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Michael Khai Pham
Vice President of Marketing
Dr Quan Tran, D.C.
Vice President of Sales
Dr Christine Chung, D.D.S.
Vice President of Operations
Dr Chuck Le, D.D.S.
SPRING ISSUE, VOLUME 3, 2023
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Spring is here and it brings hope of renaissance in everyday life. a renewal excitement and zest in our existence. Spring brings a new tomorrow, a welcome new chapter from a depleted yesteryear.
At APM, we feel a vibrant energy embracing our essence as Spring dawns on us. We are searching for innovative ideas, new stories, and artifacts, to shape thrilling articles that will expand our mind. We challenge ourselves to bring forth to our readers the best of humanity, the best of accomplishments, if not, the most inspiring.
Whether it is art, health, finance or entertainment, everyone has a story that anxiously needs to get out in public. We can’t etch our life story permanently in the hearts and minds of others, but we can publish it and turn it into an eternal testament for people to read.
Your story is your own, and unique – it is your legacy. Your struggles, success, contributions, and accomplishments along your journey will gradually dwindle in time. How would your friends, relatives, and most importantly your ancestry remember you? Details fade away, but feelings are everlasting. A gift of yourself will spawn more emotions than money can ever accomplish.
Editorial Column (Spring of 2023)
Come join us and share your story. The distinctive path marked with your footprints will delight many inquisitive souls craving for tales and anecdotes to enrich their wisdom bank. This will be the best inheritance you can leave behind.
For every Asian Premier Magazine issue published, we print approximately 10,000 copies for circulation all over Los Angeles and Orange Counties, at major high end shopping malls, and businesses? Contact us at Asianpremiermag@ gmail.com for a complete list of distribution locations.
by Michael Pham
The views and opinions expressed in the media or comments on this magazine are those of the participants, writers and authors and do NOT reflect or represent the views or opinions held by Asian Premier Magazine (APM, LLC).
The material and information contained in this magazine is for general information purposes only. You should NOT rely upon the material or information in this magazine as a basis for making any business, legal or any other decisions.
SPRING 2023, VOLUME 3
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VICTORIA HA VY LE, FINANCIAL SECURITY AND GENERATION WEALTH Victoria HaVy Le knows what it’s like to struggle. She tried to escape Vietnam 10 times by boat before being able to make it out...
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CINEMA IS THE AIR I BREATHE! GEORGES N CHAMCHOUM Georges N. Chamchoum is an Emmy and multiple award-winning Film Director and Producer born on July 16, 1946 in Niger, West Africa, of Lebanese origin. In the late 1990’s, Georges was honored by UNESCO for his body of work...
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ELAINE NGUYEN, ROYAL RESTAURANT & BANQUET Leaving her modeling and singing career to be a business owner and a mother of two, Elaine Nguyen opened Royal Restaurant and Banquet...
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ANDY CHENG, PAY IT FORWARD Andy wishes to be an inspiration to anyone who wishes to follow in his footsteps. Andy comes from extreme poverty in Hong Kong;...
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MC76, A COCOON SHATTERED Prior to 1975, Lycee Marie Curie was a private French colonial school for the elite few in Vietnam...
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KORY NGO, EVERYTHING HAPPENS FOR A REASON May 1975: the short bus trip ride from El Toro Marine Base to Camp Pendleton could never be tiring for him...
VAN ANH VO, BLOOD MOON ORCHESTRA Asian Premier Magazine came to support Vân-Ánh Vanessa Võ and Blood Moon Orchestra at Saigon Grand Center...
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THE FRENCH SLATES KING: NGUYEN TAT CUONG Armed with a high school diploma from a French Lycée Jean Jacques Rousseau in Saigon...
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THE BIRTH IF THE ASIAN WORLD FILM FESTIVAL BY GEORGES N CHAMCHUM The Asian World Film Festival (AWFF) showcases the best of a broad selection of Asian World cinema...
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KOREAN FASHION TRENDS 2023 With the growth of K-pop and Korean dramas, Korean culture has caught the attention of many fashion lovers...
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ETROUBLE IN LITTLE SAIGON, CAROLINE DOAN & THANH PHAN “Your Amazon account has been accessed from a different location...
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CHRISTMAS WITH OUR FORGOTTEN HEROES BY MICHAEL PHAM The Disabled American Veterans (DAV) organization provides a lifetime of support for veterans of all generations and their families, in positive, life-changing ways...
FUTURE NOSTALGIA – BLOCK CHAIN TECHNOLOGY IN THE REALM OF ART A one night only art gallery event was held in Los Angeles, featuring Asian and Asian American artists, DJs, food vendors...
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BRIAN NGUYEN – CINEMATOGRAPHER AND DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY Brian Nguyen is a cinematographer based out of Los Angeles, CA. He is a graduate from the American Film Institute where he received his Masters in Cinematography...
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ROSALYN PHAM: TREKKING ACROSS VIETNAM Since I left in 1978, this was my fifth trip back to my native country. With each return...
is a privately held real estate investment company based in Orange, California that specializes in the purchase, development, and management of commercial properties in California and other western states. Our focus has been on identifying unique opportunities in the marketplace, and adding value to these investments through proactive leasing, management, and development strategies. We work with high net worth and ultra-high net worth investors to add both diversification and outsized returns to their investment portfolios. Our latest “round trip” investment is a good example of the way we can deliver investment results.
We are pleased to announce the sale of Camarillo Village Square, a 242,000 square foot grocery anchored shopping center, for $83,595,000. In a very short period of time, we were able to deliver a tremendous result for our group of high-net-worth investors.
We originally acquired this center in May of 2021, in the midst of the pandemic, for $61,000,000 at around 87% occupancy. 22% of the square footage here was leased by either restaurant or fitness tenants, nearly all of whom were on COVID relief, and most of the investment community was scared to make any big bets on retail at the time. We were able to bring nearly all of those tenants back to paying full, contractual rent by Q4 2021, exactly in line with our underwriting.
Within the first 6 months of ownership, we executed the sale of a Starbucks/Urgent care pad at a 4.35% cap, and $1,043/foot, reducing our basis by about $4.875M. For years, Rite Aid had been occupying a larger than prototypical box of around 24,000 square feet, and at
acquisition we took over the relocation of this tenant to a 14,000 square foot box adjacent to Sprouts Farmers Market. Following the relocation, we backfilled Rite Aid’s space with a turn-key built Ross, delivered on time and on budget, bringing the center to around 93% occupancy and adding substantial credit to the asset.
Additionally, we were able to lease what we considered the most “unleasable” portion of the center to ACE Hardware and filled nearly all of the final few shop spaces with strong local operators, bringing the center to nearly 100% occupancy in less than 2 years, and increasing the net operating income of the property by 33%. We also worked diligently to extend the leases of many of the larger credit tenants at the property, bringing the weighted average lease term of the asset to more than 7 years.
The property was sold on February 10 to an
Christopher
Nichelson, President
Milan Capital Management, Incorporated
exchange buyer who recognized the value that we had created and appreciated the stability of the asset, as well as its potential for long term appreciation through a parcellation strategy which we were implementing. The new buyer will be retaining Milan Capital Management as the property manager.
On a project level, we achieved a 38% annual IRR, and due to the structure of the deal, our small group of high-net-worth investors doubled their money in less than two years.
We’d like to thank our preferred equity partner, Peaceable Street Capital, our lender, Prime Finance, all of our high net worth equity investors who trusted us with their hard earned money, the team of Gary Stache and Bill Maher from CBRE, who represented the Buyer, and of course El Warner’s team at Colliers who worked on this deal both at acquisition and at disposition— “from the cradle to the grave”, if you will.
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Victoria HaVy Le knows what it’s like to struggle. She tried to escape Vietnam 10 times by boat before being able to make it out of the country, and ended up in Hong Kong, where at the tender age of 8, she helped mom find food to feed their family of four. A single mom with three small children to care for, Victoria’s mom also knows what it’s like to struggle.
face of insurance.
Today, Victoria is the go-to person for bank-financed retirement including 100% bank financed plans.
“You borrow from the bank to buy a bigger house, you borrow from the bank to buy a nicer car, why not leverage the bank’s money to fund your retirement and wealth transferring?!”
The family eventually made it to California to start their new life. They were in search of that American dream— and the struggle continued.
The middle of three, Victoria found herself taking on the role of the other parent, while her mom toiled away at the nail salon to feed the family. Nothing came easy. There were no happy childhood memories—only reminders that the land of opportunity was littered with obstacles and hardship. But they survived.
No stranger to hard work -
Victoria held three jobs while attending college. She studied finance/accounting--not because it was a dream job, but because she was good with numbers. She was good at figuring things out to make ends meet. Although she had no direction—no real goal other than to just survive—those early years of hardship would prepare her for a job she could never have even imagined.
Fast forward 30 plus years, Victoria Le is now a force to be reckoned with in a world dominated by older white males. A financial planner specializing in retirement strategies, Victoria is changing the
And that, in a nutshell, is how she’s helping families add millions to their wealth by utilizing bank leveraging. But Victoria has an even more passionate cause. She’s empowering women to take control of their own finances.
“Women are often intimidated when meeting with financial planners, especially if they have little to no knowledge,” said Victoria.
Because of this, Victoria has an edge in the business. She can relate to her clients’ struggles because she’s been there. Her dream to lift others up has created a unique working environment. Her team is full of amazing success
stories—like a former nail tech--now making a six-figure income. Or the housewife who’s created an income stream that allows her and her husband to travel the world. Then there’s the wife who was hoping to make a few extra hundred dollars a month for groceries, who’s now making 6-figures and building her own empire.
Victoria Le isn’t slowing down. Her struggling days are long over, but her journey continues.
Victoria and her team are dedicated to helping their clients achieve financial security, peace of mind and generational wealth.
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Career Opportunity
Georges N. Chamchoum is an Emmy and multiple award-winning Film Director and Producer born on July 16, 1946 in Niger, West Africa, of Lebanese origin. In the late 1990’s, Georges was honored by UNESCO for his body of work and dedication to Lebanese Cinema. In 2017, he was named one of the 100 Most Influential Lebanese in the World and honored in a special commemorative publication to mark the occasion. In December 2018 the South Korean Ministry of Culture & Sports bestowed upon him the coveted DARI Award for the Asian World Film Festival for bridging and promoting the Korean Culture in the USA.
Georges is the Executive and Program Director of the Asian World Film Festival (AWFF) which takes place in Culver City, Los Angeles, and is now in its ninth successful year. The Festival aims to bring the very best of Asian Cinema to Hollywood, and to strengthen ties between the Asian and American film industries. The Festival is unique in that it predominantly screens films which have been submitted to the Oscars and the Golden Globes for Best Foreign Language Film. Georges served as the International Director of the Yakutsk International Film Festival in Yakutia (Sakha Republic) until 2014, the International Relations Executive for the Notre Dame University International Film Festival (Lebanon) and is on the Executive Board of the Beirut International Women Film Festival (Lebanon), and Korean Film Festival Canada (KFFC). He is also the Co-Founder of Film Festivals Cinergy, a union of worldwide Film Festivals which promotes recognized talent in filmmaking. Georges ensures all his Festivals championed the unsung heroes of the movies. He loves to discover Cinema that few people are
aware of. For example, he was the first person to screen films from Yakutia in the West in the early 2010’s.
After attending schools in Lebanon, France and Germany, Georges graduated from the University of Wales in the United Kingdom. He went on to study filmmaking, as a Director, at the Conservatoire du Cinema Francais in Paris, France, and after graduation attended the Lodz Film School in Poland. He trained under the legendary Andrei Tarkovski (Russia), Roman Polanski (England) and Jacques Becker (France), and collaborated with the renowned German filmmaker, Rainer Werner Fassbinder & Ulli Lommel (who later became his Partner for 3 decades, in the late 1970’s.
Georges entered the film industry in 1968 and has since directed and produced over 35 feature films throughout Africa, the Middle East, Europe and the USA. His films have always been socially and politically oriented with a Hollywood flair. Georges directed His first Film Inside Out in 1968 at age 20, Salam, After Death (1970) which toured no less than a dozen Festivals, and the landmark Lebanon.... Why? (1978).
He won an Emmy for the ABC Documentary
Photo Credit: Korean Cultural Center, Los Angeles
Short Hashim’s Story in 2010.
Throughout the 1980’s, Georges was a Jury Delegate for Le Festival du Film Fantastique et de Science Fiction de Paris (Horror and Science Fiction Films) in France, a leading Festival in the genre where directors such as Steven Spielberg, Sam Raimi, Joe Dante and many other top directors were first discovered. During the early 2000’s Georges was a Board Member of the Francophone Film Festival and the Pan Pacific Film Festival (PPFF) in Los Angeles and from 2007-2013 was the Executive and Program Director of the Monaco Charity Film Festival. The Oxford History of World Cinema, the definitive history of cinema worldwide, contains the following quote: “...It was not until the 1970’s that a number of talented western-trained Lebanese
film-makers- Georges Chamchoum, Jocelyn Saab, Heiny Srour and Borhan Alaouyaemerged and began to treat social and political problems of their country in a number of features strongly influenced by documentary techniques.”
Georges’ past decade work is a trilogy of films on Faith which were completed backto-back: Journey into my Faith (2012) a Feature Documentary which he calls “my most personal movie ever - I had to do it just for my own satisfaction”, December Dawn (2013) a Documentary Short about Dawn Prayer and Ninety! (2013) a Feature Documentary about the Maronite Faith. In 2014, Georges directed Agency (2014) a Comedy Short. and the Feature documentary Ode to My Mother which won the Best Documentary Award 2014 at IndieFEST in the USA. In 2019 complete his Documentary Series: Ramez, A Celebration of Life (2016) a Feature Documentary born from pain. Produced a Short Drama Alexandra Directed by Sultan Pirzhan Uulu, and 2020 the Short TRAPPED, shot entirely in and around Beijing in March 2020 during the lock-down, first movie to deal with the Pandemic. Finally Creative Producer of the Feature Drama BELEK (the Gift) Written & Directed by Dalmira Tilepbergen (Kyrgyzstan 2022) and Producer of the experimental/existentialist multi–Award Winning Short CREATION (USA 2023), an ambitious movie born in the mind and soul of Sir Daniel Winn which will be expanded into a Feature in 2023.
Georges currently has several Features as a Producer in Vietnam, and 2 projects as Director: one in Yakutia, the other in the Philippines and a road movie in the US (Actor/Director).
Georges, who has resided in Los Angeles for the past 32 years, is passionate about photography and from 1984 - 1990 was the official photographer for Visiora - Christian Dior. All through the 70’s and 80’s Directed several Plays (Lebanon & USA) and in the 80’s multiple Award-Winning Music Video.
Elaine believes family is key, which is why she spends a lot of time with her husband and daughters. “Growing up with my father, a successful businessperson in Saigon, I developed an aptitude for business and learned how to create ideas and see the potential of future businesses everywhere I go,” Elaine said. “I grew up in Saigon but primarily resided in Boston, Massachusetts. Learning great deals about class and style in one of the most intellectual cities, I went to Newbury College for business and fashion merchandise. As a result, I developed a strong interest in fashion and modeling. And yet, I chose to become a restaurant owner because I like the fast-paced environment, and since my mother is an exceptionally good cook, I could use her help
Leaving her modeling and singing career to be a business owner and a mother of two, Elaine Nguyen opened Royal Restaurant and Banquet, a classy and elegant restaurant catered to fulfill every beautiful bride’s desires. Situated in central Westminster, with a high ceiling, luxurious marble floor, and gorgeous crystal chandeliers, this elegantly constructed restaurant is suitable for special events as well as intimate wedding receptions. No need to go far to experience the prominent decoration, exceptional service, and superb food that Royal Banquet has to offer. If your ideal event seems far-fetched, and you do not want the usual menus, boring hotel ballrooms, look no further than Royal Banquet. Create an ideal scenery for a memorable reception that only the Royal Banquet can deliver, catered for personalized taste with conventional Vietnamese, and genuine Chinese dishes.
if needed. It gives me immense joy to come to my restaurant and see the happy faces of my employees and customers.”
Elaine has always loved fashion, modeling, and singing, as they are her hobbies on top of traveling. Music is a large aspect of her household, as she loves to sing while her husband and daughter love to play the guitar and piano. Elaine favorite places to travel are always cities in Europe because of the stylistic and romantic environment. Elaine loves the food, architecture, and the people.
“I met my husband at a birthday party and as soon as we laid eyes on each other, we have been inseparable since,” Elaine continued. “The circumstances of how we met are special because it was an unlikely encounter. At the time, he never went to parties, and it so happened that he attended the one I was at, which is why it was fate. If he hadn’t, we probably never would have met. I appreciate him as he has been so supportive in everything I do and has played such a crucial role in raising our kids and creating our happy family. My husband is a filmmaker, so I have grown to appreciate the movie industry both behind the screen and in front. I enjoy all genres of movies, but my favorite is comedy because it is what we enjoy together as a family. Family movie nights are incredibly special in our house.”
Elaine has two lovely daughters, 19 and 21, who constantly make her proud every day. One is pursuing her passion in fine art and the other is studying business and finance. Elaine sees herself in both, as they are
creative, smart, ambitious, and incredibly driven. Seeing them grow into mature young women has brought Elaine much joy.
“I define success as when I am content with myself, family, and friends. My success is determined by how bright my kids smile and how strong they are as individuals - I do consider myself to be successful. I am optimistic, which is why I believe that life is like a box of chocolates”, Elaine concluded. “I never know what I will get but at least I know it will be sweet. In other words, I value being grateful and appreciative of all that I have.”
Royal Restaurant and Banquet
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Inside Catinat Plaza
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Teresa Dinh was born in Vietnam and migrated with her parents to Connecticut in the ninety’s where they had lived for 16 years, before moving to California. She holds a B.S. degree in accounting and had worked as an Auditor before she switched career to become a successful selfemployed Financial Consultant for the last 15 years. Her new career gives her the opportunity to work flexible hours, be her own boss, meet and collaborate with people from all social classes and levels.
Teresa has met many people who lack financial knowledge, so she vouches to help them get financially educated and gain financial security. Her specific business focuses are to help her clients get the proper life insurance and long-term care protection for them and their family, as well as help them build a profitable retirement portfolio. It makes her happy when she succeeds in creating wealth for her clients and their families.
Teresa’s expertise lays in four areas: Retirement (IRA, 401k, Defined Benefits), Investment (Annuity), Life Insurance (Term, Permanent, Final Expense), and Education (Planning and Savings). With her experience, passion, and enthusiasm to serve in the finance sector, Teresa has earned her clients’ trust with their personal finances.
A while back, Teresa used to teach Vietnamese to the kids at church. She was one of the founders who started the Vietnamese program for boys and girls at one of the Vietnamese Scouts. Today her busy schedule prevents her from helping. Hence, Teresa’s dream is to retire early to concentrate on charity work and to travel the world.
Email: teresatdinh@gmail.com Cell: 714-234-5774
Andy wishes to be an encouragement to anyone who wishes to follow in his footsteps. Andy comes from extreme poverty in Hong Kong; born in a shack with barely a tin roof, to end up making a name for himself in Hollywood, is just plain amazing. His desire to help others to achieve goals is plain inspiring. An optimistic person who has his share of challenges, Andy just keeps driving forward. From stuntman to stunt choreographer, to second unit director to director and onward, he is always willing to learn from anyone about film making. He’s a visionary, optimistic filmmaker with hopes of leaving the audience not only entertained, but also giving them a positive message that will inspire them to pursue their goals.
Andy Cheng was born in Hong Kong and began to pursue his passion for Martial Arts from an early age. He studied Taekwondo, winning several championships, and even taking home five consecutive gold medals. His first gold medal in Chung Do Kwan was at a Black Belt Championship. This was followed by him winning a gold medal three years in a row at the Hong Kong Black Belt Open. Subsequently, Andy was able to represent Hong Kong for the first time at the Hong Kong International Invitational Championship, winning another gold medal. He went on to represent Hong Kong in matches held in Nepal and Korea. Then finally at the 1991 Asian Championship in Chinese Taipei, Andy experienced his highest honor when he was the winner of the bronze medal. He retired from competition after this prestigious event.
Andy’s talents led him to the entertainment industry, where he became a contracted Action Artist for TVB television from 1989 to 1995. After working in television and films, he was invited to join Jackie Chan’s stunt team, working as a stunt double and choreographing fight scenes for films like MR.
NICE GUY, WHO AM I, SHANGHAI NOON, RUSH HOUR, RUSH HOUR 2 and others. In 1998, Andy was hired by director Stanley Tong to work as a fight choreographer and stunt double for Sammo Hung on the highly acclaimed first season of Sammo Hung’s CBS TV series, MARTIAL LAW.
Subsequently, Andy was hired by Producer Kevin Misher to create and direct action for the reshoots of the blockbuster film, THE SCORPION KING for Universal Studios. Kevin Misher went on to hire Andy to be the Second Unit Director and stunt/fight coordinator for THE RUNDOWN, directed by Peter Berg. Working with Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson on both these films, Andy helped the former wrestler become known as an action star by showcasing Johnson’s speed and dexterity, not just his size and strength. As a Second Unit Director, Andy has had the opportunity to work with some of the most esteemed filmmakers in Hollywood including Director Terence Malick, on THE NEW WORLD, produced by Sarah Green with three-time Oscar winning Cinematographer Emmanuel “El Chivo” Lubezki. Andy has even worked with legendary horror master; the director Wes Craven on the Miramax Films feature CURSED. While working with Catherine Hardwicke on both TWILIGHT and RED RIDING HOOD, Andy choreographed practical fight scenes and action, as well as action featuring CGI elements. Returning to television, Andy was the fight unit director for season 2 and 3 of the AMC action drama INTO THE BADLANDS starring Daniel Wu and produced by Alfred Gough, Miles Millar (SHANGHAI NOON), and Stephen Fung. Andy also acted as Co-producer on eight episodes and Associate Producer on several episodes. Andy had the pleasure of working closely with Director Michael Bay as stunt/fight coordinator for the Netflix feature 6 UNDERGROUND, starring Ryan Reynolds and produced by Michael Bay and Ian Bryce.
As fight coordinator, Andy’s choreography on the bus scene for Marvel’s Shang-Chi has been lauded by fans and critics alike and has been called a new peak for action in the MCU. Combining practical action and CGI, the sequence with ShangChi fighting several thugs, including a man whose
arm is a laser powered sword, took over a year to create and uses almost every inch of an articulated bus, inside and out as the bus is careening out of control.
When Knights of the Zodiac was being planned as a live action adaptation of the popular Manga and Anime, Andy was called in as Action Director as well as Stunt/ fight Coordinator, ensuring that the film will contain the breathtaking action that Andy has been proven to deliver time and time again. Andy’s work in film has been recognized by the stunt and action community with an unmatched fourteen nominations, winning five Taurus World Stunt Awards including Best Fight and Best Specialty Stunt.
On November 1, 2021, Andy was recognized by the Bruce Lee Foundation and the Asian World Film Festival when he was awarded the first ever Bruce Lee Award for his dedication to Martial Arts in the film industry. As a further honor, the award was presented to him by Bruce Lee’s daughter, Shannon Lee. Andy’s Directorial debut came in 2005 with END GAME, starring Cuba Gooding Jr., James Woods, Burt Reynolds, Anne Archer, and Angie Harmon. He next directed the high octane, action feature REDLINE, starring comedian Eddie Griffin and Tim Matheson. The film
screened on 1600 theaters and had its premiere at the Chinese Theater in Hollywood. With a career rooted in both China and Hollywood, Andy has learned his craft from some of the most highly regarded filmmakers in the world. By combining his knowledge with his experience and skill in collaborating with major Hollywood studios and A-list actors, Andy can combine the best of both worlds to create films with universal appeal and incredible action.
Prior to 1975, Lycee Marie Curie was a private French colonial school for the elite few in Vietnam. The monthly tuition alone was equivalent to an engineer salary. This is the story of a group of high school friends who grew up together during the war, fled the country when Saigon collapsed and have now settled all over the world, in the USA, Europe, Canada, Australia, and Vietnam.
By Rosalyn Pham
We call ourselves MC76. MC for Lycee Marie-Curie, the name of the renowned Polish French scientist that our high-school in Saigon was named after. 76 for 1976, the year we would have finished 12th grade. For many of us living in the US, the year 2023 marks our eligibility for Medicare benefits. Coming to this milestone has brought our younger version into focus and reminded us of our childhood. This is our story, the story of separation, heartbreak, and perseverance.
We were growing up in the privileged cocoons of uppermiddle class families in Saigon, Vietnam. Born only a few years after the end of a 100-year-old French colonization, we were among the last generation to receive a French education. For better or for worse, our coming-of-age years were different, unique, and special. Up until that time, aside from the Tet Offensive in 1968, we had been relatively sheltered
from the 20-year-old war that was tearing our country apart. We were too immersed in our own world to notice the chaotic reality around us.
Then it all came to an abrupt end in April 1975. When South Vietnam collapsed under the Communist North’s invasion, so did our youth, our innocence, and our carefree adolescence. Our lives were turned upside down overnight. Many of us left the country as part of the mass evacuation in the last days of April 1975. Many managed to escape in later years, risking their lives as Boat People (some had perished in the process). Others stayed in Vietnam and tried their best to survive under the new regime.
We were scattered all over the world, following our individual journeys at the whim and mercy of destiny. With and without our parents, we shed away our privileged past and put on new coats of struggle and hardship, trying our best to build a new life in the new
country, wherever the hands of fate had chosen for us in our sudden and unexpected exodus. We followed different career paths, and embarked on marriage and parenthood. We became productive members of the workforce, our communities, and our new respective countries. But in the old drawer of our memory, the images of Lycee Marie-Curie Saigon persisted and waited.
After the dust settled with our adult endeavors, when aspirations for the future had been fulfilled, and the present was becoming a monotonous string of livelihood sustenance, we started seeing those
past images slipping in and out of our dreams. Many nights we found ourselves approaching our school from Lê Quí Đôn, Phan Thanh Gian or Công Lý streets, entering the site gate on Ngô Thoi Nhiem, getting lined up in the courtyard, greeting our friends with big smiles, holding our besties’ s hands, and chatting nonstop until our voices got shouted out by the bell ring. Many mornings we woke up confused and lost, our minds still in our hometown, struggling to reconcile with our bodies that had been transplanted to a totally different world for decades. We would trade anything to be able to go back in time and relive our good old times, “nos bon vieux temps”, if only just for one day...
But since we couldn’t travel back in time, we would try to get caught up with our time and find ways to relive our good old days. In 1996, we discovered email. A few of us started communicating with each other via email. Then more friends were contacted and brought in. Within months, our forum membership grew from a handful to over fifty. We called ourselves MCzoo and MCgolden to match our happy chaotic daily conversations and the precious golden bond we shared. Every day, we tried to steal a few moments from life’s obligations to catch up with each other. We shared old class pictures and tried to
connect the names with the faces. We chatted, joked, teased, and flirted as if the forum was our classroom and time had never lapsed. Some of us reconnected with old crushes. Some found new partners. Sometimes we fought like teenagers. Through various political debates and personal strife’s, we disagreed, argued, and got mad. Then we kissed and made up. After all, our young version from the Lycee Marie-Curie days didn’t know politics and had no ego. We seamlessly communicated in 3 languages, Vietnamese, French, and English, more cognizant and appreciative than ever of the different cultural and educational backgrounds that made up the colorful tapestry of our life.
Over the years, our group kept growing. Virtual reconnection turned into real reunions. We traveled from all over the world to meet each other in person. To
shake hands. To hug and kiss. To look at each other’s eyes and smile in search of familiar expressions that would help validate our old recollections.
Over 4 decades and a world away from Ngô Thoi Nhiem street, our friendship has transcended time and space and kept us together. As I fill out my Medicare application, I cannot help marveling at what MC76 has overcome and achieved. My heart is filled with pride and gratitude for the privilege of sharing my childhood with this special group of friends, for the trials and tribulations that made us the strong and (hopefully) wise adults of today, and for the chance of sharing the next chapter of our life together.
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Catching the trend and taking advantage of possibilities, Keva Link has gradually reached the leading stance internationally.
Reporter: PHAT TRAN
The economy has began to turn around once the pandemic situation improved, and several countries have experienced a robust recovery after a period of stagnation. Vietnam in particular is considered one of the most prosperous economies with the fastest growth rate in Asia. Exceeding the initial target of 6%6.5%, Vietnam’s GDP growth in 2022 has reached 8.02%. This is the golden time for entrepreneurs and businesses to stretch themselves if they know how to seize the opportunity.
Keva Link is one of the companies that has picked up the trend. Understanding market
trends and customer needs after the pandemic, Keva Link has successfully seized the opportunity and risen to the top of the industry.
Keva Link is a service company specializing in advertising communication, event organization and publication. In just over 10 years of development, Keva Link has organized and accompanied many large-scale projects in many countries such as Vietnam, France, Malaysia, Japan, Taiwan, Canada,
From the second half of 2021 to 2022, Keva Link has worked non-stop to complete unfinished projects before the pandemic and continue to conquer bigger goals. In 2022, the Intercontinental Business Awards organized by Keva Link attracted thousands of guests from many different countries. In the near future, Keva Link will also accompany the International Consumer Goods Fair 2023
program in Canada, an event that promises to leave many brilliant impressions for entrepreneurs and businesses. Keva Link owns a digital network system on the most famous online platforms with video view count that ranges from hundreds of thousands to millions each. These channels are used to broadcast news, talk shows, reality TV content, etc. made by Keva Link and its niche units.
Speaking about the direction of Keva Link in 2023 and the upcoming years, Ms. Ha Vo, Founder & CEO of Keva Link revealed: “One of Keva Link’s big goals in the coming years is to become the No. 1 event and advertising media brand in the beauty industry, which has a fairly stable development pace in many
other markets around the world. The beauty industry in Vietnam has made great leaps and bound, and Keva Link has conceived many plans to contribute to its growth.”
“If it’s about catching the trend, I’m proud that Keva Link has always performed in the most perfect way. And for sure, Keva Link will soon set the trend in the future!” Ms. Ha Vo confirmed.
With extensive experience in the field of advertising communication and event organization, “Captain” Ha Vo has successfully navigated her Keva Link “ship” to the big sea and is moving it further internationally.
As a typical representative of modern business women, Ms. Ha Vo will definitely continue to bring Keva Link to a more prestigious status.
May 1975: the short bus trip ride from El Toro Marine Base to Camp Pendleton could never be tiring for him. The neon strip flickered every time there was a speed bump and it became steady again, but that didn’t flinch his stoic face as he sat quietly next to other kids, his hands tightly griping the handle of the front seat. He stared out the window into the ominous darkness of the California night. He sat in silence as it allowed him to reflect and to decide on what to remember and what to screen out from his journey from the motherland.
After an hour winding its way through several hills and then rows of barracks, the bus stopped and unloaded its ragtag passengers. As they emerged into the cold and crispy air, another jolt from inoculations greeted them in the arm along with packet of toiletries and one-size fits all military jacket. Everyone cried because they had no idea what was going to happen. As other families huddled around to console one another and took up their assigned tent and cots, he and other kids were taken to another section of Camp 9 for unaccompanied children.
Life went on for the refugees of the tent city. Each day, he walked a mile uphill to the Processing Center to search for news of his family, then every other day, every week and …whenever. The barren hill above the camp was his favorite spot each night as he found no place to loiter around. It was where the kids drew on each other for strength and companionship. They came just to stare down at the white lights of the tent city and through their tears, the lights down below started flickering, darting, and dancing. Then the Marines came and chased them away.
One day, the youngest kid received his first adoption paper, then the second, and the third one. The pack grew thinner each week and then each month. The camp was finally closed in the Fall of 1975. On the last week, there were only a handful left, the oldest and they were shoved into a bus that took them to various destinations in search for a definition of life and an identity for themselves…
May 1980: the country entered a crippling recession. America was facing severe economic challenges stemming from high unemployment, double-digit interest rates, intensified inflation, and excessive marginal income tax. I was one of many lucky freshly minted college graduates to have landed a job with a Fortune 500 financial company and started to learn about a portion of the US tax code, already one of the most complex in the world. Serendipity in the making.
Retirement in America was in fact out of reach for many workers as they struggled to build a comfortable nest egg for their golden years, meanwhile
small businesses were saddled with tax burden. A successful pension planning seemed and continued to be a viable solution as it provided not only retirement security to American workers but to small businesses significant tax deductions.
With extensive experience in consulting, designing, establishing and managing thousands of pension plans, Pension Kinetics Inc was formed as a boutique pension consulting and actuarial firm focusing on providing tax-deductible solutions via optimal pension planning to small businesses and professional entities.
We are a team of experienced, credentialed and friendly experts focusing on offering a full spectrum of creative plan design, strategic consulting, IRS and DOL regulatory compliance to each of our clients and its employees because after all, …everything happens for a reason.
Pension Consultant
Pension Kinetics, Inc.
www: pensionkinetics.com
Mobile: (714) 875-2460
Direct: (714) 788-1448
VS Music Studios is the leading international music school, offering lessons in singing, acting, dancing, piano, guitar/ukulele, strings, drums, public speaking, vocal rehab & audio/video productions… With two locations in Orange County and online, VSMS is owned by performing artists Bích-Vân and Sean Buhr who hold multiple Master Degrees in Music from New York University. Our clients range from professional singers/actors on Broadway and Hollywood to kids, adults and music lovers.
VSMS works with anyone and for everyone with different needs. Whatever the needs are, we can accommodate and tailor the one-on-one experience to best benefit the students. We also offer group classes if you prefer working in a fun, supportive group setting.
VS Music Studios
714-485-8577
VSMusicStudios@gmail.com www.VSMusicStudios.com
Costa Mesa Location 3303 Harbor Boulevard
Suites H8-9 Costa Mesa, CA 92626
Westminster Location 8361 Westminster Boulevard Suite 300 Westminster, CA 92683
Online Location USA/International
Asian Premier Magazine came to support Vân-Ánh Vanessa Võ and Blood Moon Orchestra at Saigon Grand Center in Fountain Valley, CA on February 26. The evening was a fundraising dinner and concert for Mekong: SOUL, a music production that will have its world premiere on April 7 at The Kennedy Center in Washington, DC - one of the world’s most prestigious stages!
Linh Kochan, one of the event organizers, expressed, “With the talents of the artists, the support of the community and the passion to highlight and promote our rich Viet
ADVANCING MUSIC THROUGH INNOVATION, COLLABORATION, AND EDUCATION
heritage, we wanted this Mekong: SOUL fundraiser to be a memorable event for our guests. We hope it was an evening where music experience and appreciation were taken to new heights through the new form of Vietnamese traditional music by Vân-Ánh Vanessa Võ’s Blood Moon Orchestra. We are very grateful for everyone’s very generous support to bring Mekong: SOUL to The Kennedy Center this coming April where we will each proudly say to the world, as VânÁnh has shared, “I am Vietnamese, and this is my music.”
Right from the beginning, we were captivated by VânÁnh’s stunning and passionate performance. Her musicsteadily captivating, mesmerizing in nature - and the pliable stringed instruments can express a range of emotions in a single flickering note. Through her bewitching fingers and magical hands, Vân-Ánh can make the Đàn Tranh (zither) dance and sing. Her ability to intertwine tales through her music seems to rekindle a walk in the clouds or a mystic fable. Vân-Ánh also portrays an intense connection between her traditional Vietnamese music style and American Jazz as she bends the buffalo horn rod and stretches notes on the Đàn Bâu (monochord) to mimic the sounds of country blues slide guitar or human voices. Her energy and zeal for musical ingenuity seem to surpass any instrument and instead feed off an underlying auditory inquisitiveness as well as a desire to reflect on her cultural heritage. VânÁnh’s stellar musicianship, dramatic playing techniques and predominant stage presence all blend together to produce a transcendent work of art.
Mekong means Mother of Waters. Mekong: SOUL is about the life and soul of the people from the five countries along the Mekong River - Myanmar, Laos, Thailand, Cambodia, and Vietnam. It tells the stories of everyday resilience and reveals why those who live beyond the region still regard the Mekong as a spiritual home. Drawing on the river’s maternal image, Vân-Ánh wants Mekong: SOUL to mirror the life cycle of a person - from a child nestled in the mother’s arm to traveling far from home, encountering unexpected experiences but drawing strength from childhood memories to coming full circle to maturity and embracing the world. The desired effect, says Vân-Ánh, is to “create a place using music that people feel that they can belong to.”
A part of the Riverrun Festival, Mekong: SOUL is the second project commissioned by The Kennedy Center for Vân-Ánh. The first was The Odyssey - From Vietnam to America which premiered on March 11 & 12, 2016 and made Vân-Ánh the first and only Vietnamese American musician commissioned by The Kennedy Center.
Mekong: LIFE will have its world premiere at the state-of-the-art Bing Concert Hall at Stanford University on April 23. Mekong: REFLECTION is currently a work in progress.
As Artistic Director of Blood Moon Orchestra, Vân-Ánh Vanessa Võ has brought new sounds and breathed new air to Vietnamese traditional music. And as one of the most celebrated performers of Vietnamese traditional instruments, she has performed all over the world including world music festivals and collaborated with orchestras, symphonies and other renowned artists like the Kronos Quartet, Yo-Yo Ma, Nguyen Le, Alonzo King LINES Ballet and many others. She has done residencies and played at prestigious institutions like Princeton, Stanford, UC Berkeley, Carnegie Hall, The Kennedy Center, The White House, and Tiny Desk Concerts for NPR.
Coast Surgery Center is an outpatient surgery center in the city of Huntington Beach, CA and has been in business since 2018. Coast is a facility for outpatient procedures offering healthcare related services. Just like most medical facilities, before services are rendered to a patient, the provider and facility obtain authorization with the insurance carrier for approval and are provided with the usual, customary, and reasonable (UCR) rate for the procedure. Based on the UCR rate provided by the insurance, the provider and patient understand that if they are to proceed, how much the insurance company will reimburse. All the information obtained is documented by both the insurance carrier and facility as a part of their policy and practice.
After being owed over $6M, Coast Surgery Center has had enough and is suing the insurance companies. Coast provides services to its patients relying on the insurance representations solely based on their statements, promises, and representations. By authorizing a procedure, insurance companies are granting Coast to provide healthcare services to their members, and Coast is fulfilling the insurances’ contractual obligations to its members.
The insurance companies significantly started reducing the reimbursement rate from UCR to below Medicare rate in 2018, and for some claims, they didn’t pay at all. Since 2019, Coast Surgery Center accumulated bills totaling over $6M. So now Coast is suing some of the largest health insurance providers in the country; United Health Care, Cigna, Aetna, Anthem Blue Cross of California, Blue Shield of California, Blue Cross Blue Shield Associates, and all Blue Cross Blue Shield affiliated companies for illegal, coercive, unfair, fraudulent practices, bad faith, and deceptive advertisements.
In the civil case #30-2022-01271476-CU-CO-CJC filed by Coast Surgery Center in Orange County, California, Coast states they billed Blue Cross $49,550 for a surgery and Blue Cross paid $202.99. This is an example of many of the underpaid bills. Insurance companies have had a history of lawsuits for underpaying. As of June 30, 2019, 43% of Anthem’s medical bills were unpaid. By 2021, that figure rose to 53%, resulting in a total of $2.5 billion unpaid bills. Yet, Anthem’s profits in 2020 were reported to be $4.6 billion and $3.5 billion in the first half of 2021.
These unpaid bills harm medical providers like Coast by failing to provide reasonable rates for its services, negatively
impacting the quality of service, value of Coast, and significantly impacting Coast’s business relationship with patients and prospects. With this lawsuit, Coast is hoping that the big insurance companies will stop taking advantage of small providers as Coast will continue to provide critical, quality healthcare services and treatment to its Defendants’ members on its behalf and hope to be paid reasonable rates.
View original content:https://www. prnewswire.com/news-releases/insurancecompanies-are-being-sued-by-a-surgerycenter-that-had-enough-301721943.html
Upon his arrival in France, he instantly set himself a goal of returning to Vietnam, as soon as he finished his study, to work for his country and particularly to be next to his mother whom he cherished and adored. After 5 years in technical study and 3 years at Philips factories in Holland, he decided in 1971 to continue his education at INSEAD in Fontainebleau. This enabled him to broaden his tutelage and discover topics such as finance, marketing, and business management. In short, the language of men and not machines.
Back in South Vietnam in 1972, Well-equipped with an engineering degree from INSA Lyon, a DEA in computer science and further an MBA INSEAD in Fontainebleau, he had to flee the South Vietnam’s capital, in desperation and
Armed with a high school diploma from a French Lycée Jean Jacques Rousseau in Saigon, the young Vietnamese Nguyen Tat Cuong went on to discover France in 1964.
permanently, this time in 1975. His evacuation with the boat people led him to the United States, then to France. Back in France in 1975, after 2 years in Vietnam as Director of Information Technology at the Central Bank, he now worked primarily as a Finance Controller. His role was to ensure that other people’s budgets were treasured. In 1988, when Nicolas Bouygues promoted Cuong to Managing Director of the Building Materials Distribution branch of his group, he switched roles to management, responsible for his actions and budget.
Nguyen Tat Cuong, 56, exiled but unwavering, had a prominent career at Framatome, Motorola, Schlumberger and, finally, Imerys, since 1993, when he was recruited to help rectify the finance at Lariviere, a roofing product trading company. Leaving his family to straighten Larivière in Angers (200 miles from Paris), he gave himself 6 months before he would agree to be replaced if the job was too intricate. In the end, he stayed for 13 years in Angers, a city known for its placid climate. The Larivière company, loss-making, on the verge
of bankruptcy in 1993, had become an attractive company, profitable and in full expansion.
Fait accompli: 265 million euros of revenue, 14 million euros of operating profit, against 3 million euros of deficit on arrival, 70 agencies and 770 salaries.
In 1999, now the General Manager of Lariviere, Cuong, took over the reins of the Ardoisières d’Angers, a subsidiary of Imerys, with the new title of CEO. The Fresnais and Grands-Carreaux mines, with 240 employees and sixteen million euros of sales, covered almost all French production, i.e., 16,000 tons of natural slate.
“Un peu de luxe dans un monde brut du coffrage.”
“Dr Chuck Le of 7 Day Dental, my dear nephew, saw an article published in 2002 in the French magazine L’Express that covered my life journey. He wanted to republish it in his up-and-coming magazine”, said Nguyen Tat Cuong. “There, you will uncover my professional life. Thank you, Chuck, for letting me tell my story.”
Dr Paul Truong specializes in cardiovascular disease and internal medicine and has been in private practice since 1997.
“It has been a privilege and a source of immense joy in taking care of patients and seeing them through critical moments in their lives,” said Dr. Truong.
“Growing up with our parents, we were raised with a strong religious belief and a sense of personal as well as community responsibility. I was taught to put others’ needs and priority above my own and to always follow the Golden Rule.”
He and his family resettled in Houston, Texas, after the Vietnam War in 1975. Being the youngest son that the age of twelve in a family of six siblings, Dr. Truong said he was fortunate to have an education in the United States. He received a bachelor’s degree in Biology and a minor in Psychology. Afterwards, he pursued a medical degree as well as an internal Medicine residency at the University of Texas Medical School in Houston. He spent the next three years in California and New York for Cardiology Fellowship.
Dr. Truong said my wonderful wife and son have always supported my career. “I remain very happy with my life’s path and am always optimistic of the future.”
The Asian World Film Festival (AWFF) showcases the best of a broad selection of Asian World cinema in Los Angeles to draw greater recognition to the region’s wealth of filmmakers and strengthening ties between the Asian and Hollywood film industries. The festival is supported by patrons from the diverse Asian communities in Los Angeles as well as anyone who is passionate about foreign and independent cinema.
By Georges N. Chamchoum
Uniting through cross-cultural collaboration, our festival champions films from over fifty countries across Asia, spanning from Turkey to Japan and Russia to India. This festival is unique in that it screens Oscar and Golden Globe-submitted films from Asia for Best Foreign Language Film. Since its inception, we have proudly screened over 100 Oscar® and 50 Golden Globe submissions.
We have shed light on many Countries such as South Korea, North Korea, India, Japan, Taiwan, Central Asia as a whole Vietnam, Philippines, China, Thailand, Lebanon, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Malaysia and many more… every year we showcase 4 or 5 countries. This year 2023, Vietnam is ready to burst open to the world.
AWFF was founded by the former Minister of Culture from Kyrgyzstan Sadyk Sher-Nyaz, who initiated the idea of this Festival, and Asel Sherniyazova, Brett Syson, and Georges N. Chamchoum in 2014. It was born out of frustration that the Asian
Cinema was disregarded in Hollywood while we know the wealth of talent that comes out of this amazing continent. But everything changed since PARASITE came out in 2019.
We are sanctioned by many Ministries and Film Commissions most notably by the Minister of Cultures of Kyrgyzstan, Philippines, South Korea and Korean Cultural Center in Los Angles, Taiwan Academy in Los Angeles, Taiwan Ministry of Culture to name a few.
After 8 years of AWFF, how do we see the achievement of this festival? I believe in my heart, and of course people will say it is from just one angle that we have achieved a miracle. We made a giant leap forward with the Asian & Asian American Cinema. Up until the early 2010’s Asians in Hollywood were still behind back doors. In 2015 when we started the Asian World Film Festival, front doors
started opening. In 2019 came PARASITE which opened a flood gate to anything that is Asian. Let us not forget Asia has over 50 Nations, from the Eastern shores of the Mediterranean to Japan, from Russia by way of Georgia, Armenia, Central Asia all the way to China, India, and South Korea. What an amazing wealth of talents. We at the AWFF we are proud to be a small part of this resurgence of the Asian Cinema.
Imagine by our third year we already had over One Billion Impressions. There are over eight thousand festivals in the world – that is no less than 12 festivals a day! What makes us unique is Oscar® & Golden Globes submitted movies make up 85% of our program, which means we are focusing on promoting these movies to go to the next level, which is the shortlist, then a nomination
and finally a win like PARASITE. That is why our Festival is at the end of the Award Season – always the first week of November. The remaining movies come from little known countries like Yakutia, Buryatia, Bashkortostan, Uzbekistan Mongolia, Nepal, Bhutan, and the likes. You can never imagine the outstanding movies that come from these countries. For example, for 2 years in a row, Yakutia won the Snow Leopard Best Movie!
Here are some stats about the festival in the last 2 years. In the past 8 years we have screened over 300 movies from all Asian regions and Asian American movies. What I love about our festival is our Team Members mingling with the audience and talking to them at the end of the screenings. Two words always pop-out about our Program: “How inspiring!” This is the greatest compliment one can say
about us.
How do I describe the cooperation between AWFF and HFPA and other Organization such as the Academy of Motion Pictures? What are the main things we achieve?
We work closely with AMPAS to get our screenings in their Calendar. We have many Board
Members that are AMPAS members. We partnered with ASIA SOCIETY, SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA, CAPE (Coalition for Asian and Pacific Islander in Entertainment) and we are immensely proud to partner with the HFPA, and most of all to have their unconditional support. I believe the HFPA will have a bright future if they stay out of politics. Hollywood, “period” should stay out of Politics. Cinema is about entertainment, glamour, beauty, and most of all TALENT! Movies are all about Entertainment. I miss the Hollywood of the 40’s, 50’s 60’s 70’s when it was all about talent and performance and not about inclusion, politically correctness, nor about religion, creed, or color.
WE need to go back to this period. These days in Hollywood, people are afraid to tell the truth, everyone is afraid that whatever you say might turn against you and be taken out of context.
We are in an incredibly sad period in Hollywood History, reminiscent of McCarthyism’s blacklisting in the early 50’s. I am confident that it will change so we can go back to what movies meant, what Hollywood meant!
We are one of 3 Festivals in the World (the other two, Venice & Toronto) that has the HFPA Scholarship given to Short Film. For us it is most definitely a stamp of approval that we are doing something right.
A moto we live by: “Together we can make a difference!” a difference has been made in small strides – one pace at a time.
For hundreds of years back people who lost their teeth had to contend with artificial teeth. There is the infamous wooden denture of President Abe Lincoln. For the last century or more acrylic dentures and plastic teeth were the ceiling of what the dental profession could reach. Until the fifties came and Branemark introduced dental implants to our world. Today, Dental Implants are the standard of care.
Afew years ago, another innovative approach started to infiltrate our Dental World again under the name of All On 4 ® as branded by Noble BioCare; or All On X as advertised elsewhere.
This wonderful innovative approach is quite simple in its idea: and that is allowing a full set of teeth to rest, be fixated to or gain fixed support from four dental implants placed in a certain fashion according to a certain guideline allowing the hopeless to regain their smile and function. Utterly amazing and mesmerizing.
With Periodontal disease hitting almost 80% of the US population, tooth/teeth loss is a standing danger that we fight in the trenches daily. This number exceeds cancer, diabetes and cardiac disease combined, just to bring an image to mind.
This article is a gospel of good news, a sort of true revolution that enables a dental patient with terminal dentition to have his/her existing hopeless dental reality to change for good.
With a success rate of over 95% and longevity of over 20 years we have truly turned a corner and are able to deliver a crippling blow to our arch enemy: EDENTULISM. Dental implant treatment has guidelines, not rules. It’s one of the reasons why I love dental implants so much. Every case is different. The clinician must have a broad understanding of each patient’s unique factors, and then devise the best treatment plan for that individual. Even the most routine-appearing implant case can be affected by factors such as parafunction, occlusion, periodontal disease, the size of the space to be restored, and the patient’s budget.
It is important for clinicians to assess these factors and listen to their patients’ wants prior to offering treatment plans. These factors must be considered for fully edentulous patients as well.
Full-arch fixed implant bridges— often referred to as All-on-4 are taking the dental field by storm. These bridges are usually supported by four to six dental implants, which are fabricated from materials such as acrylic fused to titanium, monolithic
zirconia, and porcelain stacked to a cobalt-chromium frame. They are often presented with package pricing, which simplifies case presentation, and some practices promote All-on-4 as the best treatment option for their soon-tobe-edentulous patients.
If you are embarrassed about your smile, if you keep on losing teeth over the years and your smile and chewing ability are being compromised, DO Not Despair. So, what to do?
1. Make an appointment to get a 3D image of your skull.
2. Get a good consultation from a couple of experienced dentists.
3. Once you have settled on a practice to get this done at, get your financials arranged.
4. You will then be given 1-3 (depending on whether you have teeth or totally edentulous) appointments to get your temporary set of teeth premade.
5. Appear for surgery and ask if your dentist offers sedation. In my experience of doing implants for nearly 12 years, the experience is much more pleasant with the help of an anesthesiologist since they
can monitor your vitals and give you medications to help your body heal faster and considerably increase post operative comfort.
6. Wait for your implants to heal and in 4 months you will have your second & final and permanent set of teeth.
In just under 4 hours, you will be confidently smiling again and if you ever were one of the denture wearers then get ready to start tasting food again since your palate will no longer be covered by a chunk of plastic.
Orange County
Getting dental implants in Orange County at 7 Day Dental is hassle-free! As we are a multi-specialty office, we have trusted and highly competent specialists in different dental branches including our dental implant services. This means you don’t have to move from one office to another during your treatment process. The procedures in your treatment plan may be done under one roof. Convenient, isn’t it? Furthermore, you are assured exemplary results and firstrate service as our reputable specialists collaborate well. Plus, we utilize only trusted products and techniques to achieve desired outcomes.
Main Services
Cosmetic Dentistry
Endodontics
Geriatric Dentistry
Healthy Start System
Migraine and TMJ Treatment
Oral Surgery
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Office Locations
2265 W Lincoln Avenue
Anaheim, CA 92801
(714) 491-8600
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Anaheim, CA 92801
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Anaheim, CA 92801
(714) 772-2893
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Anaheim, CA 92801
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(949) 365-1900
In the past decade, orthodontists have been able to take advantage of the evolution and improvement of dental technology and techniques firsthand. Today, these advancements enable us to provide patients with state-of-the-art treatment that is more efficient and comfortable, creating a better patient experience for everyone who walks into our offices.
By Dr David LeeTechnology used in orthodontic treatment continues to progress at an incredible pace. To provide our patients with treatment that is accurate, efficient, and effective, we stay up to date with changes in the field by continued training and investing in new equipment.
As a board-certified orthodontist, these are the top five orthodontic trends on my list:
The perfect age to bring your child in for an orthodontic evaluation is age 6-7. At this stage, an orthodontist can see issues that need early intervention
to address a developing problem. The goal of Phase 1 treatment is to develop young jaws and arches to make room for incoming permanent teeth and prevent problems such as gingival recession, impacted teeth, and open bites. A narrow palate may be the cause for breathing issues as well as functional habits due to the restricted space available for the tongue.
Clear aligners can now be used for Phase 1 treatments to treat a broad range of teeth straightening issues in growing children such as crowding, crossbites, and narrow dental arches. With aligners, there is less discomfort because there are no rubbing brackets or poking wires and better hygiene because they are removable.
Plans
Digital Impressions
Intraoral scanners take digital impressions that are much more accurate and comfortable than the old impressions made from alginate and stone. Highdefinition, three-dimensional dental images of a patient’s mouth are available within minutes which allows your orthodontist to go to work on formulating a custom treatment plan without any delays.
Customized Treatment Plans
3-D planning software is used to create a custom smile for each patient, using their facial and dental features as a guide. It is now possible for patients to see the final results of what their smile will look like after orthodontic treatment. Using 3-D planning software and impressions of each individual’s teeth, we can create three-dimensional models of their dental structure. Wires and brackets can also be customized based on each patient’s specific needs.
Inbrace is a personalized teeth straightener that is custom for each patient and goes behind the teeth, so they are completely hidden. Smartwire technology allows you to eat, drink, brush and floss normally while it gently and efficiently moves your teeth. The treatment plan is tailored for each individual which reduces treatment time and improvements are seen within two weeks.
4. Temporary Anchorage Devices (TADs)
Temporary anchorage devices (TADs) are surgicalgrade titanium mini screws orthodontists can use to
control movement of teeth in the mouth. These devices provide a secure anchor in the jawbone for molars and other teeth, reducing unwanted movement. This allows us to treat issues that required surgery in the past such as a canted smile or closing the space of a missing tooth without affecting the midline.
The procedure of placing TADs in a patient’s mouth is easy and only requires a small amount of topical anesthetic applied to the gingiva. They are removed after the desired orthodontic movement is complete.
While many of the changes in orthodontics have helped make procedures more comfortable, PROPEL can help us reduce treatment time.
The Propel device is used to make tiny perforations that are the size of a pinhole in the bone around the teeth. This encourages a natural inflammatory response, which stimulates the release of the cells involved in the breakdown of the bone. This kicks off bone remodeling and accelerates tooth movement. A recent AJODO study showed that Propel increased the rate of tooth movement by more than twofold and reduced treatment time by up to 62%. Propel is gentle and discomfort during the procedure is minimal. It only takes a few minutes, and the area is numbed first so you don’t feel a thing. One or two Propel treatments are usually required but more could be necessary to facilitate complex tooth movements. There is no recovery time so you can go about your day after the procedure.
Orthodontic treatment shouldn’t be one size fits all and you deserve the individualized treatment that will best suit your needs.
Every technological advancement in orthodontics results in an improved experience for the patient. With more treatment options than ever before, and with a focus on comfort and efficiency, there has never been a better time to discover the power of orthodontics.
We take pride in providing excellent orthodontic care to patients of all ages. We offer a wide range of orthodontic services in Orange County for children, adolescents and adults, from preventive orthodontic services to emergency care. In addition, given our varied treatment options, we are able to address different orthodontic problems as well as help our patients achieve the treatment result they desire. Serving the Orange County community for 25 years, we guarantee that coming to us for your orthodontic needs is a decision you won’t regret. Below are the different services and treatments offered by our Orange County Orthodontists.
The goal of Orange County orthodontists is not just to treat existing malocclusions but also to eliminate factors that enable developing malocclusions from progressing or worsening. This is achieved with the help of preventative and interceptive treatments (also known as Phase I treatment) which can ensure and maintain the healthy development of oral structures. With preventive and interceptive orthodontics, patients may be able to avoid costlier treatments and longer treatment periods associated with severe malocclusions.
With the growth of K-pop and Korean dramas, Korean culture has caught the attention of many fashion lovers. The fashion trends in Korea are known for their unique style, practicality, and attention to detail. These trends will continue to make an impact in the fashion world in 2023.
by Phấn Hồng
One of the upcoming trends in Korean fashion for 2023 is a focus on environmental sustainability. As the world becomes more environmentally conscious, consumers are more eco-friendly clothing options. Korean fashion brands are well-suited to meet this demand. We can expect to see an increase in the use of organic and recycled materials, and a shift towards more eco-conscious fashion choices.
Another trend we can expect to see in 2023 is a focus on comfort and versatility. With many people still working from home and leading more casual lifestyles, comfort and practicality have become essential in fashion. Korean fashion is known for its emphasis on practicality and comfort, and we can expect this to be reflected in designs that prioritize versatility and ease of movement.
In terms of specific styles, oversized clothing will continue to be popular in 2023. Oversized blazers, sweatshirts, and t-shirts are not only comfortable but also
give off an effortless, cool vibe. Additionally, Korean fashion has been a pioneer in gender-neutral clothing, and this trend is set to continue in 2023. We can expect to see more unisex clothing, neutral colors, and minimalist designs that blur the lines between traditionally “masculine” and “feminine” styles.
Pastel colors have been a significant trend in Korean fashion in recent years, and we can expect them to continue in 2023. Soft pink, blue, and lavender hues give off a gentle, feminine vibe that is well-suited to Korean fashion. However, we can also expect to see bold, bright colors that add energy and excitement to any outfit. Accessories and details will continue to be a significant aspect of Korean fashion in 2023. Korean fashion is known for its attention to detail, with many designs featuring intricate embroidery, beading, and other embellishments. Statement accessories such as oversized earrings, colorful headbands, and unique handbags are a staple in Korean fashion and will continue to be in 2023.
In conclusion, Korean fashion is set to dominate the fashion world in 2023 with its sustainability, practicality, and attention to detail. The trends in Korean fashion are unique, versatile, and always on-trend. Whether you prefer minimalist designs or bold colors and statement accessories, Korean fashion has something for everyone.
What has given the Japanese cosmeceutical industry its huge success and allowed it to consistently top the list of the world’s finest cosmetic markets for years on out?
By Keva Link teamNot only are Japanese women among the most beautiful women in the world, they are also famous for their white porcelain white skin so smooth and flawless similar to the finest silk. Besides genetics and environmental factors, the beauty of the Japanese women is attributed to the Japanese cosmeceutical industry insert comma which has contributed a great deal to it’s skin care and beauty treatment.
The Japanese cosmeceutical business does not follow the trends of the international cosmetic market; instead, it upholds and continuously improves its traditional methods. Japanese cosmeceuticals continue to place a strong emphasis on “product sustainability and durability”, which has the potential to maintain its effectiveness for a long time, as opposite to their competitors who constantly change their technology solutions to maintain their products’ efficacy.
That does not mean that the Japanese cosmeceutical industry neglects to keep up with the world’s cosmetic industry. Japanese scientists invested a significant amount of time in the study and
experimentation to harmonize product sustainability and new technology. The credo of the Japanese cosmeceutical industry is to set trends rather than follow them. It is always striving to keep up with its competitors and even be one step ahead of others. Consequently, for decades, the cosmeceutical business in the Cherry Blossom nation has consistently been the market leader.
The Japanese have always paid special attention to their health and well-being. That mindset is expressed through many professions including the cosmeceutical industry.
Those who work in the Japanese beauty business are known to pay attention to product contents and ingredients, as that is a first requirement of the Japanese certification system. As a result, Japanese cosmetics are highly valued on the global market for their natural and hight quality ingredients.
Most of the substances in the Japanese cosmetics are natural. Together with common natural ingredients like honey, green tea, rice, vegetables,
Japanese seaweed is also considered a discovery of the world’s cosmeceutical industry in this decade. Some of the notable benefits of this ingredient when included in functional foods, include deep moisturizing and firming of the skin, supporting the function of certain areas of the body, preventing, and treating some diseases.
Collagen is another highly used ingredient of the Japanese cosmeceuticals industry. As the foundation to develop collagen trends around the world, Japan has been dominating the collagen market for many years.
It is often said: “Form is temporary, but class is permanent”. And probably one of the best pieces of evidence to support this statement is the Japanese cosmeceutical industry. It has consistently maintained its leadership position through many eras and stages of the beauty industry, because of the Japanese’s strong commitment to always put the safety of the customers first. And that should also be the commitment and responsibility of every cosmeceutical industry in the world.
Saigon is a populous city with a significant economic, cultural, and educational hub in Vietnam. The essence of the cuisine from every location of this S-shaped land mass as well as other parts of the world has come together in this town. Explore the finest restaurants in this city to experience the unique elements of East-West cuisine and their chef’s exquisite ability to transform ordinary meals into works of art.
By Keva Link
Food is served in a formal dining setting at Vietnam House. It is the first of celebrity chef Luke Nguyen establishment in Vietnam to work with the Windsor Property Management Group Corporation which combines delicate traditional dishes with the beauty and flavor of contemporary Vietnamese cuisine.
Vietnam House is an upgraded version of a long-standing house that was originally home to the renowned eatery L’Imperial. It provides customers with novel and alluring culinary experiences in a lavish and refined setting with unique decor.
Vietnam House has a special lunch and dinner menu to introduce famous dishes from different regions of Vietnam, such as Crab Salad, Cha Ca La Vong (turmeric grilled fish), X.O. Garoupa Fillet Char Grilled in Banana Leaf, and so forth. High quality ingredients and fresh, flavorful dishes substantially distinguish the Vietnam House brand. Each dish is meticulously and artfully displayed.
Vietnam House
Address: 93-95-97 Dong Khoi, District 1, HCMC
Tel: +84 28 3822 2226
Website: https://www.wmcvietnam.com/vietnam-house
Da Vittorio is an Italian brand that has earned 8 renowned Michelin stars at establishments in Shanghai and Italy. Da Vittorio Saigon, the first location in Vietnam, provides the finest dining and exceptional service in an opulent setting. You can enjoy an excellent gastronomic trip from the picturesque metropolis on the
Saigon River to the Italian family in the Lombardy area.
Da Vittorio Saigon, located inside the Times Square building in District 1, has grown to be the city’s most prominent dining establishment. Diners can enjoy authentic Italian food prepared with a delicate balance of history, uniqueness, and ingenuity.
Chef Matteo Fontana and his staff have introduced several “Da Vittorio” specialty dishes to their clientele with meticulous diligence. The restaurant’s signature dishes, which draw their flavors from traditional Italian family recipes, are its high point.
Da Vittorio Saigon
Address: 1st & B1 floors, Times Square Building
22 – 36 Nguyen Hue & 57 – 69F
Dong Khoi, Ben Nghe Ward, District 1, HCMC
Tel: +84 28 3823 6688
https://www.thereveriesaigon.com/ restaurants-bars/da-vittorio-saigon/
Da Vittorio Saigon:
Bringing the quintessence of Italian cuisine to Saigon
French chef Sakal Phoeung established Le Corto in 2016. For foodies visiting Saigon, this location is well known as a high-class French restaurant with superior food and service.
With more than 15 years of experience as chairperson of Les Disciples D’escoffier Vietnam, chef Sakal Phoeung is regarded as an accomplished trend setter in the culinary industry. He is always interested in learning how to blend regional foods and various cooking methods to produce amazing culinary ensembles.
The comprehensive menu at Le Corto offers a wide variety of appetizers, soups, seafood, meats, and grilled specialties. Chef Sakal Phoeung creates distinctive tastes by combining excellent imported products with well-chosen local seasonings.
Address: D Nguyen Sieu, Ben
Thanh Ward, District 1, HCMC
Tel: +84 28 3822 0671
Do not miss these excellent and reputable eateries if you get a chance to visit Saigon. You may discover new culinary experiences that are delicious as well as healthy, and savor Asian cuisine infused with an East-West spirit.
“Your Amazon account has been accessed from a different location. Please click on this link to verify.” Emails with subject lines like this are a dime a dozen these days. How many users would click on this? You’re probably thinking that you would never fall for a phishing scam like this, but what if it was your elderly parents or your cousin that doesn’t speak English? This would hit closer to home. What is phishing? The story below will illustrate a phishing scam. We have changed the names to protect the identities of these individuals.
In the heart of Little Saigon, Nghia and Trang had built their business, a small but successful medical office, from the ground up, had a loyal customer base, and a team of dedicated employees who helped them run the day-to-day operations. One day, Nghia received an email from what appeared to be a vendor that they had done business with
in the past. The email contained an attachment that he was asked to open. Clicking on the attachment, thinking it was safe to do so, quickly spiraled into a nightmare. By clicking on this attachment, Nghia triggered the installation of a keylogger (an application that runs discreetly in the background, recording every keystroke the user enters) allowing the cybercriminal to gain access to their company’s computer network.
Over the next few weeks, the cybercriminal was able to monitor all the company’s online activity, including their banking and financial transactions. They were careful with their money and kept a close eye on their accounts, but it took a while for them to realize that something was wrong. When they finally received their bank statements, they were shocked to see unauthorized transfers and transactions. They immediately contacted their bank to report the fraud. But by this time, it was too late. Their business suffered a substantial loss. Large sums of money had been stolen from their personal and business accounts along with confidential company data.
Nghia and Trang were devastated. They put everything they had into their business, and now their livelihood was in jeopardy.
They felt violated and helpless, and it was a long time before they were able to trust the internet again. The cybercriminal was eventually caught, but the damage had already been done. Nghia and Trang had to work hard to recover their losses and rebuild. They learned a valuable lesson about the dangers of the internet and the importance of being vigilant when it comes to online security.
Stories like this are statistics that rapidly become a growing concern in this day and age. It is painful to see good people like Nghia and Trang swindled from right under their noses. It is also a reminder to be vigilant with our online presence, whether it is professional or personal. Let’s lay down some numbers so we can understand the gravity of cybercrimes.
According to Proofpoint, Inc, a leading cybersecurity and compliance firm’s 2023 State of Phish Report, which analyzes data based on approximately 135 million simulated phishing attacks sent by Proofpoint customers to their employees over a one-year period and approximately 18 million emails reported by end users over the same time period, 44% of people think an email is safe when it contains familiar branding. To put this statistic into perspective, there are more than 30 million malicious messages sent in 2022 that included some sort of Microsoft branding or its related products. Additionally, to drive this statistic home, approximately a third of users clicked on links or opened an attachment from the 135 million simulated phishing attacks. [1]
Do these numbers only affect large corporate businesses? Think again. According to Verizon, Inc.’s 2022 Data Breach Report,
46% of all cyber breaches impact businesses with fewer than 1,000 employees. [2] Surveys show that 47% of businesses with fewer than 50 employees have no cybersecurity budget [3], 51% of small businesses have no cybersecurity measures in place at all, and 36% of small businesses are “not at all concerned” about cyberattacks.
[4] At the end of the day, hackers exploit the human condition, knowing that we are creatures of habit that will respond to urgency, personalization, and pressure. We have seen the internet evolve within the past decade to be a greater force for all businesses. However, with any tool designed for good, there will always be someone willing to exploit it for their own gain.
businesses protect their networks, data, and operations from cyber threats.
Founders:
Caroline Doan (Software/ Network/Infrastructure Engineer), Thanh Phan (Edge/Site Reliability/Security Engineer)
If you are interested in ways to protect your professional or personal data, please feel free to reach out to us.
(949)
References:
[1] https://www.proofpoint.com/us/ resources/threat-reports/state-of-phish
[2] https://www.verizon.com/business/ resources/reports/dbir/2022/masterguide
[3] https://insights.corvusinsurance. com/cyber-risk-insight-index-q1-2022/ survey-findings-smb-cyber-readiness
[4] https://digital.com/51-of-smallbusiness-admit-to-leaving-customer-dataunsecure
Was founded by Josh W Shields in 1994 and is a family-owned operated business that has been specializing in premier luxury-custom home building and remodeling projects in Orange County, California for 29 years.
Prior to 1994 Josh Shields began his construction journey at a young age growing up in Laguna Beach when he spent time with his grandfather watching him do craftsman style woodwork and cabinetry, on job sites and his woodshop. During the summers through high school Josh started as a construction trade laborer and continued learning valuable hands-on trade experience until obtaining his own contractor’s license in 1996 starting with small remodel projects, performing the work himself and eventually building the family business to where it has evolved today. Each completed project reflects
his attention to detail and perseverance to strive for perfection that he is very humbly proud of.
We believe that every project should be treated as if it were our own and take pride in our craftsmanship and the relationships we build with our clients. Our team’s attention to detail and commitment to quality has earned us a reputation for excellence among our clients and peers. Our projects are typically complex, requiring close coordination with architects, designers, engineers, and subcontractors, and understand that each client has a unique vision for their home and deserves individualized attention. We work closely with our clients and their design team well before any active construction has started so that the vision and design meet and exceed everyone’s expectations. We are grateful for the opportunities and experiences we have had working with past and new clients and look forward to many more years of making new relationships and providing high quality building services to our clients.
Josh Shields
President at Shields Construction Inc.
Phone: (714) 501-6600
Website: www.shieldsconstructioninc.com
Email: josh@shieldsconstructioninc.com
The Disabled American Veterans (DAV) organization provides a lifetime of support for veterans of all generations and their families, in positive, life-changing ways. DAV supports more than 1 million veterans every year with free, life-changing services. DAV is actively working to ensure that our fellow veterans and their families have access to the resources they need through the holidays and beyond.
By Michael Pham
This holiday season, like with many previous seasons, the Asian Premier Magazine (APM) team had a chance to spend a meaningful and insightful experience with our favorite heroes, the Disabled American Veterans. It’s in a spirit of holiday greetings, camaraderie, and jolliness all mixed into an eventful event. Most of all, an opportunity for us to show our obligation to those who have served our country on the frontline.
At the luncheon, if we know of someone who has recently come back from being deployed or who has recently been separated from service, we talk to them. You never know what they may be going through. Or maybe, there is a veteran or veteran’s spouse who is spending the holidays alone for the first time, we would ask them, ‘Hello there. Do you have a moment? Are you doing anything for this holiday? I would love to hear about your plan.’ Every so often that is all they need.
We know that exchanging anecdotes is evermore delightful among veterans. Veterans yearn to tell their stories. Their experiences are rather different if not unique to most common folks. Not all anecdotes are heartwarming and not all tales are heart wrenching. You never know how life everyday emergencies such as nature disasters can have different effects on the veterans. For veterans who are disabled as a result of their service, the effects of fires, floods and other calamities can be even more demoralizing. The sacrifices they made in uniform can make their recuperation much harder. Veterans who endured moving every two years and multiple deployments when losing
their house in a tornado or a flood, felt like they had lost everything. Fervent warriors on the facade, they are most vulnerable to these internal mental stresses. Woefully, our government rarely comes through, comes time to help our veterans when they most need it.
As members of the Vietnam war era refugees who came to settle in America, we felt immensely indebted to our veterans for their horrendous sacrifice. We would never be able to escape to this free land without their devotion and selflessness. It has been almost a half century since the collapse of South Vietnam, but those war images still linger vividly in our mind. Every Vietnamese who set foot on this land, whether by boats or planes, owed their freedom if not their life to the Veterans. They never asked for anything in return, but only recognition!
Hence here we are, every year during the jovial holiday seasons, we made it our commitment to come and entertain our wounded warriors, our beloved brothers in arms, mostly neglected and snubbed by the public. We are here to remind our veterans, that we cherish them, and they will never be forgotten.
Success is the very first of its kind to showcase Viet businesses from all over the U.S. and around the world to promote Vietnamese products, services and investment opportunities.
“In today’s volatile market, as the world’s economy is undergoing macro and micro changes with the economic polarization, businesses need to adapt to the changes that are around us and it is inevitable as entrepreneurs, we must change to sustain and pave the way for success,” said Vinh Nguyen, Founder and President of VBI Global and Broker Owner of Westate Realty Group, Inc.
“The Conference & Expo will bring together like-minded entrepreneurs looking for transformation in how they lead, operate, manage, learn new concepts and apply new technologies to optimize the business processes to keep their leading edge.”
VBI GLOBAL CONFERENCE & EXPO 2023TRANSFORMATION FOR SUCCESS offers a platform to network, trade promotion to and from the U.S., investment opportunities, strengthen the global supply chains for U.S. businesses, and learn the different technology transfers allowing companies to do things efficiently at a lower cost to boost the economy.
VBI Global is a 501(c)(6) not-for-profit organization based in Houston with the mission to connect Vietnamese entrepreneurs in the U.S. and around the globe for economic development through commerce and investments to strengthen the Vietnamese communities where we live in.
JOIN US to learn, connect and collaborate for commerce Norris Conference Center—Houston, Texas. U.S.A.
Friday, April 21, 2023
https://conference.vbi.global/english
Laura Lieu D Nguyen is a Top Producer at Superior Real Estate Group, one of the largest Real Estate Brokerage firms in Westminster, CA., serving the Orange and Greater Los Angeles areas in Residential & Commercial Properties.
Growing up in Vietnam in a privileged family, Lieu attended a prestigious private French Lycee in Saigon, but her fate like many of her high school friends at the time, changed drastically in 1975 when Saigon fell into the hands of the Communists. The privileged life that she knew had ended. Determined to find freedom, she risked her life and everything that she owned, left for the United States, the land of opportunity, in search for freedom and a new life. At first, she went through a great culture shock. During the first few years in the US, she had to learn a new language, worked odds jobs to make ends meet, endured many hardships and financial difficulties.
Her first financial breakthrough came in 1987 when she opened a new business in cosmetics. Once money was flowing in from her business, she re-gained confidence and discovered her passion to be an entrepreneur, be her own boss and be financially independent.
After just a few years, she faced numerous health issues that forced her to sell her business and quit work to tend to her health. Not letting her
illness hold her back, she turned to Real Estate. She became licensed in 2008 as a Realtor, and since, has found her passion in helping homebuyers find their dream home, or investors find their ideal properties.
Lieu’s expertise in Real Estate, charming personality, superb customer service, and proficient negotiation skills have earned her Top Producer of the Year award at Superior R.E. Group for seven consecutive years. She also taught Real Estate classes to future realtors in her spare time.
Lieu is dedicated to providing exceptional service to her clients to give them a smooth and stressfree experience with their real estate transactions. Whether her clients are first time homebuyers or seasoned buyers in residential or commercial, she gives them the same conscientious attention. She works tirelessly and skillfully to ensure they get the best possible deal. She has earned her clients’ trust and has secured numerous referrals from them.
After a global pandemic that affected all our lives for years, the organizers were motivated to produce a show that referenced hopeful visions of the future inspired by the pop culture sounds and aesthetics of bygone years. To that end, Marco Liu and James Tseng selected artists from across America and all the way from Asia to create original works that reflected each artist’s vision of the future reflected in their memories of the past. Sixteen artists from Los Angeles, New York, Boston, Detroit, Taipei, and Beijing took part, including Bernard Chang, Mimi Chao, Ang Chen, Ruby Chen, Tony Cheung, Ryan Hong, Shoko Ishida, Bernard Lee, Patty Lin, Pigo Lin, Jerry Ma, Reiko Murakami, Mogu Shen, James Tseng, Brian Yoon, and Cassie Zhang.
According to Marco Liu, “Southern California is the preeminent hub for Asian American creative life in the United States, so we wanted to empower and amplify some of the amazing artists we have encountered over the years, while also exploring new possibilities provided by blockchain technology.”
James Tseng adds, “As someone born in Taiwan who moved to America as a teenager, I always thought that there was a gap in understanding between Asians and Asian Americans. Future Nostalgia is an opportunity to bridge the gap and find common ground through art.”
Digital collectibles have become a popular and often controversial commodity because of dramatic news headlines and wild swings in the market. However, the underlying blockchain technology that enables digital collectibles to be a practical option for both artists and collectors allows for beautiful works of art to be created, logged, sold, and traded anywhere in the world, opening up new possibilities for art collection.
With so many exceptional Asian American artists in Southern California, as well as incredible Asian artists from around the world, the organizers behind the event wanted to educate and support
A one night only art gallery event was held in Los Angeles, featuring Asian and Asian American artists, DJs, food vendors, and specialty beverages. Future Nostalgia was a showcase of physical art pieces as well as digital collectibles, also known as NFTs (Non-Fungible Tokens). Produced by HOT NOIZE, an art curation group founded by Marco Liu and James Tseng, the purpose of the event was to highlight the breadth and depth of Asian creativity in Southern California while demonstrating real world applications for blockchain technology in the realm of art.
by Marc Liuthe broader Asian community by putting on an IRL (In Real Life) event that gives people to view and purchase their own, one of a kind, digital collectible. Thus, Future Nostalgia was born.
Besides visual art, the event featured an evening full of innovative DJ sets by DJs Guad Squad, Ronni Bunni, and Joey Kollapse, highlighted by EDC Las Vegas DJ Julienne By, with long-time Chinatown Los Angeles Living Room Sessions DJ Shark Faicol closing out the night.
Future Nostalgia also served as a showcase for some of the innovative food being made by talented young Asian chefs in Southern California. From Lao cuisine by Nok’s Kitchen and Thai fried chicken skin by Pa Fah LA, to Taiwanese street food from MRT Store LA to coconut dessert from Kokonut and Filipino-inspired cookies by Sweet G’s and Southeast Asian snacks by Tuk Tuk Box, with a special coffee service by Maddie’s Cafe from Garden Grove, California, from savory to sweet, there was something for everyone at the event.
To wash it all down, Future Nostalgia also featured delicious beverages from several different sponsors, including Rémy Martin, Blue Ice Vodka, Plant Botanical Vodka, Dulce Vida Tequila, Tsingtao Beer, Makku Korean Rice Beer, Drunk Fruit Hard Seltzer, Sanzo Sparkling Water, and Topo Chico Sparkling Mineral Water.
Taiwan-based bartender Will Fahn also prepared specialty drinks at the event as a preview for his upcoming tiki bar concept that will be opening in Taiwan in Summer 2023.
Future Nostalgia was exhibited at The Robinson S.P.A.C.E. located in Los Angeles’ Historic Filipino town and was produced by HOT NOIZE founders Marco Liu and James Tseng, sponsored by Digi Art.
CINEMATOGRAPHER & DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY
Brian Nguyen is a cinematographer based out of Los Angeles, CA. He is a graduate from the American Film Institute where he received his Masters in Cinematography. Upon graduation, Brian mentored under esteemed cinematographer, Christian Sebaldt, ASC (CSI, Lucifer, How to Get Away with Murder) where he learned to take his craft to the large scale. Brian has most recently wrapped on his third feature film, The Harvest, starring Doua Moua (Mulan, Gran Turino) and Perry Yung (Warrior, The Knick, Boogie). His first feature film, Never Alone, won Best Cinematography and Best Indie Feature at the Miami Independent Film Festival. As a cinematographer, Brian’s goal is to create feeling and emotion through the images he creates on screen.
APM: Why did you choose to be a cinematographer?
I fell into filmmaking through surfing and snowboarding movies - there were people making these films that would travel the world doing something they seemingly loved, and I thought to myself, “why can’t I do that?” I then pursued photography and there I found cinematography which in my mind is the perfect marriage of technical execution and art.
APM: Tell us more about yourself.
I grew up in Florida and went to the University of Florida for my undergraduate where I received a Bachelor of Science in Human Nutrition with a minor in English and film studies. From there, moved to LA to pursue filmmaking as a career where I worked as a camera assistant while also shooting. I then attended the American Film Institute Conservatory where I received my Masters in Cinematography. Aside from filmmaking, I am an avid snowboarder, surfer, rock climber, and guitarist.
APM: Are you interested in Fashion or Arts?
Any kind of art interests me - music, paintings, photography, sculptures, and any other medium of human expression.
APM: Do you travel often?
I often travel for work when I am working on documentary projects. For leisure, I love to travel to other countries where I can do any of my hobbies while experiencing the food and culture.
APM: What is your philosophy in life?
My philosophy in life is to do what you love and love what you do.
When I started on The Harvest, my director Caylee had already created an in-depth deck on the
look, feel, and tone of the film. As we discussed the film at length together, we wanted to approach the film with a lot of mood, texture, and color. Each character in the film was represented by their own color and that dictated the feel and color of the scene that the characters played in. There wasn’t necessarily a sense of “welcomeness” to the house, which is subjective to our protagonist, Thai, in the way he feels about returning home to his family. As the film progresses, however, there is more light and levity that ends the film with a more positive and uplifting tone.
We also approached the film with much naturalism in the feeling of the light - I didn’t want anything to feel too “lit” and have my lighting motivated by the natural environment. With the camera movement, most of the film is handheld to give a documentary look on this family and the character’s lives. There’s a distinct shift in camera movement toward the 3rd act of the film where we consciously played the camera as more stationary and stable. We took inspiration from Chloe Zhao’s “The Rider” in terms of the feel of the lighting and camera, while heightening it slightly more for our story.
As cultural traditions are slowly becoming a burden of the past, a Hmong son returns home knowing that family is the only thing that binds him and his ailing father together.
Director: Caylee So
Writer: Doua Moua
Producer: John Houselog & Doua Moua
Actors: Doua Moua (Mulan & Gran Torino), Perry Yung (Warriors & The Knick), Dawn Ying & Chrisna Chhor. The film had its world premiere at Santa Barbara International Film Festival.
Awards winning Iron Chef
Michael Bao Huynh is one of the most illustrious and creative Vietnamese American chefs and the country’s top culinary Ambassador. His distinctive and profound expertise of his inherent cooking enables him to open a notable number of exceptional restaurants.
Chef Michael Bao Huynh first introduced the Fusion culinary style, a style that requires understanding of different culinary cultures around the world, to the people of New York City. In 2003, Michael Bao Huynh was voted “Best Chef in New York” by New York Food magazine. This is an annual award given to the nine best chefs in all of New York. Bao’s pure Vietnamese dishes are transformed in a unique and creative way that has become a favorite dish of many famous celebrities and head of states: Naomi Campbell, Mick Jagger, Helmut Kolt, Usher, Rachel Weisz, Michael Bloomberg…
Since the age of 11, Bao helped his mother cook at his family restaurant. Every day, he had to get up early to marinate and grill meat. For the young Bao, cooking was just a game as he recalled. Following in his father’s footsteps, Bao went to study architecture at the New York Institute of Technology School of Architecture. However, he always dreamed of opening a restaurant in
the United States so every day after school, he went to his adoptive family’s restaurant to cook.
In 2002, Michael Bao Huynh opened Bao 111 – his first restaurant in the US. He later returned to Vietnam to take on the position of head chef for many renowned restaurants and hotels and participated in the TV show Iron Chef as a super chef and Master Chef Vietnam as a guest judge.
Bao believes that to reach the top of the culinary industry, chefs need to go abroad to develop their skill. They must also be able to enjoy delicate food to be able to re-create them properly. For Bao, if you do not enjoy luscious food yourself, how would you know how to cook? Learning to cook through textbooks can only help chefs create dishes that resemble them in form. Bao’s success comes from the fact that he combines extremely delicate spices to craft an intense impression on diners.
These days Iron Chef Michael Bao Huynh is working his magic and applying his ingenuity at MOI cuisines by creating delicate and highly customized menus for his elite clientele.
MOI Cuisines
10830 Warner Avenue, Fountain Valley, CA (714) 274-9999
AWARD & RECOGNITION
4Michelin Star, Silk at Cocoon Club, Frankfurt, Germany
42003 Best Chef New York Magazine
42007 Best New Restaurant (Mai House) by New York Time
42007 Best New Asian Restaurant by Time Out New York
42011 and 2012 Michelin Bib Award (OBAO NYC)
42013 Iron Chef Vietnam
42014 Coach for Bocuse d’or Vietnam Team
Since I left in 1978, this was my fifth trip back to my native country. With each return, I expected it to be my last as I felt that it had adequately appeased the nostalgia for my birthplace. But somehow there was always another reason that pushed me towards another trip.
By Rosalyn PhamThis time, it was mainly to accompany my cousins who had not been back for over four decades. I suspected it would be a boring repeat for me, but I wanted to show my relatives the Vietnam that I had discovered on my previous trips, also the Vietnam we couldn’t experience growing up during the war. However, only within minutes of landing in Noi Bai airport in Ha Noi, I realized that this would not be a boring repeat. This old country has continued to grow and evolve with formidable passion and energy. The metamorphosis is so extensive that this fifth visit felt like the first.
My dad was born in Ha Noi. While he and his family emigrated to the south in 1954, they kept their memory alive throughout the years.
Needless to say, this town holds a very dear spot in my cousins’ and my hearts.
Our hotel is in the north of the Old Quarter (Pho Co), a few steps away from lake Hoan Kiem. Although Ha Noi is much more developed than when I last visited 9 years ago, the Old Quarter is still a well-preserved area. Our sightseeing included the main attractions such as Van Mieu (Temple of Literature), Chua Mot Cot (One Pillar Pagoda), Chua Tran Quoc (Tran Quoc Pagoda), Cu The Huc (The Red Bridge), Ho Tay (West Lake)... However, the true charm of Ha Noi is best appreciated with a stroll around the lake in the early morning and late evening. Every day, we witnessed how people attempted to weave exercise, relaxation, and romance
into the fabric of their busy urban life. Overall, the city is cleaner and greener, embracing modernization without compromising its charm and character.
After the worst of Covid, it seemed like Ha Noi had regained its normal rhythm and was more than ready to welcome Tet, the Lunar/Vietnamese new year. Every street and storefront competed to showcase their best holiday decorations. The flower market displayed the most glamorous apricot, peach, and orchid blossoms, some gathered in elaborate unique arrangements for highly exclusive customers.
From Ha Noi, we took a day trip to Trang An, a scenic area in Ninh Binh, 90 km south of Ha Noi.
Known as “Ha Long Bay on Land”, this UNESCO World Heritage site features the most stunning formation of karst mountains which are best admired from a boat ride on the river. While navigating us through impressive caves and stopping by beautiful temples, our boat guide reminded us of the significance of the region. Hoa Lu, Ninh Binh, was the first capital of the ancient Vietnamese kingdom
Dai Co Viet in the 10th and 11th century. I heard mentioning of our brave kings and heroes’ names, such as Dinh Bo Linh, Ly Thai
To, Dinh Tien Hoang... which are reminiscent of the History classes in my high school days.
Lao Cai is found on the southwest border of China. The bridge from Lao Cai to Hekou remained closed when we were there, a stark reminder of the lingering threat of Covid.
My first time in Sapa was in 2014. Sapa has undergone tremendous losses and gains since. There has undoubtedly been a great amount of effort invested
in this town, enough to give it a complete facelift in recent years. The hotel where I stayed before had disappeared, overtaken by newer buildings. The lake and its surroundings that used to remind me of a quiet Switzerland landscape were now busier and noisier, more like other Vietnamese townscapes. The luxury Hotel de la Coupole now serves as the new landmark, bringing back impressions of the French Indochina era.
On our first day, we took the tour to Fansipan in Lao Cai. Being the highest peak of the Hoang Lien Son mountain range, Fansipan is known as the “Roof of (French) Indochina”. The long cable car took us to the summit of over 10,000 feet. To have conquered the treacherous height of this mountain and to have realized this magnificent Buddhist wordship site testify to human’s utmost determination, strength and spirit. The picturesque setting of Fansipan resembles the dreamy landscape in old Chinese paintings where mountain slopes meet with swirling clouds, keeping us afloat in the air and befriending us with the sky.
On our second day, we hiked the Sapa valleys where the Vietnamese ethnic minority groups live. This area is known for its breathtaking landscape, from terraced rice paddies to mountain views and scattered villages. However, the beauty of nature could not hide the wrinkles of poverty in the homes and lives of its inhabitants. As we trekked through the villages, we were followed by a persistent group of Hmong, Tay, and Dao locals who insisted on serving as our guides and selling us miscellaneous trinkets and souvenirs. As much as I loved the prosperous look of downtown Sapa, the desperation that was imprinted on these people’s faces deeply saddened me.
A visit to Ha Long was an overnight cruise through the bay. Our stay on the ship was comfortable and the tour of the caves was an interesting experience. However, the beauty and charm of Ha Long were significantly diminished by the damp weather and poor visibility in the winter months.
My first two trips to Ha Long were in the summer when the scenery was more vibrant under the sun. This time, I kept looking for the same bright green on the mountains and alluring jade in the water, but the sky refused to clear up and the colors stayed blurry and indifferent.
This area is home to two of the most famous caves, Thien Duong and Tien Son, parts of Phong Nha Ke Bang National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage site. The limestone interbedded with shales and sandstones forms the most outstanding indoor scenery and demonstrates a diverse ecosystem that has evolved over 400 million years. Our cave “exploration” produced many pictures which, as interesting as they were, could not do justice to the true beauty and vastness that only bare eyes could behold and appreciate.
Hue is the former imperial capital of Vietnam during the Nguyen dynasty, starting from the 17th century. Our three days in Hue were met with wintry and drizzling weather. This added a note
of melancholy to this city that had known unspeakable tragedies and destructions during the war and that continues to endure natural disasters and economic challenges. However, the shortage of tourists allowed for a more leisurely visit than usual. We were able to tour Thanh Noi (Imperial City), chua Thien Mu (Thien Mu Pagoda), Lang Khai Dinh (Khai Dinh Tomb), and Lang Tu Duc (Tu Duc Tomb), admire their priceless beauty, and immerse in the wonderland of our country’s illustrious history without having to fight the crowd of avid visitors.
LANG CO
Lang Co is a beautiful and
unspoiled beach 60km south of Hue. The arc shaped sandy beach, translucent water, and cloud-veiled mountains in the background made Lang Co an inviting site on the traveler’s way to Da Nang and Hoi An. The panoramic view from the top of Hai Van pass beckoned for a quick stop, no matter how pressed we were to reach our next destination.
HOI AN
Hoi An is a historic town in Central Vietnam, famous for its well-preserved historic temples, Japanese covered bridge, colonial French buildings, Vietnamese tube houses, and Chinese wooden houses. The town was most glorious
at night when the rows of colorful lanterns along the canal and their reflections on the water offered a double vision that mesmerized our eyes and romanticized our hearts. More pleasant surprises were also waiting for us outside of Hoi An. The river tour of Rung Dua Bay Mau (Bay Mau Coconut Forest) in the thuyen thung (round basket boat) was a fun and unique experience. But most memorable was the afternoon spent at Tra Que Vegetable village. This is an organic vegetable farm that offers tourists the chance to experience a few hours of living and working with the local people through farming activities and cooking lessons. After our “hard work” in the sun, we were rewarded with a great massage and a sumptuous lunch. The view of the peaceful farm lined with rows of green herbs and vegetables and the feel of the flirting afternoon breeze gave us the relaxation and tranquility that we really needed amidst our busy travel schedules.
DA NANG
Da Nang is a coastal city known for its beautiful beaches. It is also the best city that may represent the booming economy of the country over the past two decades. Domestic and international tourist resorts span several miles along the coast. Modern buildings and highrises proliferate the townscape. The iconic Dragon Bridge illuminates the city at night, enchanting visitors near and far. Our tour included shopping at the limestone factory and climbing up Ngu Hanh Son mountain. A short drive through town convinced us that we should have planned more days in this dynamic city.
Before beginning our two days at the beach resort in Nha Trang, we visited Thap Ba Ponagar in town. This is a Cham Hindu temple built in the seventh century and dedicated to Yan Po Nagar, the Goddess of plants and trees. The unmistakable architecture and art style of this place, remarkably similar to Angkor Wat in Cambodia, were precious remnants of an ancient civilization that was widely influential in Southeast Asia. A short stop by the beach led us to the Hon Chong promontory. This is an exotic area of rocks naturally piled into unique shapes from which various folk legends and tales were conceived. A short boat ride took us to Vinpearl resort on Hon Tre island. The view of the beach from our balcony immediately convinced us to change into our bathing suits. The white sand and pristine water in the ocean and the pool were perfect for swimming and sunbathing, giving our tired bodies a much-needed rest. It seems like Vinpearl never stops growing. The amusement park features many attractions, including roller coaster rides, a water park, a zoo, an aquarium, several botanical green houses, a Japanese garden... In the evening, the Musical Water show, and the multimedia Tata show offer amazing entertainment that enchant children as well as bewitch adults.
Like most parts of the country, Phu Quoc has changed significantly in recent years. I could hardly recognize the mushroom of stores, hotels, and resorts that had sprung up since my last visit. Vinpearl Phu Quoc, with its lavish accommodations and exciting amusement attractions, is a formidable competitor to its Nha Trang
counterpart. After over 2 weeks in Vietnam, it took traveling all the way to Phu Quoc to catch the sunset. And what a riveting sunset it was! I could say the beaches of Phu Quoc are my favorites beaches in Vietnam.
I was born and raised in Saigon, the capital city of South Vietnam. Although this city was renamed as Ho Chi Minh City after the North took over the South in 1975, for many of us, it is still Saigon, our beloved hometown, where fond memories of our childhood stay imprinted in our hearts and defy the passage of time and change of regime. Throughout our trip, I kept reminding my cousins to enjoy the peace and quietness in the small towns and brace themselves for the noise and chaos in Saigon. However, we were met with a calmer city and a more pleasant atmosphere than anticipated. Like the rest of the country, Saigon was still recovering from the rampage of Covid. Despite the struggling economy, the preparation for Tet was no less impressive. As our people believe that our actions, endeavors and experiences on the 1st few days of the year would determine our luck for the rest of the year, we do our best to attract positive energy into our homes, businesses, and workplaces. From different parts of town, flower markets feature the best displays of mai lan cúc trúc, the typical blossoms of the season. Red and gold decorations adorned the exteriors and interiors of every hotel, store, and public buildings. All food stalls were filled with banh chung banh tet rice cakes, fresh
fruits, and other items essential to the tradition. The plaza on Nguyens Hue street was closed to the public for several weeks, only to reopen three days before Tet, with the promise of the best showcase of flower decorations offered by generous corporate sponsors.
For the first time in four decades, my cousins and I had the chance to celebrate Giao Thua, Lunar’s New Year’s Eve, in Saigon. Watching the festivities in front of our hotel, waiting impatiently for the mua lan (Dragon Dance) to begin, and walking among the crowd through the lavishly decorated Nguyen Hue plaza
brought back sweet childhood memories that swelled my eyes with tears. How fun, how magical, how precious! I hope Saigon and the rest of the country will fully recover from the economic downturn this year, even if it means more noise, more traffic, and more crowds. Its face may be totally different from the romantic town of my yesteryears and most of its population may be too young to understand the heartache and nostalgia of my generation, but I still love Saigon.
This was my last day in Vietnam. From the banging sound of the dragon dance, this trip certainly ended on a high note.
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In the healthcare industry, to guarantee payments from insurance companies for services that health care providers offered to patients, the providers, and particularly out-ofnetwork providers, need to obtain the insurance carrier’s consent in the form of usual, customary, and reasonable (UCR) or reasonable and customary (RC).
Often time, insurance companies are decried of jousting by developing jargons to define what their reimbursement rate will be, and by replacing standard terms UCR and RC with terms as “MNRP (Maximum Non-Network Reimbursement Plan)” and “California Fee Schedule Rates” or “Official Medical Fee Schedule (OMFS)”. Insurance companies tend to omit this information in their communication with health care providers. It behooves the providers to ask the insurance companies whether they will be paying based on the Medicare rate, or what is their reimbursement rate based on? In other words, what is the percentage of the “UCR, RC, Medicare” rate are they paying?
What it all boils down to is the insurance company is merely compensating out-of-network providers, based on a percentage of Medicare rate and not the UCR or RC.
If a patient obtains a PPO plan and selects an out-of-network provider, the insurance company will pay only the Medicare Rate. The patient must absorb all outstanding balance once the health care provider goes on with the procedure and only receives partial reimbursement from the insurance companies.
Patients are often misinformed when they purchase PPO plans believing that they would be covered for their treatment but end up paying more out-of-pocket than they had anticipated. If you need help with your insurance coverage, please don’t hesitate to contact us.
