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Thread: Asian Film Festivals and Awards

  1. #16
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    I hear ya, Lucas

    Same problem with WAR. And I personally thought that was worse than RH3. Perhaps it's an Asian thing. Gotta tip the hat to J&J...

    Is whitey as derogatory as jap?
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  2. #17
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    Nah.

    I'm not Japanese, but "Jap" offends even me.


    whitey is just funny imo. i suppose a white person could get all puffed up and pretend they would be offended, but the truth is, its just funny.

  3. #18
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    Sfiff

    It's delightful to see four martial arts films at SFIFF this year. Here's the picks.

    Black Belt
    At last, a thinking person’s martial arts movie. Or, in other words, a well acted, deliberately nuanced drama about the moral dilemma of a young man forced to choose between his principles and his obligation to defend the helpless. Plus a few broken heads. Trouble develops in Japan’s late Showa dynasty (1932), in the wake of that country’s invasion of Manchuria, when a company of kempeitai military police arrogantly disrupts the karate studies of three young men—Taikan (Tatsuya Naka), Giryu (Akihito Yagi) and Choei (Yuji Suzuki)—at the rural dojo of their wise old master (Shinya Ohwada). Convinced that the students’ skills can help in battle, the army wants to conscript them into service as fight instructors. Screenwriter George Iida and veteran independent filmmaker Shunichi Nagasaki (Dogs, A Tender Place) are obviously skeptical about Japanese militarism in the first place, but leave it to bashful Giryu to set things straight when the hideous army commander widens the scope of his depredations beyond able-bodied fighting men to include innocent local villagers. The fact that actual karate masters portray the three main characters guarantees that when justice prevails it looks like it actually hurts. No wires, no stunts, no elaborate sound effects. The no-frills fisticuffs are quick and brutal. Stunt coordinator Fuyuhiko Nishi’s authentic fight choreography is matched by cinematographer Masato Kaneko’s dazzling establishing shots of the lush greenery of Kyushu. The film’s true subject, though, is the moral calculus of violence, and when, if ever, it should be used.
    Mongol
    Sergei Bodrov’s historical epic about the pivotal early years of Genghis Khan measures the human qualities against the legend, coming to a provocative conclusion. Namely, you don’t marshal disparate tribes and conquer more land than any warrior before or since by being a brute, but rather by being a visionary and, to some degree, a mensch. Therein lies a tale arrestingly filmed on Mongolian steppes as barren and forbidding today as they were in the 12th century. Part one of a proposed trilogy, Mongol has all the pleasures of the genre (including the guilty ones, like artful spatter). Tadanobu Asano, the popular Japanese actor (Zatoichi; Last Life in the Universe), plays Temudgin (as he was known before assuming the title “khan,” or tribal leader) in a spirit of indomitable, pensive forbearance. The nonprofessional actress Khulan Chuluun, comfortable in the role of a strong-willed thinker, plays his wife, Borte—guileless when it comes to love, crafty when it comes to survival. Other local non-actors people the film. Bodrov has considerable experience directing young people—Freedom Is Paradise and I Wanted to See Angels (SFIFF 1990 and 1993, respectively)—and the scenes in which his principal characters are children remain in many ways the most absorbing. Hunted by traitors following the death of his father, the boy Temudgin is spared a similar fate only by the law of tradition: Mongols do not kill children. Later on as an adult, and fair game, he will impress enemy soldiers with simple principles of his own on the path to becoming khan of all the Mongols. But you saw that coming.
    Redbelt (our thread)
    David Mamet enlivens the real-life Fight Club of UFC and MMA (mixed martial arts) with his trademark con games, plot twists and male camaraderie (and competition) in his newest mind-bender, a crowd-pleasing action movie that he describes as a samurai film in the tradition of Akira Kurosawa. In the semi-seedy, macho realm of the West L.A. fight scene, bouncers, cops, ex-cons and ex-Marines grapple to get their piece of the American dream. Some do it honorably, others less so. Mike Terry (Chiwetel Ejiofor, Dirty Pretty Things) leads an honorable life as a jiu-jitsu trainer; able to kill if necessary, he chooses to teach, train and live peacefully with his wife Sondra (Alice Braga). A modern-day samurai who has given up battle, Mike soon finds himself in a whole new world when he meets Hollywood superstar Chet Frank (Tim Allen) and the scene’s sleazy promoters, powerbrokers and hangers-on. Forced to reenter the ring, Mike must decide when to fight, and for what. This territory is all Mamet’s: profanity-slinging men fighting, with words or fists, for control, advantage or merely to survive. (Mamet is also a jiu-jitsu practitioner himself and a self-confessed UFC addict.) House of Games with gloves off and feet flying, Redbelt also features UFC/MMA stars Randy Couture and Enson Inoue, along with Mamet regulars Joe Mantegna and Ricky Jay. The con is indeed on, but so is the fight.
    The Warlords (our thread)
    With a cast of thousands, spectacular battle scenes, Shakespearean-style rumination on the corrupting influence of power and a story of love and loyalty played with dramatic intensity and martial arts fury, The Warlords reigns as the Asian super-production for the new millenium. All revolves around the tragic fate of General Pang (Jet Li), whose noble intention to bring peace and stability to late 19th century Qing Dynasty China turns into vaunted ambition for personal power and glory. Pang is joined by two bandits who become his sworn blood brothers. Zhao (Andy Lau) and Jiang (Takeshi Kaneshiro) help Pang’s rise to power, carrying out impossible campaigns for the Qing court, defeating Taiping rebels and conquering cities. Along the way, Pang becomes attracted to Zhao’s wife (Xu Jinglei) and massacres prisoners whom Zhao had promised to protect. The brotherhood collapses in a spiral of betrayal and death. Jet Li delivers an impressive performance as the flawed hero who ignores his conscience in a blind drive for worldly success. Lau and Kaneshiro, major stars in their own right, hold their own admirably in the action sequences and emotional life of this historical drama. As in Perhaps Love, director Peter Chan establishes both the style and the rhythm of the film with masterful visuals. His camera sweeps and swoops over a panorama of action, moving in tight on the dilemmas of love and duty. And the political import of the Qing aristocracy’s disdain for the General, even as he does their dirty work, resonates long after the fighting is over.
    Gene Ching
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  4. #19
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    Wow - it's been a year already since I started this thread

    Check out the sequel to the inspiration to this thread - 2008 San Diego Asian Film Festival: Break Out the Hersheys in Southern California by Dr. Craig Reid
    Gene Ching
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  5. #20
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    I'm really looking forward to seeing Black Belt. I think it's coming out before too long on DVD, perhaps released by Tokyo Shock(?).

  6. #21
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    Afa

    Go Jeeja! Go Deepika!

    The Good, The Bad, The Weird tops nominations for Asian Film Awards
    Jean Noh in Seoul 21 Jan 2009 17:46

    The Good, The Bad, The Weird - Kim Jee-woon's rollicking Oriental Western, took eight nominations in total, including those for best film, director, and cinematographer. Song Kang-ho picked up a nod for best actor, while Jung Woo-sung and Lee Byung-hun both got nominated in the best supporting actor category.

    Other nominees in the best film category are Chen Kaige's Mei Lanfang biopic Forever Enthralled, Hayao Miyazaki's animation Ponyo On The Cliff By The Sea, Riri Riza's school drama The Rainbow Troops, John Woo's historical action film Red Cliff, and Kiyoshi Kurosawa's family drama Tokyo Sonata.

    Choosing the winners from the nominations will be a 13-person jury presided over by actress Michelle Yeoh. Other jury members include Christian Jeune from the Cannes film festival; Kenji Ishizaka from the Tokyo film festival; Christophe Terhechte from the Berlinale; Noah Cowan from the Toronto film festival; and Park Ki-yong, filmmaker and head of the Korean Academy of Film Arts (KAFA).

    The awards presentation ceremony will be held March 23 at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre, as the Opening Gala of the Entertainment Expo Hong Kong.

    The 33rd Hong Kong International Film Festival (HKIFF) and the 7th Hong Kong – Asia Film Financing Forum (HAF) also start March 23.

    Full list of Asian Film Awards nominations

    Best Film
    Forever Enthralled (Mainland China)
    The Good, The Bad , The Weird (South Korea)
    Ponyo On The Cliff By The Sea (Japan)
    The Rainbow Troops (Indonesia)
    Red Cliff (Mainland China)
    Tokyo Sonata (Japan / The Netherlands / Hong Kong)

    Best Director
    Feng Xiao-gang - If You Are The One (Mainland China)
    Kim Jee-woon - The Good, The Bad, The Weird (South Korea)
    Koreeda Hirokazu - Still Walking (Japan)
    Brillante Mendoza – Service (The Philippines)
    Miyazaki Hayao / Frank Marshall - Ponyo On The Cliff By The Sea (Japan)
    John Woo - Red Cliff (Mainland China)

    Best Actor
    Ge You - If You Are The One (Chinese)
    Ha Jung-woo - The Chaser (South Korea)
    Akshay Kumar - Singh Is Kinng (India)
    Matsuyama Kenichi - Detroit Metal City (Japan)
    Motoki Masahiro – Departures (Japan)
    Song Kang-ho - The Good, The Bad, The Weird (South Korea)

    Best Actress
    Fukatsu Eri - The Magic Hour (Japan)
    Jiang Wenli - And The Spring Comes (Mainland China)
    Deepika Padukone - Chandni Chowk To China (India)
    Yoshinaga Sayuri - Kabei - Our Mother (Japan)
    Zhou Wei - Painted Skin (Mainland China / Hong Kong)
    Zhou Xun - The Equation Of Love And Death (Mainland China)

    Best Newcomer
    Matsuda Shota - Boys Over Flowers: The Movie (Japan)
    Sandrine Pinna - Miao Miao (Taiwan / Hong Kong)
    So Ji-sub - Rough Cut (South Korea)
    Xu Jiao - CJ7 (Hong Kong)
    JeeJa Yanin – Chocolate (Thailand)
    Yu Shaoqun - Forever Enthralled (Mainland China)

    Best Supporting Actor
    Nick Cheung - Beast Stalker (Hong Kong)
    Jung Woo-sung - The Good, The Bad, The Weird (South Korea)
    Lee Byung-hun - The Good, The Bad, The Weird (South Korea)
    Tsutsumi Shinichi - Suspect X (Japan)
    Wang Xueqi - Forever Enthralled (Mainland China)

    Best Supporting Actress
    Aoi Yu - Sex Is No Laughing Matter (Japan)
    Jaclyn JOSE – Service (The Philippines)
    KIKI Kirin - Still Walking (Japan)
    KIM Ji-yeong - Forever The Moment (South Korea)
    Gina PARENO – Service (The Philippines)

    Best Screenwriter
    NA Hong-jin - The Chaser (South Korea)
    LI Qiang - And The Spring Comes (Mainland China)
    Tom Lin / Henry Tsai - Winds Of September (Taiwan / Hong Kong)
    Kurosawa Kiyoshi / Max Mannix / Tanaka Sachiko - Tokyo Sonata (Japan / The Netherlands / Hong Kong)
    Mitani Koki - The Magic Hour (Japan)

    Best Cinematographer
    Ato Shoichi - Paco And The Magical Book (Japan)
    Cheng Siu-keung – Sparrow (Hong Kong)
    Lee Mo-gae - The Good, The Bad, The Weird (South Korea)
    Jola Dylewska – Tulpan (Germany / Kazakhstan / Poland / Russia / Switzerland)
    Wang Yu / Nelson Lik-wai Yu - 24 City (Mainland China)
    Waluyo ICHWANDIARDONO - The Rainbow Troops (Indonesia)
    KIM Sun-min - The Chaser (South Korea)

    Best Visual Effects
    Craig Hayes - Red Cliff (Mainland China)
    KIM Wook - The Good, The Bad, The Weird (South Korea)
    Yanagawase Masahide - Paco And The Magical Book (Japan)
    Gene Ching
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  7. #22
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    Sfiaaff

    Launch Party is tomorrow.

    Fasten Your Seatbelts! Official Festival Launch Party Takes off Friday, February 13, 2009

    Posted February 10, 2009 by menriquez in SFIAAFF 2009, Event, Featured

    launchparty2.jpg

    27TH SFIAAFF 2009 OFFICIAL LAUNCH PARTY
    Be the first on your block to pick up the Festival program guide hot off the
    press, meet local filmmakers, and mix and mingle with fellow festival goers!

    Friday, February 13, 2009 | 9pm *- 2am
    111 Minna Gallery, 111 Minna Street, San Francisco
    $5 | Free Admission for CAAM Members, 21+
    For ticket info, visit www.asianamericanmedia.org

    Featuring the sounds of:
    Robot Hustle (Honey Soundsystem) - Cosmic Disco
    DJ VNA (Good Life) - Old School Hip-Hop + R&B
    Eug (Public Release) - Italo Disco + Electro
    Shred One (Brooklyn Circus/LA/SF) - Funky Soul + Dance Classics

    SAVE THE DATE! March 12-22, 2009
    27th San Francisco International Asian American Film Festival
    Program announced on February 10, 2009 @ www.asianamericanmedia.org
    Gene Ching
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  8. #23
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    Hkiff 2009

    So much focus on Shinjuku Incident...
    Hong Kong Int'l Film Festival to Open in March
    2009-02-27 10:49:14 Xinhua

    The 33rd Hong Kong International Film Festival (HKIFF) is to be held from March 22 to April 13,the organizer announced Thursday.

    Hong Kong International Film Festival Society (HKIFFS) said at a press conference on Thursday that that "Shinjuku Incident", starring famous actor Jackie Chan and directed by Derek Yee Tung- shing, and "Night and Fog", from acclaimed Director Ann Hui, will open the 33rd Hong Kong International Film Festival. The World premiere of both films will take place on March 22, 2009 at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Center.

    Some 300 films from over 50 countries will be screened at the 33rd Hong Kong International Film Festival, including 20 world premieres and 30 Asian premieres.

    "We have launched a number of new initiatives at this year's HKIFF. The launch of our new brand is aimed at positioning the Festival within the global film calendar, as well as highlighting our mission to discover and introduce new creative film talent to the world. In this way, we hope to form a stronger bond with a new generation of viewers," said HKIFFS Chairman Wilfred Wong.

    "In this time of global financial crisis, the role of the Festival is more important than ever. Films have the ability to inspire, uplift and bring hope to people, allowing us to believe again in our lives," Wong added.

    The HKIFFS also unveiled a new key art icon for the 33rd HKIFF, featuring the mascot 'BAUFA', which means exploding fireworks, set against a background of blue skies and white clouds. The symbolism of the key art aims to deliver on the festival's promise of hope and fantasy, and to engage future generations in the art and creativity of film.

    "Shinjuku Incident" Director Derek Yee and cast members Jackie Chan, Daniel Wu, Xu Jinglei, Fan Bingbing and Chin Kar-lok; and "Night and Fog" Director Ann Hui, cast Simon Yam and Zhang Jingchu attended the press conference in support of the festival.

    "Shinjuku Incident" is a harrowing portrayal of the lives of illegal Chinese immigrants in the dark underbelly of Tokyo's gangland. The film is a departure for Jackie Chan, marking a darker dramatic role for the action star.

    Directed by acclaimed New Wave helmer Ann Hui, "Night and Fog" is an intimate exploration of domestic violence in Hong Kong. The film stars celebrated character actor Simon Yam, and co-stars actress Zhang Jingchu in a career-defining role.

    The Hong Kong International Film Festival is one of Asia's most reputable platforms for filmmakers, film professionals and filmgoers from all over the world to launch new works and experience the latest outstanding cinema projects.
    Gene Ching
    Publisher www.KungFuMagazine.com
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  9. #24
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    Hiff

    Nice line up in HI. I've been hearing a lot of buzz on Ghaniji, Yamagata Scream and Tokyo Sonata.
    HIFF greets spring with diverse global lineup
    One locally made short, a Japanese horror-comedy and a documentary about Burma have since been added to the Spring Showcase schedule
    By Star-Bulletin staff
    POSTED: 01:30 a.m. HST, Apr 03, 2009

    A particularly strong lineup of films from all over the world will be featured at this year's Hawaii International Film Festival Spring Showcase, always the appetizer leading up to the festival's main course. (Its larger fall event is coming up in mid-October.)

    HAWAII INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL 12th ANNUAL SPRING SHOWCASE
    Place: Regal Dole Cannery multiplex
    Time: Friday through April 9
    Tickets: $10 and $9 military, students and seniors
    Call: 550-8457 or visit www.hiff.org

    Since the print schedule's release, there have been changes in the lineup. The critically acclaimed Italian Mafia feature "Gomorrah" is out and three films have been added: the locally made short "Ma'ili Land: Stories of Hope"; the Japanese horror-comedy "Yamagata Scream"; and "Burma VJ," a documentary about a brave group of video reporters who risk their lives to expose the repressive dictatorship ruling their country.

    Burma became international headline news in 2007 when Buddhist monks led a massive rebellion against the government. The peaceful religious order is also the subject of a remarkable and moving documentary in the lineup, "Unmistaken Child." It's a quietly told yet riveting story of a disciple's search through the rugged terrain of Tibet for the reincarnation of his master in a village infant. How the disciple finds the old soul in a little boy after a four-year search, and the bond he forms with his little "master," takes on an immensely spiritual tone. Effectively capturing the essence of Tibet in its landscape, people and culture, "Unmistaken Child" could turn out to be one of the hits of the showcase.

    The schedule:

    » "20th Century Boys Part I" (Japan/6:30 p.m. Monday and 3 p.m. Tuesday) and Part II (6:15 p.m. Tuesday and 3 p.m. Wednesday): See review.

    » "Birdwatchers" (Italy/Brazil/8:45 p.m. Sunday): A drama about a group of indigenous natives who decide to leave their restricted reservation in Brazil and return to the land of their forefathers -- now occupied by wealthy plantation owners who allow bird-watching tourists on "their" property.

    » "Burma VJ" (Denmark/9:15 p.m. Tuesday): See article intro.

    » "Evangelion 1.0: You Are (Not) Alone" (Japan/3 p.m. Sunday): The first of four planned animated features, it retells roughly the first six episodes of the influential apocalyptic mecha TV series "Neon Genesis Evangelion."

    » "Food Inc." (U.S./6:15 p.m. Friday and noon Saturday): How much do we really know about the food we buy at our local supermarkets? The documentary lifts the veil on our country's food industry, exposing the highly mechanized underbelly that's been hidden from the consumer with the consent of the government's regulatory agencies.

    » "Ghajini" (India/6:30 p.m. Friday and 6 p.m. April 9): India's highest-grossing movie of all time, this 2008 Bollywood film was inspired by the hit "Memento." A businessman loses his short-term memory following a violent encounter that results in his girlfriend's death. He tries to avenge her killing with the aid of Polaroid photos and tattoos on his body. (The film features six songs by the prolific A.R. Rahman, who became familiar to U.S. audiences for his score for the multiple Oscar-winning "Slumdog Millionaire.")

    » "Gu-Gu the Cat" (Japan/3:15 p.m. Saturday and 8:45 p.m. April 9): A manga artist is devastated by the death of her cat, which kept her company for more than 15 years. She can no longer concentrate on her work -- that is, until a new kitten enters the lives of both the artist and her assistants.

    » "Ichi" (Japan/8:30 p.m. Friday and 3:15 p.m. Monday): A reimagining of the popular Zatoichi story, with Haruka Ayase starring as a blind woman who roams from town to town with her shamisen. When a village becomes hostage to two opposing clans, she reveals her deadly swordsplay to help protect the innocent villagers.

    » "Luck By Chance" (India/12:15 p.m. Sunday and 6:30 p.m. Wednesday): A satirical but affectionate tale of the Bollywood film industry, as a fresh-faced actor from New Delhi and his girlfriend -- still waiting for her own big break despite living in Mumbai for a few years -- try to become movie stars in a world of heated ego battles and jealousies.

    » "Ma'ili Land: Stories of Hope" (Hawaii/11 a.m. Saturday): As originally reported by our local film/TV columnist Katherine Nichols, Big Brothers Big Sisters of Honolulu will sponsor this screening of three shorts directed and produced by 10 youngsters who live at the Leeward transitional housing land project. One of the featured shorts, "Friendship," is about a once-homeless boy struggling with his peers after moving into transitional housing. (Admission $5, and a Q&A session will follow the screening.)

    » "Marine Boy" (South Korea/6:15 p.m. Wednesday and 3 p.m. April 9): A former swimming athlete, desperately in debt, decides to become a drug mule by swimming waters between Korea and Japan. Along the way, he meets a mysterious beauty who has been tracking him. The two of them then plot to swindle the swimmer's moneylender and take the drug money for themselves.

    » "Night and Day" (South Korea/France/6 p.m. Tuesday and 3:15 p.m. Wednesday): A painter lives in exile in Paris, on the lam after getting caught smoking pot with some American tourists back in Seoul. Not speaking a word of French, the painter joins a floating group of Korean ex-pats and exchange students. When he meets an art student and her roommate, could there be love in the air for the 40ish, married artist -- or is it just Paris?

    » "Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi" (India/6:15 p.m. Saturday and 3 p.m. Monday): Translating its Hindi title, "A Match Made in Heaven" is a romantic comedy about a mild-mannered office worker who transforms himself into a suave and dashing dancer in order to win the love of a beautiful and vivacious woman.

    » "The Sky Crawlers" (Japan/6 p.m. Sunday and 9 p.m. Wednesday): An animated adaptation of a popular manga series of books set in an alternate history, following the journeys and tribulations of a group of young fighter pilots.

    » "The Song of Sparrows" (Iran/12:15 p.m. Saturday): From acclaimed director Majid Majidi, it's the story of a simple man who loses his job at an ostrich farm and then travels to Tehran, where he starts his new job of moving people and goods through heavy traffic on his motorcycle. But the job starts to transform his inherently generous and honest nature for the worse, much to the distress of his wife and daughters.

    » "Summer Hours" (France/6:15 p.m. Monday and 3:15 p.m. Tuesday): Olivier Assayas' latest film is a bittersweet elegy about love and memory and the ways in which we hold them. Three adult siblings who have grown apart reunite at their late mother's home to decide what to do with the family house, filled with artwork from their grandfather, a celebrated artist whose legacy hangs over the family.

    » "Tokyo Sonata" (Japan/6 p.m. Saturday and noon Sunday): See review.

    » "Treeless Mountain" (South Korea/3:15 and 6:15 p.m. April 9): With cinematography by the University of Hawaii's Academy for Creative Media assistant professor Anne Misawa, the film tells the dreamlike story of a 6-year-old girl and her younger sister coping with loss when their single mother leaves them with a diffident aunt.

    » "Unmistaken Child" (Israel/3 p.m. Saturday and 3:30 p.m. Sunday): See article intro.

    » "Wushu: The Young Generation" (China/8:45 p.m. Saturday and 9:15 p.m. Tuesday): Co-produced by Jackie Chan and starring his friend and fellow martial arts icon Sammo Hung, the movie follows the lives of a group of friends who go to an elite, small-town martial arts school where the father of two of them is played by Hung. As the group reaches their graduation year, and with the provincial team selection looming for the championships, their friendship is tested and they are forced to face the ills of the outside world in the form of child kidnappings and illegal fight matches.

    » "Yamagata Scream" (Japan/9:15 p.m. Sunday): See review.
    Gene Ching
    Publisher www.KungFuMagazine.com
    Author of Shaolin Trips
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  10. #25
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    Siff 2009

    The 12TH SHANGHAI INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL is 6/13-21. Couldn't find a film listing, but then I didn't look that hard...
    Gene Ching
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  11. #26
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    More on SIFF

    2000 films?!? No wonder I couldn't find a listing...
    Shanghai International Film Festival Kicks Off
    2009-06-13 17:56:11 CRIENGLISH.com Web Editor: Ma Ting

    Cinema lovers in China will celebrate their own festival this month with hundreds of celebrities from home and abroad, as the Shanghai International Film Festival kicked off Saturday night.

    CRI reporter Shuang Feng takes you for an up and close encounter with one of the world's most vibrating film fetivals.

    Reporter:

    "-Hi, I'm Halle Berry.

    -Nihao, I'm Danny Boyle, director of "Slumdog Millionaire."

    -Hi, this is Annie MacDowell. This time I'm going to be on the jury, so I'm really looking forward to that."

    What brought these most-sought-after celebrities together is not the Berlin or Cannes film festivals, but the Shanghai International Film Festival, or SIFF. Starting from Saturday, Chinese filmgoers will be treated to the most lavish cinematic feast of the year.

    Tang Lijun, the festival's spokesperson, talks about the highlights.

    "What's highly anticipated is that audiences will be able to watch those fantastic movies from 79 countries and regions around the world. The star-studded cast on the red carpet is another highlight. There will be about 300 stars taking part, including Halle Berry, Quincy Jones and Zhang Ziyi."

    Since its inception 15 years ago, the Shanghai International Film Festival has become one of the fastest growing cinematic events in the world. Each year, the festival draws a growing number of international filmmakers and investors looking to enter the Chinese film market.

    Oscar-winning director Danny Boyle is chairman of the jury at this year's film festival.

    "It certainly becomes an incredible place to launch a film, because you can start a film here and release it throughout the nation and throughout Asia. And also you hear about the provision of digital cinema in China. It's groundbreaking, and that's the future."
    The week-long festival would include Film Competitions, Film Forums, among others.

    As the most eye-catching part of this film festival, the competition section of the festival will cover nearly 2,000 films from all over the world.

    The film "Wheat," the latest production by Chinese director He Ping, has premiered as the opening film to this year's event. Insiders regard it as one of the most anticipated films of the year.

    The event lasts until next Sunday.
    "Wheat" Grows out of Golf Course
    2009-06-13 16:29:21 CRIENGLISH.com Web Editor: Ma Ting

    "Wheat" director He Ping found a large part of the film's cast on golf courses.

    The lead actors and actresses of the historical drama attended a press conference in Shanghai on Friday before the film premieres and opens the 12th Shanghai International Film Festival on June 13.

    Veteran actors Wang Zhiwen, Wang Xueqi and Wang Ji told media that all of them became acquainted with the director through playing golf with him.

    The film also features Fan Bingbig and Huang Jue.

    The historical drama tells a story about the women left behind when their men have gone off to war -- and the lies they are told by two runaway soldiers to keep them from knowing the awful truth.
    Gene Ching
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  12. #27
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    gene i just heard from a friend in korea that THIRST wasnt that good or popular in korea.
    Quote Originally Posted by Psycho Mantis View Post
    Genes too busy rocking the gang and scarfing down bags of cheetos while beating it to nacho ninjettes and laughing at the ridiculous posts on the kfforum. In a horse stance of course.

  13. #28
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    Guess Dallas' Asian Film Festival is not large enough to get coverage.
    http://2009.affd.org/
    My friend Julie actually sang harmony for their trailer music.
    Master of Shaolin I-Ching Bu Ti, GunGoPow and I Hung Wei Lo styles.

    I am seeking sparring partner. Any level. Looking for blondes or redhead. 5'2" to 5'9". Between 115-135 weight class. Females between 17-30 only need apply. Will extensively work on grappling.

  14. #29
    Join Date
    Jan 1970
    Location
    Fremont, CA, U.S.A.
    Posts
    47,947

    That's on you, xcakid.

    I thought CA sent you to TX to cover these sorts of things.

    Nice to see Ip Man took the Audience Award Winner. Maybe there's hope for TX after all.
    Gene Ching
    Publisher www.KungFuMagazine.com
    Author of Shaolin Trips
    Support our forum by getting your gear at MartialArtSmart

  15. #30
    Join Date
    Jan 2007
    Location
    Texas
    Posts
    1,349
    Quote Originally Posted by GeneChing View Post
    I thought CA sent you to TX to cover these sorts of things.

    Nice to see Ip Man took the Audience Award Winner. Maybe there's hope for TX after all.

    I tried covering it, but the women were too distracting.

    They had to dubbed in a few "ya'll's" in the dialogue to make Ip Man palatable here in TX. But it worked out well in the end.
    Master of Shaolin I-Ching Bu Ti, GunGoPow and I Hung Wei Lo styles.

    I am seeking sparring partner. Any level. Looking for blondes or redhead. 5'2" to 5'9". Between 115-135 weight class. Females between 17-30 only need apply. Will extensively work on grappling.

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