Hey, film fans. The 31st annual Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival kicks off this week. Who's in? This website is a proud sponsor of the festival, and I want to give you some free tickets. Scroll down for details...
Presented by Visual Communications, the nation's premier Asian Pacific American media arts center, LAAPFF will be presented April 23-30, 2015 at the Aratani Theatre, Tateuchi Democracy Forum at JANM, Downtown Independent, CGV Cinemas, and the Directors Guild of America. A key highlight leading up to annual Asian Pacific Heritage Month activities, the festival program boasts 134 films from over 20 countries.
I'm giving away tickets to the Opening Night presentation of Wong Fu Productions' Everything Before Us, the Festival Centerpiece presentation of the comedy Ktown Cowboys, the West Coast premiere of the feature documentary Twinsters, and the Japanese baseball drama The Vancouver Asahi. The details:
THURSDAY, APR 23 | 7 PM | ARATANI THEATRE
EVERYTHING BEFORE US
(United States, 2015) Dirs.: Wesley Chan, Ted Fu, Philip Wang
EVERYTHING BEFORE US observes the romantic challenges confronting two couples. High schoolers Seth (Brandon Soo Hoo) and Haley (Victoria Park) are a happy, loving couple, but can their love sustain them through a long-distance relationship? Meanwhile, twenty-something professionals Ben (Aaron Yoo) and Sara (Brittany Ishibashi) are already a former couple who would want nothing more to do with each other. The relationship activities of both couples are documented and monitored by the Department of Emotional Integrity (DEI), a DMV-styled agency that issues a relationship score to keep individuals accountable for their relationship activity and choices. The score is public for all to see, and affects various aspects of their daily life. Can our two couples conduct their lives in accordance with the DEI? Or will the restrictive nature of the agency undermine all they aspire to?
SATURDAY, APR 25 | 8 PM | ARATANI THEATRE
KTOWN COWBOYS
(United States, 2015) Dir.: Daniel Park
Director Daniel Park's award-winning web series, KTOWN COWBOYS is now a full-length feature that re-introduces viewers to the young men who troll the bars and cafés of Los Angeles' Koreatown: Jason (Shane Yoon), and his cohorts Sunny (Sunn Wee), Peter (Peter Jae), Danny (Danny Cho), and Robby (Bobby Choy) -- a motley crew of drinking buddies. This time, Jason is in hot water: the family company to which he has been entrusted teeters on the brink of insolvency as a result of an embezzlement scandal. Banding together to help Jason out, the friends hatch an improbable scheme to put Jason's company back on financial footing. As their individual struggles come to light, and through late nights at seedy after-hours soju bars, partying with karaoke drinking girls and even a stint in jail, each "K-Town Cowboy" emerges as a better version of himself. And as for Jason's company? Well...
SATURDAY, APR 25 | 5 PM | ARATANI THEATRE
TWINSTERS
(United States, 2015) | Dir: Samantha Futerman, Ryan Miyamoto
Twinsters is the real-life story of actress Samantha Futerman and budding fashion designer Anaïs Bordier -- twin sisters separated at birth, raised on different continents, and re-connected decades later through Facebook. The film explores the idea of family, adoption, nature vs, nurture, and the power of social media, ultimately redefining conventional definitions of "family."
SATURDAY, APR 25 | 2 PM | ARATANI THEATRE
THE VANCOUVER ASAHI
(Japan, 2014) | Dir. Yuya Ishii
In pre-WWII Vancouver, second-generation Japanese immigrants had it tough. Every day, they faced discrimination, hatred, and injustice at the hands of their Caucasian counterparts. But one thing made their lives worth living: baseball. They may be the underdogs, but the Vancouver Asahi baseball team has a sense of fair play and smart tactics that set them apart from the brute force of their opponents. Under the guidance of new team captain Reggie Kasahara, can they rise above all the negativity to win the tournament?
To enter for your chance to win some tickets, here's what you have to do:
Step 1: Follow @angryasianman on Twitter.
Step 2: Tweet this message, according to the film you'd like tickets for:
Hey, @angryasianman! I want to win tickets to see 'Everything Before Us' at #LAAPFF! http://bit.ly/aam-laapff2015
Hey, @angryasianman! I want to win tickets to see 'Ktown Cowboys' at #LAAPFF! http://bit.ly/aam-laapff2015
Hey, @angryasianman! I want to win tickets to see 'Twinsters' at #LAAPFF! http://bit.ly/aam-laapff2015
Hey, @angryasianman! I want to win tickets to see 'The Vancouver Asahi' at #LAAPFF! http://bit.ly/aam-laapff2015
Step 3: I'll throw all the entries in a hat and pick random winners, who will each receive a pair (2) of tickets to one of the LAAPFF screenings above.
You may enter the giveaway for each of the four films. Please, only one entry per film per person/Twitter account. Cheaters will be publicly shamed. The giveaway ends on Wednesday, April 23 at 11:59am PST. Winners will receive a Direct Message with further information. And please, don't be a flake -- enter the giveaway only if you plan on attending the festival screening.
Good luck. For further information about the Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival, including the full schedule of screenings and events, visit the festival website and follow updates on Facebook.