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Press Release: Chinese American FilmsA Galaxy of Chinese American Films and Movies from China at 19th San Francisco International Asian American Film Festival A shimmering selection of films by Chinese Americans and movies from China will be presented at the 19th annual San Francisco International Asian American Film Festival (SFIAAFF), running March 8-15 at the AMC Kabuki 8 Theatres in San Francisco, Pacific Film Archive in Berkeley and March 17-18 at the Camera 3 Cinemas in San Jose. New to this year's Festival is the "Spotlight Program," an in-depth look at the achievements of a selected member of the Asian American film community. Featured, in conversation with Barbara Abrash (Associate Director of Center for Media, Culture, and History at NYU), will be visionary filmmaker Loni Ding. Over a career spanning more than thirty years, Ms Ding has not only crafted hard-hitting documentaries about little-known histories or overlooked people like the ANCESTORS IN THE AMERICA TRILOGY, THE COLOR OF HONOR, and WILLI LOBO MANCHILD, but has also influenced a whole generation of new media makers through her work as a college educator. Clips from Ms Ding's films throughout the interview will illustrate her unique and honest cinematic vision. A shining light in the feature film category at this year's Festival is Chinese American helmer Ann Hu's vibrant tale of the men who helped bring the magic of movies to turn-of-the-century China, SHADOW MAGIC, starring Xia Yu, Lu Liping and Jared Harris. The world premiere of Amy Chen's documentary THE CHINATOWN FILES examines how McCarthyism affected seven Chinese Americans. Standing out in the shorts category is Chinese American filmmaker Debbie Lum's vengeful A GREAT DEAL and Gavin Wynn's homage THE DEBT COLLECTOR both in the "Urge To Purge" shorts program; Ellie Lee's dystopic DOG DAYS in "Sins and Daughters" shorts program; Wendy Fong's Internet tale ARTIFICIAL INTIMACY, Kathryn Xian's snapshot CONSTRUCTIONS, and Yvette Choy's lighthearted BLACK MAIL MATERIAL, all in the "Grrrls, Uninterrupted" shorts program; Yiuwing Lam's mixed-up BLUE LOVE and Marie Chao's changing FULL MOON, both in the "Blue Love" shorts program; David Yip's examination CHINESE WHISPERS in the "Forsaken Communities: The Untold Chinese Diaspora" shorts program; Edward Wong's documentary COMRADES screened with "The Chinatown Files"; two films from Wayne Yung, lovelorn DAVIE STREET BLUES and mouthy FIELD GUIDE TO WESTERN WILDFLOWERS, Ho Tam's poetic WASHINGTON HEIGHTS, and Richard Fung's elegiac SEA IN THE BLOOD, all in the "Homo Knock Knock" program; and Sue Chen's moody ED IS DROWNING, Selena Chang's rebellious THREE EXITS and Ham Tran's confrontational THE PRESCRIPTION, all in the "Smells Like Teen Spirit" shorts program. Also of interest are the shorts programs "Forsaken Communities: The Untold Chinese Diaspora" and "Sound and Fury: Recording Bay Area Activism." "Forsaken Communities," unearthing the forgotten histories of Chinese immigrants, includes David Yip's look at Chinese Britons, CHINESE WHISPERS; Luciana Kaplan's gander at Chinese Mexicans who live south-of-the-border, CHINESE STORIES; and the United States premiere of Erik Paulsson's inspection of a horrific episode in Canadian history, ISLAND OF SHADOWS: D'ARCY ISLAND LEPER COLONY, 1891-1924. "Sound and Fury: Recording Bay Area Activism," a special look at past Asian American political movements, includes Cervando David Martinez' THE FROG IN THE WELL, a documentary about Hong Kong immigrant Hoh-Kun Yuen who generated a massive collection of audio recordings of Bay Area protests. International feature offerings include Taiwanese filmmaker Vivian Chang's omnibus of tales about women HIDDEN WHISPER, a lyrical story that cycles through life's many moments and features Hsiao Shu-Shen, Shu Qi and Elaine Jin; and Wai Ka Fai and Johnnie To's hospital-drama satire HELP!!!, a genre spoof that races along at the velocity of a speeding ambulance and stars Ekin Cheung, Jordan Chan and Hui Siu Hung. DIRECTIONS IN SOUND: NOTES FROM THE ASIAN AMERICAN UNDERGROUND, a hugely popular offering at last year's Festival, returns with rarely seen Asian American music videos and captivating live musical performances. DIRECTIONS, March 10 at Justice League, gets started when Chinese American DJ O-Dub cuts it up with classic vinyl funk and hip-hop. The music comes to life with live performances from local acts and mixes with screenings of Sue Chen's video for J Church's song "Imaginary Friends" and Monkmus' video for Kid Koala's "Fender Bender" as well as other favorites and rare clips. Last year's Festival was host to more than 100 filmmakers, industry, and special guests from Korea, Philippines, Thailand, Hong Kong and around the globe. With more than 25 programs selling out, over 15,000 filmgoers attended the 18th annual San Francisco International Asian American Film Festival. The San Francisco International Asian American Film Festival is produced and presented by NAATA (National Asian American Telecommunications Association). Founded in 1980, NAATA's mission is to present stories that convey the richness and diversity of the Asian Pacific American experience. NAATA does this by funding, producing, distributing, and exhibiting films, videos, and new media to the broadest audience possible. The 2001 SFIAAFF's Premier Sponsors include Chevron, California State Automobile Association, Wells Fargo Bank, AsianAvenue.com, and the Commodore Hotel. Executive Sponsors include BayArea.com. Media Sponsors include KRON TV, Bay TV, KQED TV, KTSF TV, San Francisco Bay Guardian, The Mercury News, Asian Week, and YOLK Magazine.
For more information about NAATA, please visit
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