for nail salons? Have you made a difference in your community through work with immigrant integration programs? Are you part of a movement that paves the way for AAPIs in the arts? Respond to our launch video below with a video under 3-minutes about your own experience and community leadership. You may also submit an essay under 1,000 words to address these questions.
Be sure to check this film out! the film Wedding Palace wins Best Feature & Best Cinematography at Cine Gear Expo! Written by Christine Yoon.
Starring Jean Yoon and Stephen Park, Charles Kim plays the "Professor Uncle"
Reviews by Scott Eriksson
"Christine Yoo has written and directed a film that is masterful in the way it moves from comedy to romance by blending the two seamlessly. That's the good news...the bad news is that by virtue of the fact that it is a film with an Asian cast and a few subtitles thrown in, it will probably not receive the wide release and the sold out American audiences it deserves. Although it is a film about Korean culture and traditions of parents whose son is a Korean-American raised in a very different world than his immigrant parents, the comedy is ultimately about generational differences among family members, something everyone can understand. While every good film starts with a great script, without the right director and cast it can't succeed.
Surviving the Independent films Landscape: A conversation with Mimi Taksue.
Museum of Chinese in America | August 14, 2011 | 5:00PM
Waiting for that call to get your dream project off the ground? Wondering how to continue to make film and maintain a sustainable lifestyle as an independent filmmaker? Emerging director Kimi Takesue is the recipient of numerous awards. Her commissioned works include WHERE ARE YOU TAKING ME? (Rotterdam International Film Festival) and THAT WHICH ONCE WAS (ITVS).
Kimi Takesue is the recipient of a 2005 John Simon Guggenheim Fellowship in Filmmaking, as well as a 2005 New York Foundation for the Arts in Film. Her award-winning films E=NYC2, SUMMER OF THE SERPENT, HEAVEN'S CROSSROAD, ROSEWATER AND BOUND have been televised in the U.S. and screened at over 200 film festivals and museums.
That's right people, the Asian American International film festival is coming soon and the last event turned out to be a success. This year's films will begin screening in August.
Be sure to checkout their schedule with the film titles and screen times becasue the list is huge. Please check out their website for the most up to date information
Let me begin by firstly admit to my personal skepticism of any mainstream movie that attempts to portray Asian people positively, in particular Hollywood movies.
We are about to see an upcoming release titled 'Snow Flower', an adaptation to the original story. We have been informed that this is not a rehash of the old pain known as 'Joy Luck club', perhaps the Asian Americans may feel relieved.
However this has yet to be confirmed as the question still poses as to whether this movie be end up as another Hollywood-ized packaged disappointment for the Asian audience.
The big question, will this movie differ to it's evil predecessor 'Joy Luck Club' film, as we had already known to draw criticism from many Asian Americans, as a fabrication of Chinese culture to entertain the masses.
All thanks (but no thanks) to Tan and her "Joy Luck club" co-writers, our Asian American youths could only ever grow up misguided by false representations of identity.
Jeff Yang writes another great article in contrast to the latest Asian stereotyped sellout piece 'Hangover 2' and in this article he touches on the economics of Asian Americans and their appraoch to the mainstream movie industry. The challenges are clearly there, no doubt Asian Americans are full of talent in the entertainment industry, we have notable directors, actors and actresses . Asian Americans are also more than capable of setting up their own alternative media sources but is that just enough?
Leading Community and Japanese Lifestyle Site to Develop Free Phone Application, Onsite Mobile Scavenger Hunt, Photo Studio and Convention Livecast for AM2 LOS ANGELES, Calif. (March 25, 2011) The summer¹s most anticipated Anime, Japanese music and manga event, AM2 announces a partnership with leading community and Japanese lifestyle site Ani.ME to develop a free phone application for attendees which will have voting capabilities (i.e. film festival and competition, Masquerade, World Cosplay Summit, AMV¹s), instant convention schedule updates and additional convention information on Guests and other activities.
In addition, the popular fan community will also have a physical convention presence with a Livecast and a onsite photo studio for cosplayers. More info and attendee registration can be found at www.am2con.org <http://www.am2con.org>
Heartbreaking
wartime memories, family secrets, and the legacy of America’s harsh
anti-Asian immigration policies collide in EVERY DAY IS A HOLIDAY,
Theresa Loong’s spellbinding account about her father and his emotional
return to the land of his imprisonment.
To watch the special Kickstarter trailer, click on the video
above. Director's note: My father manages to embarrass me within the
first 20 seconds.
WHY PLEDGE? EVERY DAY IS A HOLIDAY has been green-lit by the Independent Television Service (ITVS)!
We need your help to bring EVERY DAY IS A HOLIDAY to public
television! The Independent Television Service (ITVS) has green-lit our
film and will provide $79,000 towards the completion of the film if we
can raise $34,496 (part of which will come from this KICKSTARTER
campaign).
Help us meet the challenge! And score tickets to the premiere,
an exclusive interview from the director, your name in the credits, and
more!
CHILDREN OF INVENTION
is now streaming FREE on Hulu for the next 2 months!
Watch it now, and please spread the word by sharing this link: http://bit.ly/if4XIi
If you live in the New York City tri-state area, you can
also catch the film FREE on Channel 13, the local PBS station
starting tonight! Air times are:
Sat, Jan 22, 10:40pm Sun, Jan 23, 2:00am Wed, Jan 26, 1:00am
We're also screening at the Cornell Cinema in Ithaca, NY on
February 9th, and will have a few more have university screenings
and Q&As this year, and we're gonna be back on cable VOD
soon--so check our screenings
page from time to time.
Come join the Asian American International Film Festival (AAIFF) Team! The AAIFF is the first and longest running film festival of its kind in the U.S. that honors works by and about Asian and Asian Americans. We are now hiring for spring and summer internships. Interns will have the opportunity to work closely in producing the Festival through various positions. All internships are equivalent to entry-level job positions, and require persons with initiative, dedication, and the ability to think outside the box. Preference will be given to candidates who can commit to staying on for the Festival. The AAIFF'11 is scheduled for July 13 to July 23, 2011 in New York City.
Design/Web Assistant (ASAP or January to August) Help manage and regularly update the ACV and Festival sites. Work closely with Festival staff on various levels of production. Big plusses: experience in interactive, graphic, or web design and knowledge in HTML.
LOS ANGELES, CA (January 7, 2011) – The short film, “3 Minutes”,
featuring Harry Shum Jr. (Glee), Stephen “tWitch” Boss (So You Think You Can Dance)
and Katrina Law (Spartacus: Blood & Sand) will premiere internationally
on Monday, January 10, 2011.
Directed by hot newcomer Ross Ching (Death
Cab for Cutie, Kina Grannis, Clara C), this electrifying film includes
action, intrigue and a twisted plot line that will leave viewers wanting
more.
“3 Minutes” was originally designed as a
vehicle to showcase a wider range of acting skills for the two leads, Harry
Shum Jr. and Stephen ‘tWitch’ Boss. What
began as a way for the actors to step outside of the singing and dancing arena,
has now become a much larger project.
Due to its success, “3 Minutes” will be the second part of a three-part
trilogy, with other exciting actors attached.
George
Wang and Don Le are the film’s producers with music scored by YouTube sensation
Paul Dateh. This
short film not only displays the immense young talent of the lead actors, but
also the director Ross Ching.
How do you stand out in the ensemble cast of Predators, which features actors like Adrien Brody, Laurence Fishburne, and Topher Grace? Simple: you bring a big freakin’ samurai sword. As the Yakuza assassin Hanzo, Louis Ozawa Changchien gets what may be the Nimrod Antal-helmed reboot’s most striking scene: a “mano-a-alien” battle royale that draws on Chanchien’s years of Kendo experience. Still, while the swordfighting skill is all his, in real life, Changchien couldn’t be more different: he’s a quick-witted nice guy who’s just as excited about his considerably more down-to-earth roles coming up in Fair Game and Kathryn Bigelow’s new project.
Last week, Changchien called up Movieline to discuss those parts as well as one of his earliest roles: a Jell-O pudding commercial opposite Bill Cosby himself that left him battle-scarred in a way far worse than any swordfight gone awry.
ID Film Fest Survey--What is the best APIA Feature Film of all Time?
The organizers of ID Film Fest at the Japanese American National Museum want to know what your choice is for the most significant/impactful/well-made/best Asian Pacific Islander American feature film of all time.
The #1 film will be screened at ID Film Fest 2011, and the filmmakers and people involved will be invited to attend.
ID Film Fest 2010 included Los Angeles and World Premieres; an Asian American Independent Features Conference; Filmmaker's crash courses; and a live screenplay pitch competition.
The 1940's period drama "Shanghai" still awaits its U.S. premiere. Filmed in 2008, "Shanghai" was given an international release in China, India, Hong Kong and more recently Isreal, but has yet to be given a U.S. release.
The film stars several Asian stars Gong Li, Rinko Kikuchi, Chow Yun Fat and Ken Watanabe, along with American stars John Cuscak, David Morse and Jeffrey Dean Morgan. It was directed by Mikael Hafstrom from a script by Hossein Amini.
Produced by the Thai company Living Films and the Weinstein Company, it was originally intended to be shot on location in Shanghai, but, due to the controversial WWII time period the film is set in, the Weinstein Company had its permits taken away by the Chinese government one week prior to when filming was scheduled to start.
The film crew relocated to Bangkok, Thailand, where it built an elaborate two-block replica set of 1940's Shanghai.
But despite its all-star cast of Asian actors, the film, which was produced for an estimated $50 million, has earned a mere $7.5 million at the Asian box office during its limited release this year.
Last month was exciting in terms of entertainment news. Musicians made Asian American history, San Diego hosted its annual Asian Film Festival, Jon M. Chu’s career took off, Yao Ming returned to the basketball court, and Brenda Song received an award. Let’s get started! Making beautiful music — for the mainstream!
For the week of Oct. 30, members of Far East Movement became the first Asian Americans to hit the top of the Billboard charts. Even more exciting was the fact that the number two spot was held by singer-songwriter Bruno Mars, who is of Filipino and Puerto Rican descent. Far East Movement is made up of Kevin Nishimura “Kev Nish,” James Roh “Prohgress,” Jae Choung “J-Splif,” and Virman Coquia “DJ Virman.” In a New York Daily News story, Oliver Wang, an assistant professor of sociology at California State University-Long Beach, said, “Far East Movement and Bruno Mars didn’t come just out of nowhere. There’s been a slow push to make it happen through social media. It’s finally hit that tipping point.”
Far East Movement, the Los Angeles electro/rap group, reached a notable milestone recently. Not only did its third album, "Free Wired," debut at #24 on the Billboard charts, one of the highest charting debuts by any all-Asian American group, but its latest single, “Like a G6,” is the #1 single in the country (having already crowned digital charts for weeks).
By coincidence, on Oct. 12, 2010, the day "Free Wired" dropped, TV’s "Glee" featured Asian American actors Jenna Ushkowitz (Tina) and Harry Shum Jr. (Mike) joyfully singing and dancing their way through “Sing!” from "A Chorus Line." Three nights earlier, "Glee" star Jane Lynch hosted "Saturday Night Live" with musical guest Bruno Mars, the Filipino-Puerto Rican crooner whose iTunes-topping “Just the Way You Are” was just pushed aside by "Like a G6.”
This confluence seemed to be a long time coming. Prior to FM, the last group of Asian Pacific Islander descent to run the dance floor might have been the Jets, the Tongan-German, Minneapolis-based family band that had a string of dance/R&B hits, including “Curiosity” and “Crush on You.” That was back in 1985.
Marvel Studios is trying something a little different to rustle up the money for Iron Man 3 and help it become a huge hit not just in the United States, but in the increasingly important foreign market. As announced last week, they're teaming up with China's DMG Entertainment to co-produce the film and release it in China, with scenes also scheduled to shoot in the country that's famously restrictive for releases of non-Chinese movies. The co-production deal will allow Iron Man 3 to be treated like a native film, meaning the box office returns in that country of 1.3 billion could make this co-production deal pay off in spades.
First Asian American Serial Killer Movie Begins Fundraising Drive on New Crowd-Funding Site USA Projects
The One to Watch Award was presented to director Namgyal Wangchuk Trichen Lhagyari for his short film MY COUNTRY IS TIBET. Eligible films screened in the FOR YOUTH BY YOUTH: AGE AIN’T NOTHING BUT A NUMBER shorts program, which featured films directed by young adults ages 15-21. Lhagyari, a seventeen-year-old Tibetan refugee and descendant of the first Tibetan Dharma King, is fueled by a sense of responsibility to his people to present his message through film.
Be sure to check this film out! the film Wedding Palace wins Best Feature & Best Cinematography at Cine Gear Expo! Written by Christine Yoon.
Let me begin by firstly admit to my personal skepticism of any mainstream movie that attempts to portray Asian people positively, in particular Hollywood movies.
Leading Community and Japanese Lifestyle Site to Develop Free Phone Application, Onsite Mobile Scavenger Hunt, Photo Studio and Convention Livecast for AM2 LOS ANGELES, Calif. (March 25, 2011) The summer¹s most anticipated Anime, Japanese music and manga event, AM2 announces a partnership with leading community and Japanese lifestyle site Ani.ME to develop a free phone application for attendees which will have voting capabilities (i.e. film festival and competition, Masquerade, World Cosplay Summit, AMV¹s), instant convention schedule updates and additional convention information on Guests and other activities. 
CHILDREN OF INVENTION
is now streaming FREE on Hulu for the next 2 months!
Watch it now, and please spread the word by sharing this link: 
How do you stand out in the ensemble cast of Predators, which features actors like Adrien Brody, Laurence Fishburne, and Topher Grace? Simple: you bring a big freakin’ samurai sword. As the Yakuza assassin Hanzo, Louis Ozawa Changchien gets what may be the Nimrod Antal-helmed reboot’s most striking scene: a “mano-a-alien” battle royale that draws on Chanchien’s years of Kendo experience. Still, while the swordfighting skill is all his, in real life, Changchien couldn’t be more different: he’s a quick-witted nice guy who’s just as excited about his considerably more down-to-earth roles coming up in Fair Game and Kathryn Bigelow’s new project.
ID Film Fest Survey--What is the best APIA Feature Film of all Time?
The 1940's period drama "Shanghai" still awaits its U.S. premiere.
Far East Movement, the Los Angeles electro/rap group, reached a notable milestone recently. Not only did its third album, "Free Wired," debut at #24 on the Billboard charts, one of the highest charting debuts by any all-Asian American group, but its latest single, “Like a G6,” is the #1 single in the country (having already crowned digital charts for weeks).