Hey, film fans. We're just days away from the start of Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival. If you're in Southern California, and planning on checking out some programs, I invite you to join me for the Angry Asian Film Club. It's kind of like a book club, but with films.
Good readers, I've chosen a handful films that you and I can go watch together. Some I've seen, some I haven't. But I want to use the opportunity to create a little social gathering out of the festival and our shared enthusiasm for Asian American cinema. Let's all go to the movies!
At each screening, I'll be introducing the film and moderating the cast/crew Q&As, and afterwards we can have a discussion. Maybe even grab a drink or something. Here are the LAAPFF / Angry Asian Film Club selections:
Valley of SaintsDirected by Musa Syeed
Friday, May 11 | 7:30
Directors Guild of America
"The Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival is honored to present the Los Angeles premiere of director Musa Syeed's Sundance Film Festival multi-winner VALLEY OF SAINTS as its International Centerpiece Gala."
Hang LooseDirected by Ryan Kawamoto
Saturday, May 12 | 3:00pm
Directors Guild of America
"After a string of elegant, carefully-observed short subjects beginning with PAPER CRANES, who would have thought that veteran Film Festival artist Ryan Kawamoto's debut feature-length narrative would be a cinematic amalgam crossing WEEKEND AT BERNIE'S and THE HANGOVER?"
Yes, We're OpenDirected by Richard Wong
Saturday, May 12 | 9:00pm
Directors Guild of America
"Shot in just 16 days, YES, WE'RE OPEN is a delightful comedy daring to raise those existential questions that haunt us every day and that we tend to dismiss so easily. The dream team of director Richard Wong and writer H.P. Mendoza line up again for another unforgettable movie."
Where You Least Expect Us(Shorts Program)
Monday, May 14 | 7:00pm
CGV Cinemas
Whether it be the mean streets of L.A., New York Chinatown, Hong Kong, or even Orange County, compelling stories have a way of emerging in the least likely places. A patch of grass, a town square, a best friend’s apartment, or a Chinese restaurant is the place to go if spending time with us is what you're looking for.
Nice Girls CrewDirected by Tanuj Chopra
Tuesday, May 15 | 7:00pm
CGV Cinemas
Sophie (Lynn Chen), Leena (Sheetal Sheth), and Geraldine (Michelle Krusiec) have been true "frenemies" since elementary school. All grown up and still nuts in their own way, they form a book club, yet whenever they meet, they actually never really talk about the book."
In the FamilyDirected by Patrick Wang
Saturday, May 19 | 6:00pm
Art Theatre of Long Beach
"Patrick Wang's IN THE FAMILY is a film not easily to be labeled. Written, directed, produced, and co-starred by Wang himself, it might be the filmmaker's background in theater and his newness to the field that makes his almost three hour long debut so refreshingly exciting, but also astonishingly peaceful."
The Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival runs May 10-20 at venues in West Hollywood, Koreatown and Long Beach. For further details, including the full schedule of screenings and events, and ticket information, head over to the festival website here.
