APA FIRST WEEKEND FILM CLUB - NOVEMBER 8, 2002

First weekend box office reciepts are very important to Hollywood and
to our films because these reports will make or break a film. If the
films does well on Friday, Saturday and Sunday the "first" weekend it
comes out, theater owners and distributors will make their decisions
on Monday mornings about a film.

So, we encourage each and every one of you to go out there and
support our Asian American and Asian international filmmakers. It is
at the box office where we can show our strength and our power for
our films and and filmmakers. Even if you don't have the time to sit
through the film on the first weekend - go to the theater and
purchase a ticket so that we can show box office $$$ numbers. It is
extremely important. At the end of the day.. the color in Hollywood
is GREEN! Show up!

IN THIS ISSUE:
1. THE FLIP SIDE - A FILM BY ROD PULIDO OPENS IN LA NOVEMBER 8
2. HUSH! FROM STRAND RELEASING OPENS LA AND NY NOVEMBER 8
3. INDO-AMERICAN FILM "LEELA" OPENS LA NOVEMBER 8
4. ASIAN FILMS REPRESENTING AT THE AFI FILM FEST IN LA NOVEMBER 7 -
17 / FILIPINO FILM "SMALL VOICES" IS THE FIRST TO SELL OUT SCREENINGS
5. JANET YANG PRODUCES "THE WEIGHT OF WATER" IN THEATERS NOW
6. APA FILMS AT THE HAWAII INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
7. THE DEBUT STILL WORKING NEW YORK!
8. ARTHUR DONG'S FORBIDDEN CITY USA - DVD LAUNCH PARTY - this
Saturday!
9. DAUGHTER FROM DANANG OPENS NOVEMBER 15 - NEXT WEEK IN LA!!!!


1. THE FLIP SIDE - A FILM BY ROD PULIDO OPENS IN LA NOVEMBER 8
www.flipsidemovie.com
http://www.ocweekly.com/ink/03/10/film-tsang.php
Rod Pulido's acclaimed comedy involving a Filipino American family
and their search to fit in in America opens in 5 theaters in Southern
California this Friday, November 8 and is a must see film!

THE FLIP SIDE revolves around Darius and his recent discovery of his
Filipino roots while away at college to come home and find his
brother Davis - adopting black culture as his own, while his sister
Marivic - wants desperately to be white. Pulido takes the search for
what America perceives as racial identity out of the "black/white"
genre and adds some Filipino American flavor to the mix. Shot in
Black/White on a budget less than $8,000 - THE FLIP SIDE brings to
light many of the issues most of us Asian Americans face during our
youth and college years. Often some things our parents don't
understand.

THE FLIP SIDE has been hailed by critics from Sundance to Chicago and
even Elvis Mitchell of the NEW YORK TIMES as funny, entertaining,
rich, a true sense of beauty. Check out the review in the Orange
County Weekly from Daniel Tsang.

Your help is needed in keeping THE FLIP SIDE out there by showing up
this weekend to any of the theaters!

2 WEEK SPECIAL ENGAGEMENT ONLY!! PLAYING AT LEAST 5 TIMES A DAY!!

Edwards Cerritos 10
(In the Cerritos Town Center)
12761 Town Center Drive, Cerritos
(562) 403-1133
See "The Flip Side" in the City it was FILMED IN!
Meet Writer-Director Rod Pulido!
Meet Actress Ester Pulido!

Mann Glendale Exchange 10
(By the Glendale Galleria)
128 N. Maryland, Glendale
(818) 549-0045
Meet Actress Ronalee Par!

Edwards University Town Center 6
(By the UC Irvine Campus)
4245 Campus Drive, Irvine
(949) 854-8811
Meet Actor Verwin GatPandan!

Regal Cinemas Avenue 13
550 Deep Valley Drive
Rolling Hills Estates
(310) 544-3456
Meet Actors Jose Saenz and Abe Pagtama!

Laemle's Sunset 5
8000 Sunset Blvd
Los Angeles
(323) 848-3500
FRIDAY & SATURDAY MIDNIGHT SCREENINGS ONLY!
10 AM SCREENINGS ON SATURDAY AND SUNDAY MORNINGS.



2. HUSH! FROM STRAND RELEASING OPENS LA AND NY NOVEMBER 8
Marcus Hu and his Strand Releasing has found another international
gem. This time from Japan filmmaker RYOSUKE HASHIGUCHI. The story
is based around a gay couple who fall in love and a woman who decides
to bear a child for them.

While this sounds like typical WILL AND GRACE fodder - it ain't. It
goes even deeper exploring Japanese sensibilities and how this
conservative Japanese culture reacts to homosexuality and to another
ideal of what family truly means. Kevin Thomas of the LA Times
called HUSH! - "an oustanding accomplishment of today's Asian Cinema.

HUSH! opens this weekend in Los Angeles and New York. Please check
your local listings.


3. INDO-AMERICAN FILM "LEELA" OPENS LA NOVEMBER 8
The Indo American independent scene is on the rise and moving fast.
Earlier this year, we were treated to ANURAG MEHTA's delightful
AMERICAN CHAI. And this weekend, we are treated to a new film from a
new director SOMNATH SEN'S "LEELA." Below is the review from LA
Times Kevin Thomas:

'Leela' a Deft Bicultural Portrait"

By Kevin Thomas
Times Staff Writer

November 8 2002

Somnath Sen's "Leela" represents a worthy departure from the culture
clash comedies that have marked an emerging Indian American cinema.

The film is not without humor or conflict, but it is a complex coming-
of-age story that places a premium on independence and attacks sexual
hypocrisy. The film also celebrates the seductive vibrancy of Indian
music, with songs written by the eminent composer Gulzar and sung by
another maestro, Jagit Singh.

The arrival of the striking, regal Leela (Dimple Kapadia) on a
Southern California university campus to teach a course in world
culture studies will have unexpected repercussions for herself and
one of her students, Kris (Amol Mhatre), the 18-year-old son of
another professor, Chaitali (Deepti Naval).

Being far from home in a more relaxed society inevitably brings Leela
a fresh perspective on her unhappy marriage to Nashaad (Vinod
Khanna), a renowned singer-poet and middle-aged roué, an unabashed
womanizer whose wife nevertheless remains his muse. Kris enters
Leela's class with a firmly "more American than American" attitude,
ignorant of his cultural heritage and proud of his ignorance. Yet
Kris is beguiled by this beautiful, lonely woman who opens up to him
the world of his ancestry; at the same time she's eager to learn all
about American culture.

She and Kris are often thrown together because she and his mother
become friends, but while Chaitali is an inspiration to Leela as an
independent woman who sent her own wealthy but unfaithful husband,
Jai (Gulshan Grover), packing years ago, Chaitali is not nearly the
free spirit she believes she is. For his part, Jai, who has remarried
and has little to do with his son, assumes that respect from his son
is automatic. Production values are first-rate, and Sen, in his
feature debut, makes good use of his locales. Best of all, "Leela"
reveals Sen to be capable of directing a large cast with ease and of
unfolding a complicated plot within a well-paced 96 minutes. "Leela":
Unrated. Mature themes, some language. Exclusively at the Naz 8
Cinemas, 6440 E. South St., Lakewood, (562) 866-2444. Running time: 1
hour, 36 minutes.


4. ASIAN FILMS REPRESENTING AT THE AFI FILM FEST IN LA NOVEMBER 7 -
17 FILIPINO FILM "SMALL VOICES" IS THE FIRST TO SELL OUT SCREENINGS
If you are here in Southern California - you know it's time for the
rain and for the AFI Film Festival. This year's line up promises
again to be showcasing the best in global cinema. On the Asian film
side - the films are:


SMALL VOICES - MGA MUTING TINIG from GIL PORTES (also the Philippine
Oscar submission this year) - SOLD OUT November 8 - but some tickets
left for November 11!
Note: SMALL VOICES was the first film without a distributor or major
stars to sell out two days before the Festival opened and joins
Almodavar's TALK TO HER, the centerpiece film ARARAT, and John
Cusack's MAX as sold out shows! SMALL VOICES is moving and
inspirational and a new voice from the Philippines independent film
genre. Don't miss this one!



SHAOLIN SOCCER - Stephen Chow from China - Much fun on the soccer
field!


BLAZAC AND THE LITTLE CHINESE SEAMSTRESS - from China and France
director Dai Sijie.


CHIHWASEON - Korea - Im Kown Taek


THE WAY HOME - Korea - Lee Jeong Hyang - very moving


MILLENNIUM ACTRESS - Japan - Satoshi Kori - Anime fun


THE DESERTED VALLEY - Vietnam - Pham Nhue Giang - Winner of the
Silver lotus Award at the 2002 Vietnam Film Festival


DARK WATER - Japan - Hideo Nakota - The director of the original "THE
RING" is back to scare the pants off of us again. Join us on Monday
night at 10 PM so we can scream together.


IRANIAN SPREAD - Iran - Kianoosh Ayyari


TO STAY ALIVE (BEMANI) - Iran - Dariush Mhrjoui


SAMSARA - India/Germany - Director Pan Nalin


A WEDDING IN RAMMALLAH - Australia - Sherine Saloma


ANONYMOUSLY YOURS - Burma/USA - Gayle Ferraro - Compelling docu that
goes dep into the world of sex trafficking in Southeast Asia.


THE QUIET AMERICAN - Australia - Philip Noyce - Intriguing film
taking place in the French Indochina War in Vietnam in 1952.
Starring Michael Caine and our own Tzi Ma.


RABBIT PROOF FENCE - Australia - Philip Noyce - Amazing film about
the plight of the stolen Aboriginial children who were half caste
and permanently removed by the Australian government from their
outback families and trained as servants with the hope of out
breeding the Aboriginal race. A must see film.


SHORT FILM BY CHAILLE STOVALL - LITTLE MONK
13 year old Chaille Stovall makes his own documentary on Buddhist
children.


For more info: www.afi.com or 1-866-afi-fest


5. JANET YANG PRODUCES "THE WEIGHT OF WATER" IN THEATERS NOW
JANET YANG, one of our own Hollywood top Asian American producers,
brings us THE WEIGHT OF WATER starring Sean Penn, Sarah Polley, and
Catherine McCormack - directed by Kathryn Bigelow. JANET has been a
mainstay here in Hollywood with beaucoup producing credits under her
belt including THE JOY LUCK CLUB, PEOPLE VS LARRY FLYNT, HIGH CRIMES,
and numerous projects with OLIVER STONE. The film is playing
nationwide.



6. APA FILMS AT THE HAWAII INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
We just got back from the Hawaii International Film Festival where
this year's top Asian American independent feature narrative films
were screened including BETTER LUCK TOMORROW, CHARLOTTE SOMETIMES,
ROBOT STORIES, and LOLO'S CHILD along with many international films,
documentaries and shorts.

Of particular notice was the new documentary from STEPHANIE CASTILLO
chronicling the Filipino American World War II veterans entitled: AN
UNTOLD TRIUMPH - AMERICA'S FILIPINO SOLDIERS. Other popular Asian
American films that were there included DAUGHTER FROM DANANG, BARRIER
DEVICES, HOW TO DO THE ASIAN SQUAT, QUEST FOR LENGTH, THE PICK UP and
many more.

While being not necessarily an Asian American film -but more so an
American film with Asian American subjects was the outstanding and
compelling documentary SPELLBOUND - from Jeff Blitz.

The film profiles 8 American children from all different
backgrounds who go to the National Spelling Bee in DC. Amazing and
uplifting film.What was exceptional about this film festival was that
almost all of our leading Asian Pacific American directors and their
projects were showcased.

It instilled the notion that we are continuing to be strong and
continuing to put our work out there. But, we as a community need to
support our artists and their projects.

Roger Ebert was all over Eric Byler's CHARLOTTE SOMETIMES and has
continued to rave about Justin Lin's BETTER LUCK TOMORROW.

Check out his review on CHARLOTTE SOMETIMES and what he has to say
about Asian American films and filmmakers at
http://www.suntimes.com/output/eb-feature/cst-ftr-ebert07.html
He totally gets it!


For Hollywood, it seems that every studio is waiting to see what
BETTER LUCK TOMORROW is going to do at the box office next February
when it opens - and then maybe they will feel comfortable about
picking up our films or perhaps even greenlighting Asian American
projects.

So it is important that our community shows up when the film is
released and show it support. If BLT performs well at the box
office, other studios and distributors will be more apt to pick up
our other films such as CHARLOTTE SOMETIMES, ROBOT STORIES,
FACE, and LOLO's CHILD and the countless others that are being made
right now. The time for our stories is now and we are about to make
history!


7. THE DEBUT STILL WORKING NEW YORK!
What can we say about this film - it just keeps right on going and
going and going.Ok New York - show out! - final weekend? maybe not!

LOEWS STATE THEATRES
1540 Broadway at 46th St. inside Virgin MegaStore
in Times Square, NY
212-391-0337
FRI, SAT:
1:45PM, 4:30PM, 7PM, 9:20PM, 11:25PM
SUN, MON, TUES, WED, THURS:
1:45PM, 4:30PM, 7PM, 9:20PM
ALL TICKETS FOR ALL SHOWS ONLY $4.95!
.
LOEWS JERSEY GARDENS THEATRES
At the Jersey Gardens Outlet Mall in Elizabeth, NJ
Exit 13A off the New Jersey Turnpike
(908)289-2004
12:30PM, 2:55PM, 5:25PM, 8PM, 10:35PM


8. ARTHUR DONG'S FORBIDDEN CITY USA - DVD LAUNCH PARTY - this
Saturday! November 9, San Francisco: "Forbidden City, U.S.A." DVD
Launch Party

- Documentary on "Chinese Cotton Club" That Inspired Flower Drum Song
- Celebrate the DVD launch of Arthur Dong's "Forbidden City, U.S.A."
with a rare film presentation of the documentary on the big screen.
Highlighting the gala event will be special appearances by over one
dozen original

Forbidden City Nightclub entertainers from the era - be ready for
surprise performances too!

Winner of over 15 international film excellence awards, including Best

Documentary of the Decade at the Hawai'i International Film Festival
(shared award), critics raved: "This programs SWINGS!" -Walter
Goodman, New York Times. "EXUBERANT! Touches the heart and packs a
tremendous amount of entertainment into a fond glance back at the
fabled all-Chinese Forbidden City nightclub on San Francisco's Sutter
Street which became an international hot spot in the 30s and 40s." -
Peter Stack, S.F. Chronicle.

Sponsored by the Asian American Studies Department and the Cinema
Department at San Francisco State University, this celebration is a
benefit for Asian American Student activities at SFSU. A festive
catered reception with live music by Ben Luis follows. Former Rolling
Stones editor Ben Fong-Torres is the emcee.

Filmmaker Arthur Dong will introduce "Forbidden City, U.S.A." and
show a sneak preview of special features from the DVD Collector's
Edition, which includes over 20 minutes of unseen archival and
original footage and more than 200 pieces of memorabilia from the
Chinese American nightclub era of the 1930s-40s.


PERFORMERS SCHEDULED TO APPEAR:
1. Bertha Hing (Magician)
2. Dorothy Sun ("Little Egypt")
3. Dorothy Toy (Toy and Wing)
4. Frances Chun
5. Ivy Tam (Mrs. Charlie Low, #4)
6. Jade Ling
7. Larry Ching (Chinese Sinatra)
8. Lily Pon
9. Marion Fong Got
10. Mary Mason
11. Noel Toy (Bubble Dancer)
12. Paula Ming
13. Stanley Toy

Saturday, November 9, 2002; 6:30-10:00pm
McKenna Theatre, San Francisco State University
1600 Holloway Ave. Parking available.

Tickets:
* $100, includes VIP seating and autographed DVD
* $50, preferred seating
* $35, general
* $15, SFSU students with ID (2 max per student)
Ticket sales: 415-338-2467
Information: ldong@...
Website: www.manuimports.com/nightclubindex.html

Official "Forbidden City, U.S.A." website:
www.deepfocusproductions.com


9. DAUGHTER FROM DANANG OPENS NOVEMBER 15 - NEXT WEEK IN LA!!!!
The Sundance Film Festival award-winning film DAUGHTER FROM DANANG
opens In Los Angeles on Friday, November 15 at the Nuart Theatre in
West Los Angeles.

While many documentaries have been made about the Vietnam War, few
have focused on the personal stories of civilians, particularly women
and children, whose lives were forever changed by choices made during
times of chaos and panic.

In 1975, as the war was ending, thousands of orphans and Amerasian
children were brought to the United States as part of "Operation
Babylift." The prize-winning DAUGHTER FROM DANANG tells the dramatic
story of one of these children, Heidi Bub (née Mai Thi Hiep) and her
Vietnamese mother, Mai Thi Kim, separated at the war's end and
reunited 22 years later.

A complex and multi-layered film, DAUGHTER FROM DANANG is about a war
in the past and making peace in the present. Through intimate and
sometimes excruciating moments, the film profoundly shows how wide
the chasms of cultural difference and how deep the wounds of war can
run--even within one family.

DAUGHTER FROM DANANG, a film by Gail Dolgin and Vicente Franco, opens
its exclusive one-week only engagement on Friday November 15 at:
Landmark's Nuart Theatre located on 11272 Santa Monica Boulevard (at
the 405 freeway) in West Los Angeles. This will be your only chance
to see this film in Los Angeles. For showtime information please
call 310.478.6379 or visit our website at www.landmarktheatres.com

See you at movies,

David Magdael
APA FIRST WEEKEND FILM CLUB
FOUNDER