the imaginasian center opens in los angeles

After several years of plans and announcements, next week, Asian American multi-media entertainment company ImaginAsian Entertainment expands its empire, unveiling a new theater, "The ImaginAsian Center," in Los Angeles. Formerly the historic Linda Lea Theater, the new theater will be the only film center in downtown Los Angeles dedicated to first-run Asian and Asian American films, opening on December 7 with the acclaimed Japanese action/adventure film Midnight Eagle. Read ImaginAsian's press release here (PDF).

Located at 251 South Main Street, The ImaginAsian Center has been home to a number of historic theaters, including the Arrow, the Aztec and most recently the Linda Lea, which was a Japanese-language film theater. The theater has been redesigned and renovated, offering an auditorium with 250 stadium style seating, including a 16 seat VIP section, a VIP Lounge for special events, and a working stage. The Center will host feature films, screenings, live performances, special events, and satellite-fed events and exhibitions, using state of the art sound and projection equipment. Here's the Center's website.

To kick things off, they're throwing a "star-studded" gathering this Saturday, hosted by Carrie Ann Inaba and Michelle Krusiec. Whooo. Another theater just for us! Hopefully, this will be the start of something great for Southern California's Asian American film community.