Year-round Program Highlights 2013-2015
September 2013 - Digital Dharma at The Kimmel Center
PAAFF hosted the Philadelphia Premiere of locally produced feature documentary Digital Dharma. DD is the story of Gene E. Smith, a Mormon Linguist from Ohio who devoted his life to transcribing all extant Tibetan literary works ranging from sacred Buddhist and Bon texts to literature, science and medicine. Spending nearly five decades traveling between Tibetan exile communities in India, Nepal and Bangladesh, Gene transcribed then scanned and eventually digitized these works as technology improved. Today the entire collection is available freely to the public online. While this film was not produced by or about an Asian American, we chose to include this film because Gene Smith was essentially an American Asian. The screening was preceded by a traditional Tibetan Yak dance and followed by a Q&A with director Dafna Yachin and members of her production crew.
March 2014 - Late Summer at The African American Museum in Philadelphia PAAFF co-hosted this screening with City Councilman David Oh’s Black Film Advisory Committee and African American Museum in Philadelphia. Directed by Korean American Ernie Park, Late Summer stars an all African American cast, and was produced as homage to Japanese film director Yasujiro Ozu. The result is a unique blend of cinematic styles and cultural influences that embodies the multiculturalism of urban America. Greater Philadelphia Film Office Director of Marketing and Multicultural Affairs Nicole Giles moderated a post-film panel discussion featuring local Asian American and African American filmmakers with topics including shared experiences as underrepresented minorities in the entertainment industry and potential for future collaboration on a local level. Attendance by African Americans has noticeably increased at our screenings since this event.
April 2014 - Rescue in the Philippines at National We hosted a special repeat screening of PAAFF’13 Audi- Museum of American Jewish History April 2014 - Lost Child at Wat Lao
ence Choice winner about a former Khmer Rouge child soldier who reconnects with his birth family after twenty years in the US. Sayon returns to Cambodia with a camera crew to discover the truth about his past. Hosted at the Lao Buddhist temple in South Philly, Sayon and the filmmakers led a post-film discussion with members of the Cambodian and Lao communities.
We co-hosted this screening, which chronicled the story of the Frieder family who helped 1,300 Jews escape the Nazis and immigrate to the Philippines with work visas for their cigar factory. The post-film talk-back included filmmakers, members of the Frieder family, and a refugee subject from the film, followed by a reception where Filipino and Jewish Americans were able to meet and mingle.
May 2014 - The Barefoot Artist at Kimmel Center
June 2014 - I For India at Drexel University
An intimate biographic portrait of Chinese born, Philadelphia-based artist Lily Yeh, The Barefoot Artist was Codirected by her son and Philly native Daniel Traub. At the age of seventy Lily takes a look back at the work she has done throughout the world in various poverty stricken and at-risk communities in North America, Africa, China and India, with the unique perspective that art can promote social change. We brought both the directors and Lily to the Kimmel Center for a sold out screening.
We partnered with South Asian American Digital Archive and PA Immigration & Citizenship Coalition to co-host this found-footage documentary stitched together from video letters exchanged between British Indian immigrants and their family in India, showing the plight of first generation immigrants through their own amateur footage. After the screening we held a discussion with audience members from many diverse immigrant backgrounds who shared their own experiences building a new life in the US.
February-March 2015 - Japanese Film Series at Philadelphia Museum of Art As part of the Philadelphia Museum of Art’s special exhibit on the Kano school of Japanese painters, PAAFF curated a series of Japanese films that Festival Director Rob Buscher introduced with a brief lecture contextualizing the film within the history of Japan, and relating it to the Kano exhibit. February featured the film Harakiri, a historical drama about a dishonored samurai who seeks to commit ritual suicide in an enemy clan’s courtyard to reclaim the honor of his dead kinsmen. In March we screened From Up on Poppy Hill, a feature-length anime directed by Goro MIYAZAKI, son of world-renowned animator Hayao MIYAZAKI. This nostalgic coming-of-age romance about two teens who ban together to save their high school clubhouse from being demolished in mid-1960s Yokohama. Aside from the exhibition preview lecture, our screenings were the best attended peripheral events in their program.
April 2015 - Don’t Lose Your Soul at Clef Club As part of the City of Philadelphia’s Jazz Heritage Month PAAFF hosted a free screening at Philadelphia’s legendary Clef Club pairing Cab Calloway’s Hi-De-Ho, a Jazz comedic musical short about marital infidelity, with Don’t Lose Your Soul co-directed by PAAFF alum Jim Choi and Chihiro Wimbush. Choi’s film traces the origin of the Asian American Jazz Movement through the partnership of pioneering bassist Mark Izu and drummer Anthony Brown, specifically focusing on their work around Japanese Internment remembrance and culminating in the 30th anniversary of the San Francisco Asian American Jazz Festival. Festival Director Rob Buscher led a post-film discussion with the predominantly African American audience, many of whom had never seen an Asian American in this context previously.
May 2015 - Best of PAAFF Shorts Program at Franklin Square Park Since Festival Director Rob Buscher is a member of the Host Committee for the Pan Asian Association of Greater Philadelphia’s Asian Pacific American Heritage Month Celebration at Franklin Square Park, PAAFF was able to expand our role in this year’s event from tabling with information and volunteer sign ups to hosting an outdoor screening. The all day outdoor festival featured traditional folk music and dance, contemporary musical performances by artists of APA descent, pan-Asian food trucks, a health fair, children’s activities, and finally culminated in our screening of the Best of PAAFF Shorts Program, featuring family friendly short films from the 2013 and 2014 festivals.
May 2015 - Eastern Tower Community Center at PA State Capitol in Harrisburg PAAFF was invited to present a short documentary on Philadelphia Chinatown Development Corporation’s Eastern Tower & Community Center project at the Governor’s Advisory Commission on Asian American Affairs APA Heritage Month Celebration in Harrisburg. With over 300 state employees and legislators in attendance, Festival Director Rob Buscher introduced the film with PCDC Executive Director John Chin, and spoke about PAAFF’s mission and long-term goals. PAAFF is in talks with the Governor’s office about hosting additional screenings in Harriburg in the near future.
MONTHLY SCREENING SERIES MAY–SEPTEMBER, 2015 | ASIAN ARTS INITIATIVE PAAFF is Philadelphia’s premiere cinema showcase celebrating and elevating the Asian American experience both on screen and behind the camera. We present the best in Asian and Asian American cinema through our year round programming and annual festival each November.
MANNY
GARUDA 19
Thu, May 28, 2015
Thu, August 27, 2015
Director: Leon Gast, Ryan Moore | 88 mins
Director: Andibachtiar Yusuf | 105 mins
A gripping feature doc about Filipino boxer Manny Pacquiao and his tremendous rise to success, to be screened just weeks after his title match with boxing legend Floyd Mayweather.
A coming of age sports film about the true story of Indonesia’s Under 19 soccer team who won the ASEAN Football Federation’s Youth Championship in 2013. This optimistic film celebrates Indonesia’s bright future in the sport, and is a perfect way to commemorate the 70th anniversary of Indonesian Independence.
LIMITED PARTNERSHIP Thu, June 25, 2015 Director: Thomas G. Miller | 74 mins A touching documentary about an Asian American man and his Australian lover who were legally married in the state of Colorado in the 1970s, but then faced deportation over bigoted immigration policies that did not accept same sex marriage as grounds for naturalization. Co-Produced and shot by PAAFF alumni Leo Chiang.
ASIAN ARTS INITIATIVE
CHEETAH: THE NELSON VAILS STORY
1219 Vine Street, Philadelphia, PA 215.557.0455 | www.asianartsinitiative.org
Thu, July 23, 2015 A terrific rags to riches sports documentary about Nelson Vails, the first African American to win an Olympic medal in cycling who began riding as a bike courier in NYC in the 1970s. Produced by Scott Nguyen and directed by PAAFF alumni Stephane Gauger.
www.paaff.org
MANNY
Director: Stephane Gauger | 60 mins
LIMITED PARTNERSHIP
CHEETAH: THE NELSON VAILS STORY
GARUDA 19
ROOTS IN THE SAND Thu, September 24, 2015 Director: Jayasri Hart | 57 mins An informative documentary about the little known Punjabi-Mexican community of Southern California that began due to a combination of racially motivated immigration policy and antimiscegenation laws. This film will be screened to honor Latino American Heritage Month.
Tickets can be purchased online by visiting www.paaff.org or at the door. General Admission: $8 Students | $6 Seniors
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ROOTS IN THE SAND
While we have the metrics to prove the success of our 2013-2014 programs, we believe our attendance and diversity of audience can be even further improved by hosting a consistent monthly screening series at Asian Arts Initiative in the second half of 2015. By using the same venue on the fourth Thursday of each month from May-September, we hope to build an even larger audience and create additional year-round engagement with our existing supporters. The titles in this series were programmed to incorporate specific ethnic communities and interest groups into our programs including African Americans, Latino Americans, LGBTQ individuals, Filipino Americans, Indonesian Americans, and sports fans. By targeting these groups, we hope to increase their demographics amongst the audience of our 2015 festival this November. We will continue collaborating with other organizations and venues as opportunities arise, but this series is our immediate priority in continuing to reach new audiences.
KUMA HINA
MONTHLY SCREENING SERIES MAY–OCTOBER, 2015 Best of PAAFF’14 Program At Theatre N
FARAH GOES BANG
and elevating the Asian American experience both on screen and behind the camera. We present the best in Asian and Asian American cinema through our year round programming and annual festival each November. Visit www.paaff.org for more details. RICKI’S PROMISE
KUMA HINA
UZUMASA LIMELIGHT
PAAFF was recently given an exciting opportunity to expand our festival outside of Philadelphia through a series of satelite screenings at Theatre N in Wilmington, Delaware, consisting of the six award winning films from the 2014 festival. Our intent is to further develop the PAAFF brand and build a new audience that may be interested in attending our annual festival. Even if this series does not impact our main festival attendance, the Best of PAAFF’14 Program is important because it allows us to continue the mission of our organization in a new city that lacks the capacity to organize their own festival. Depending on the success of this series we may explore expanding further into other markets in the mid-Atlantic region.
CICADA
PLASTIC PARADISE
Best Narrative Feature
Audience Choice Documentary Feature
FARAH GOES BANG
RICKI’S PROMISE
May 8–10, 2015
August 7–9, 2015
Director: Meera Menon | 90 mins
Director: Changfu Chang | 84 mins
During a cross-country road-trip campaigning for John Kerry in the 2004 Election, a Persian American woman in her twenties tries to lose her virginity. An interesting revisionist perspective on American life just one decade ago, this buddy-flick coming-of-age comedy confronts stereotypes of gender, and what it means to be a woman of Middle Eastern descent in post-9/11 America.
After establishing contact with her Chinese birth-family, 18-year-old adopted American Ricki Mudd promises to spend one summer in China. Directed by Lancaster native Dr. Changfu Chang, this moving documentary tells the story of one Chinese American getting in touch with her roots, and the family she never knew.
Best Documentary Feature
PLASTIC PARADISE June 12–14, 2015 Director: Angela Sun | 57 mins An environmentalist film focusing on the Great Pacific Garbage Patch, a mass of plastic and non-degradable waste roughly twice the size of Texas that floats in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. Shot on location in the Midway Islands, this documentary concisely relates the consumption culture of post-industrial global society with the rise in environmental degradation.
Honorable Mention Narrative Feature
UZUMASA LIMELIGHT September 11–13, 2015 Director: Ken Ochiai | 103 mins The Uzumasa studio complex in Kyoto is widely regarded as the Hollywood of Japan, having produced many of the best jidaigeki films (period dramas with sword fighting) beloved by Japanese and the rest of the world. These films would not be what they were if it were not for the kirareyaku, actors whose sole job is to be killed by the lead star in elaborate death scenes. Inspired by Charlie Chaplin’s Limelight, this film tells the story of one aging kirareyaku who takes on a female apprentice in the twilight of his career.
Audience Choice Narrative Feature
CICADA
Honorable Mention Documentary Feature
July 10–12, 2015
KUMU HINA
Director: Dean Yamada | 100 mins
October 9–11, 2015
When Elementary School administrator Jumpei Taneda finds out he is sterile, he is thrust into an existential crisis that turns his life upside down. He begins having clairvoyant flashes that mysteriously lead him to cicada shells. Meanwhile he becomes a father-figure to his sister Nanaka’s young son Ryota, who is being bullied in school.
Director: Dean Hamer, Joe Wilson | 74 mins
Tickets are $9 and can be purchased at the box office or online at www.theatren.org
This touching film documents one year in the life of Hina Wong-Kalu, a native Hawaiian! m!h"# (transgender) hula teacher who inspires a female student to claim her place as leader of the school’s all-male hula troupe. Meanwhile Hina’s longing for love and a committed relationship leads her to marry a headstrong Tongan man. An incredible docu-drama that unfolds like a narrative film, Kumu Hina reveals a side of Hawaii rarely seen on screen.
THEATRE N 1007 N Orange St, Wilmington, DE 19801 302.571.4699 | www.atheatren.org www.paaff.org
DESIGNED BY MARUGRAPHIS WWW.MARUGRAPHIS.COM