CBC Radio 2 presents: The Last Angel on Earth

Part of the Studio One "Mother Tongues" series

January 8th, 2008
Doors 7:30 PM, show 8 PM
CBC Studio 40
775 Cambie Street

"She's the devil of your desire,
She's the Last Angel on Earth."

CBC Radio is pleased to invite you to the international CD launch event of The Last Angel on Earth starring Manu Narayan (New York) and Krystal Garib (Toronto, originally Penticton, BC). Manu and Krystal met on the set of Mike Myers' "The Love Guru" and now they're leading a performance that will dazzle your imagination and your senses.

The Last Angel on Earth uses live world beat performance, movement, and multimedia technology to tell a story of Angels, Demons, Love and Redemption. Featured performers: Milan Milosevic, Francois Houle, Salvador Ferreras, Radovan Jovicevic, Krystal Garib and Manu Narayan.

Who can resist the chance to be touched by an angel?

http://www.thelastangelonearth.com/

Tickets are free, but seating is limited.
Please email rsvp.vancouver@cbc.ca asap to reserve your space.

Visit us on the web:
cbc.ca/bc |cbc.ca/radio | cbc.ca/podcasting | radio3.cbc.ca

2nd Annual Filmmakers Showcase - Call for Submissions

Canadian Filmmakers are invited to submit their work for the 2nd Annual Filmmakers Showcase presented by Shaw Multicultural Channel and explorASIAN

Filmmakers telling stories that explore Asian-Canadian culture are invited to submit full-length or short films to the 2009 Filmmakers Showcase. Selected films will air on Shaw Multicultural Channel in May 2009 in celebration of Asian Heritage Month.

Eligibility
The Filmmakers Showcase will accept independently-produced films and videos by Asian-Canadian artists, or films and videos that explore Asian-Canadian themes.

Submission Deadline
The submission deadline is Friday January 30, 2009.

Entry Fees
There is no entry fee for submissions to the Filmmakers Showcase, but entrants are responsible for any courier costs involved in the transport, delivery and return of their materials.

Submission Materials
Acceptable formats for preview screeners are: VHS, DVD, Betacam SP, DVCam (NTSC formats only)

Acceptable formats for airing copies are: Betacam SP, DVCam (see below)

Tapes or DVDs must be labeled with film title, confirmed total running time, contact name, current address, phone, and email address.

Please include with your entry:

*Confirmation of clearance of all copyright, performing rights and mechanical reproduction rights for the film

Film synopsis (approximately 100 words)

Film images (high resolution electronic images 300 dpi in CD or DVD format)

Cast and crew list

CVs and photos for key creative personnel

Copies of any publicity associated with the production (awards, screenings, reviews)

*Important notice regarding copyright/ airing rights: If the copyright/ airing rights for the film are held by a third party, it is the filmmakers' responsibility to coordinate the rights with the copyright-holder and submit the film selection with the airing rights pre-cleared.

If you would like your submission materials to be returned following the review process, please include a stamped self-addressed envelope as part of your submission.

Selection Notification
Filmmakers will be advised of the selection of their work for the 2009 Filmmakers Showcase by Friday February 27, 2009.

Selected filmmakers may be asked to participate in print and televised promotions for the 2009 Filmmakers Showcase, and may be asked at that time to confirm their availability for these promotions.

Airing Copies
Upon confirmation that the film has been selected, the filmmaker must provide to Shaw no later than Friday March 13, 2009, a master broadcast copy of the film for packaging. This master copy will be returned to the filmmaker following the airing of the 2009 Filmmakers Showcase.

Shipping Address
Please mail, courier or deliver your submission materials to:
Shaw Multicultural Channel
Attention: 2009 Filmmakers Showcase Submissions
Shaw Cablesystems
900 - 1067 West Cordova Street
Vancouver, BC V6C 3T5

(for hand-deliveries, please come to the 9th floor Reception, weekdays 8 am - 5 pm)

Inquiries
We'd love to hear from you!
Contact us at smc@shaw.ca

or directly at:

Sandra Murphy
604.629.3109 or sandra.murphy@sjrb.ca

Norman Wong
604.629.3347 or norman.wong@sjrb.ca

Info: http://vancouver.shawtv.com/smc/smc_promotions.htm#filmmakers

CHINESE MALE WANTED for BMW 7 Series Launch

EVENTURE SOLUTIONS are currently casting a presenter for the BMW 7 Series Launch that is being produced in Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver. They originally wanted to use the same presenter in all 3 cities but are now toying with the idea of using a Male, Asian (Chinese) presenter who speaks Cantonese and English, for the Vancouver portion, acknowledging the large Chinese population and being aware that there could be groups through who would be more comfortable learning about the car in Cantonese. They are searching in Toronto/Montreal for a 'George Clooney' type... handsome, stylish, well-spoken, successful, 40ish-50 and I assume they are hoping for an Asian counterpart. They may go a bit younger if the candidate has all the other attributes.

DATES:
The launch is February 19, 20, 21, 22, 23 (with that final day as a
Press Launch - will have to check if presenter is required).
Also, there may be some sort of a BMW training session prior to that and a run-through on the 18th. I believe each session consists of a 5-minute speech given to the guests, introducing them to the car and all it's wonderful features while the presenter walks around pointing out the features... and may or may not include Q&A (There will be BMW people there who will probably field the questions). They are looking for someone to feel as if they work for BMW, and would be the type to drive the car! Feel free to check it out at www.bmw.com (click on the menu to link to Canada and click on 7 series).

If you know of anyone that you might think fits the above specs. and would be available and qualified, or if you can direct me to anyone you might think could be of assistance, I would greatly appreciate it.

Thank you,
Dana Berr
EVENTURE SOLUTIONS
dana@eventuresolutions.ca

Employment Opportunity - MANAGER/CURATOR OF THE JAPANESE CANADIAN NATIONAL MUSEUM

The Japanese Canadian National Museum, located in Burnaby, BC, is a key component of the National Nikkei Museum & Heritage Centre which opened in September 2000. The mission of the Japanese Canadian National Museum is to collect, preserve, interpret and exhibit artifacts and archives relating to the history of Japanese Canadians from the 1870s through the present, and to communicate to all the Japanese Canadian experience and contribution as an integral part of Canada’s heritage and multicultural society. The Manager/Curator is a key leader of a professional staff team that supports the Japanese Canadian National Museum’s operations and strategic development that makes the facility a dynamic cultural venue.

MANAGER/CURATOR
Reporting to the Executive Director of the National Nikkei Museum and Heritage Centre, the Manager/Curator is a senior management position of the Japanese Canadian National Museum. The Manager/Curator plans, directs, coordinates, promotes, and evaluates the on-going operations and future development of the Japanese Canadian National Museum and serves as museum curator.

RESPONSIBILITIES:
* Plans, directs, coordinates, and evaluates the development, operation, and maintenance of ongoing projects of the Japanese Canadian National Museum and the Archives, by carrying out general policies within budgets approved by the Executive Director and Board of Directors. Ongoing projects include temporary exhibitions, traveling exhibitions, publications, educational programs and public programs, with the assistance of the Program Coordinator and Museum Assistants.
* Develops and oversees ongoing project budgets and special project budgets.
* Applies for, administers the expenditures of, and supervises the work related to grants from governments, businesses, and/or philanthropic agencies to assist in funding the Japanese Canadian National Museum; assists with Board-led fundraising projects.
* Acts as liaison to any relevant museum associations and community organizations.
* Leads and supervises a team of staff including an Archivist, Program Coordinator & Museum Assistant, and assistant and student positions. Collaborates with the Executive Director and the Board of Directors to determine staff requirements and recruit appropriate staff.
* Selects, trains, coordinates, supervises, and evaluates curatorial volunteers.
* Acquires, documents, catalogues, researches, preserves, and uses the museum’s collection of artifacts, as well as recommends deaccessioning to the Board of Directors.
* Oversees loans to the museum’s collection.
* Plans, develops, schedules, and implements temporary exhibits and traveling exhibits, as well as facilitates the development of a permanent exhibit.
* Provides for the security and maintenance of the museum collection, archival holdings (through an Archivist), and property of the Japanese Canadian National Museum, as well as for the security of staff and visitors.
* Plans, coordinates, and evaluates the production of Japanese Canadian National Museum publications.
* Plans for the future needs of the Japanese Canadian National Museum.
* Represents and promotes the Japanese Canadian National Museum locally, provincially, nationally, and internationally, as necessary and relevant.
* Reports to the Board of Directors as needed and writes annual and other reports.

QUALIFICATIONS:
University degree (preferably a masters degree) in a discipline related to the museum’s mandate or museum studies.

* Extensive, successful experience in museum work, preferably with a curatorial component.
* Extensive, successful experience in operating a not-for-profit institution and supervising employees, contractors and volunteers.
* Extensive, successful experience in producing and implementing budgets, writing grant applications, and implementing grant projects.
* Demonstrated ability to establish and maintain effective working relationships with other staff, volunteers, and the general public.
* Demonstrated ability to foster teamwork.
* Demonstrated ability to communicate effectively in English in oral and written form.
* Demonstrated ability to manage multiple projects simultaneously including leading implementation and action plans to successfully meet deadlines.
* Knowledge of and interest in Japanese Canadian history, language, community and culture an asset.

HOURS OF WORK: This is a full time position from Monday to Friday. Occasional evening and weekend work may be required for special purposes or events.

A comprehensive salary and benefits package is offered.

FORWARD LETTER OF APPLICATION AND RESUME BY EMAIL TO:
HR@nikkeiplace.org

DEADLINE FOR APPLICATIONS:
JANUARY 2, 2009

We thank all applicants; however, only those selected for an interview will be contacted.

CBC and Radio-Canada present Tandava

Part of the Studio One "Mother Tongues" series and All Access broadcast
December 11th, 2008
Doors open at 7:30 pm, show starts at 8 pm
CBC Studio 40
775 Cambie Street, Vancouver

Tandava is four piece ensemble that mirrors the cultural diversity of Vancouver in its music. Elements of Chinese, South Asian, African and European music all harmonize with astonishing ease in the hands of Tandava.

What makes their music work is the skill with which they fuse their musical backgrounds and cultural references. But ultimately, like good chefs or any artist, they just have something to say and they know how to say it. It's music that pleases the ear.

Check out how good fusion can be when Tandava play live at CBC Studio 40 hosted by CBC Radio's Margaret Gallagher and Radio-Canada's André Rhéaume.

Tickets are free, but seating is limited. RSVP is required to reserve your space.

Please email rsvp.vancouver@cbc.ca asap to reserve your space.

For more information on Tandava, visit http://www.tandava.com

Co.ERASGA and the Dance Centre proudly present EXCHANGES

Opening night: Friday, November 28th @ 8:00 pm

Tickets: $15/$12 seniors and students

Available from Tickets Tonight
www.ticketstonight.ca

www.thedancecentre.ca
www.companyerasgadance.ca

Virtual Museum of Asian Canadian Cultural Heritage (VMACCH)

We are pleased to let you know that Asian Heritage Month--Canadian Foundation for Asian Culture (Central Ontario) Inc. is preparing a Virtual Museum of Asian Canadian Cultural Heritage (VMACCH) to showcase Asian Canadian cultural expression. It will be launched in March 2009 and is made possible by the generous support of the Canadian Heritage “Gateway” Fund.

Our goal for the project is to show representations of how Asian Canadian communities live and express their cultural identity in Canada in the form of photographs, videos and journals, among others. We hope to provide opportunities to foster the recognition and appreciation of the diverse cultures of Asian Canadian society, not just to promote Asian Canadian cultural expressions. We are also interested in discovering further whether the cross-cultural encounters between Asian Canadians and the rest of Canada can forge new cultural expressions.

If you are able to contribute to the Virtual Museum of Asian Canadian Cultural
Heritage (VMACCH), please provide your contribution to us by e-mailing vmacch@yorku.ca before 30 December 2008. Contributions can also be posted or faxed. Please contact us for further details.

We are seeking contributed written articles (500 to 1,000 words) as well as other text, graphics, photographs and video, on the following topics:

General History of Asian Canadians
o Cultural traditions and storytelling by Asian Canadians from Central Asia
o Cultural traditions and storytelling by Asian Canadians from South Asia
o Cultural traditions and storytelling by Asian Canadians from South East
Asia

Contributions of Asian Canadians to Canada
o Visual Art
o Music
o Dance
o Literature
o Science, Technology and Society

Prominent Asian Canadians’ Portrait Gallery
o Chinese Canadians
o Japanese Canadians
o Indo Canadians
o Footage from the Asian Heritage Month Lectures by prominent Professors

Asian Canadian Cultural History Education
o Policy issues
o Cultural roadshows

Asian Canadian Social History
o Photographs from the Chinese Canadian Photographic Society of Toronto
o Festivals from Central, East, South and South East Asia

Asian Canadian Political History
o Exclusions
o Inclusions
o Multiculturalism
o Ethnic Statistics
o The Way Forward

Milestones in Asian Canadian History
o General Timeline
o Milestones from Central, East, South and South East Asia

Although we are not able to offer any financial remuneration, we hope you would kindly join this meaningful project, which will be used for educational purposes. The materials, of course, will be appropriately attributed.

Thank you very much for your kind support of the Virtual Museum, and we look forward to hearing from you.

Kay Li, Ph.D.
President
Asian Heritage Month--Canadian Foundation for Asian Culture (Central Ontario) Inc.
vmacch@yorku.ca

VINCE MAI PROJECT @ The Yale Hotel

funky trumpet grooves

Thursday, November 27, 2008 at 9:45pm

The Yale Hotel
1300 Granville Street, Vancouver, BC

We're going to groove at the Yale Hotel again.
Trumpet based instrumentals with some vocal RnB faves.

NO COVER!

featuring:
Daryl Jahnke,
Brent Gubbels,
Tim Proznick,
Pepe Danza,
Chris Gestrin,
David Steele,
& Vince Mai

Hope you can make it!

www.mai-music.com

Filipino Youth Hold Cultural Night to Celebrate National Achievements, 13 years of Educating, Organizing and Mobilizing

Vancouver, BC—On Sunday, November 30, 2008 Ugnayan ng Kabataang Pilipino sa Canada/The Filipino-Canadian Youth Alliance – BC (UKPC-BC) will hold its next installment of Pinoy Poetiks, coinciding with Andres Bonifacio Day. It will also mark the 13th anniversary of UKPC since its formation in Vancouver in 1995. It is to take place at the Kalayaan Centre, 451 Powell Street, Vancouver, BC.

With this upcoming night of poetry, song, hip hop and spoken word, the members of UKPC-BC have much to celebrate. They recently sent a delegation to participate in the historic research conference "Filipino Community and Beyond: Towards Full Participation in a Multicultural and Multi-Ethnic Canada," hosted by the National Alliance of Philippine Women in Canada (NAPWC) at the University of Toronto from November 6-9, 2008. The conference showcased community-led research and ways it has been used to educate and empower the Filipino community. Research gathered in the last 3 years of the NAPWC project has been used to engage politicians, policy-makers and academics, informed community discussions, and has even inspired art exhibits, theatre productions and a fashion show. "Part of the NAPWC project is a specific focus on making Filipino youth count in our community's future," says Niki Silva of UKPC-BC. "So there are so many achievements that we are celebrating as Filipino youth in Canada" she adds.

In keeping with a national theme, this next Pinoy Poetiks will feature an audience from both Montreal and Toronto, who will participate via internet and web-cam. "During the conference we were able to connect with the different cities and learn from one another in regards to our different methods of educating, organizing and mobilizing and it's important for us to share with the community the amazing work happening at a national level." Silva adds.

UKPC-BC says that this Pinoy Poetiks will also be an open house for the organization, with a brief history of UKPC, and the Kalayaan Centre—a community space and the home to UKPC-BC and other progressive Filipino organizations. "We decided this time to hold our event at the Kalayaan Centre instead of a café, as a recognition of the roots of our work," states Christian Clamonte, a UKPC member and participant of the NAPWC conference. Drinks and snacks will be for sale, made by members of the community, including Filipino delicacies like cucinta or sticky rice.

Entrance is $5-$10 suggested donation, and all proceeds go towards continuing the work of UKPC-BC and the maintenance of the Kalayaan Centre. For more information please contact Niki or Ayex at 604.215.1103 or email ukpc_fcya@kalayaancentre.net.

Music on Main presents JENNIFER KOH, solo violin

Thursday, November 27, 2008 at 8:00 PM
Heritage Hall (3102 Main Street) $25/$15

Have you ever seen a Frank Gehry building?
Totally modern, completely distinctive, and instantly classic.
That’s what a concert with violinist Jennifer Koh is like – as if you’re hearing the future, but with a bit of baroque.
She’s played Carnegie Hall and all over the States, Europe and Asia.
Now you can hear her up-close-and-personal at Heritage Hall.

(Vancouver, BC) – Music on Main presents a solo violin recital featuring acclaimed violinist Jennifer Koh, as part of the Main Series at Heritage Hall on Thursday, November 27th 2008 at 8:00 PM.

Jennifer Koh is a violinist of startling talent, with a sound described as “fiery”, “rhapsodic”, and “meltingly beautiful” (New York Times). When Carnegie Hall opened their new Zankel Hall, Koh was a featured soloist for the historic opening night concert. Don't miss her in the intimate environment of Heritage Hall. For her Music on Main debut, Koh presents a compelling solo violin recital in which the music of J.S. Bach finds new meaning beside many contemporary works, including John Zorn’s fragmented and texturally diverse Goetia, the complex beauty of Elliot Carter’s Four Lauds, and works by György Kurtag and Esa-Pekka Salonen.

Commenting on the rare and revealing repertoire juxtapositions of her program, Koh writes, “I'm looking to find connections and conversations with the past in this program and I want to change the way the audience listens to older pieces like the Bach. This particular Partita is important because it continues the thread between the Kurtag (Hommage to Bach) to the chaconne form of the Salonen. I want people to hear how it transforms into a present day composition”.

JENNIFER KOH, solo violin
Thursday, November 27, 2008
Heritage Hall (3102 Main Street, Vancouver)
Bar opens at 7:00 PM. Concert at 8:00 PM. Bar stays open afterward. All ages welcome.
Tickets $25 ($15 students) Call Tickets Tonight at 604.684.2787 or click on www.ticketstonight.ca.

“A risk taking, high-octane player of the kind who grabs the listener by the ears and refuses to let go.” - The Strad

About Music on Main
Launched to critical acclaim in 2006, Music on Main is dedicated to presenting concert music in environments that are both casual and stimulating, with a strong focus on music of our time and featuring excellent professional musicians in innovative concert formats. During its third season, Music on Main will present over 25 concerts at Heritage Hall on Main Street, the Cellar Restaurant & Jazz Club in Kitsilano, as well as co-ordinating a city-wide festival celebrating one of today's greatest composers, Amsterdam-based Louis Andriessen. Music on Main concerts have been highlighted as "best of the season" events by The Globe & Mail and Georgia Straight.

A great night of comedy benefiting the Greater Vancouver Food Bank!

We have TWO OF THE BEST ASIAN COMICS IN CANADA!!! With Paul Bae, as your Headliner, and Jeffrey Yu, as the host, the next group of outstanding Asian Comics will be showcased in a night filled with big laughs and big hearts. The show will help kickoff the holiday season for The Greater Vancouver Food Bank, as proceeds will be donated to the charity.

So, come out and support a great charity in their most important time of the year, as well as TWO OF BEST ASIAN COMICS IN CANADA, and FOUR OF THE MOST PROMISING ASIAN COMEDY TALENTS IN THE PROVINCE!!!

TWO OF THE BEST ASIAN COMICS IN THE BUSINESS
Paul Bae – Headliner
Jeffrey Yu – Host
(Each comic has had their own Comedy Now Special and appearances in the prestigious Just For Laughs Festival.)

THE FOUR BEST UP & COMING ASIAN COMICS IN THE PROVINCE
Ana De Lara
Art Factora
Tom Shiboaka
Dennis Litonjua

FLIP N ASIAN SHOW
Thursday, November 27th, 2008
Lafflines Comedy Club
#26 - 4th Street
New Westminster, BC
Doors Open 7.30pm
Showtime 8.30pm

ORDERING TICKETS
Bus: 778.218.2651
Cell: 604.828.8007
Email: flipnfunny@gmail.com
Tickets $10 each

Celebrate the 100th anniversary of Japanese Immigration in Brazil - Special screening of TIZUKA YAMASAKI's - “GAIJIN - LOVE ME AS I AM” - Nov 23 - 7pm

Vancouver Asian Film Festival in collaboration with explorASIAN, Community Partners for Internationalization (UBC) and the Consulate of Brazil present a special screening of acclaimed director TIZUKA YAMASAKI’S award winning film “GAIJIN - LOVE ME AS I AM” (GAIJIN - AMA ME COMO SOU)

Date - Sunday, November 23, 2008
Time - 7:00pm
Location - Frederic Wood Theatre, 6354 Crescent Road, UBC

Admission -
FREE for VAFF Members and UBC Faculty, Staff & Students with VAFF membership card or UBC ID

General Public admission is FREE with purchase of VAFF Membership - $2.00 - at the door

Please RSVP online before Nov 22 to reserve your tickets: http://gaijin.eventbrite.com

Runtime - 131 min
Country - Brazil
Language - Portuguese with English subtitles
Year - 2005

GAIJIN - Love Me As I Am (Ama Me Como Sou) - SYNOPSIS

The pioneer Titoe arrived in Brazil aboard Kasato Maru Ship in 1908, wishing to return to her homeland with the money saved by working in the coffee farms.
In 1935, holding her Brazilian-daughter, Shinobu, and little amount of money she saved, Titoe buys her first piece of land in Londrina City (North of Paraná State) and postpones her desire to go back to Japan.
The Second World War and its consequences to Japan, put off Titoe's promise to come back to Japan. Titoe's grandchildren, Kazumi and Maria, were born in Londrina by the end of the 40's, and then Titoe becomes a "batyan" (grandma).
Maria marries Gabriel, a gaijin (foreigner), son of the Spanish farmer Ramon Salinas and the Italian immigrant Sofia. From this relationship two children were born, Yoko and Pedro. Gabriel's job selling and buying lands are doing well until Fernando Collor de Mello's (Brazilian President) confiscation plan (economic plan) in 1990, bankrupts him. Maria, Gabriel, Yoko and Pedro have to live with Batyan, in the house she built by herself. Having no other choices, Gabriel leaves Brazil and goes to Kobe, Hyogo province, as a dekassegui (temporary worker) like Shinobu did to recover the money she lost in Brazil.
Maria, Shinobu, Batyan and Gina (Maria's sister-in-law) have to reorganise life in Brazil. But after the earthquake in Kobe in 1995, when Gabriel was considered dead, Yoko and Maria decide to go to Japan to look for him. In Japan, Maria and Yoko face prejudices and challenges provided by cultural differences, and deal with the fear about the unknown.
The promise of the old Titoe to return to Japan drives the lives of these four women generations: the ninety-years-old Batyan, her daughter Shinobu, a nisei (second Japanese generation), her granddaughter Maria, a sansei (third generation) and her great-granddaughter Yoko, a half-breed (Japanese/Spanish/Italian).
Gaijin is a film about the Japanese descendants' saga who try to find out their identities.

AWARDS AND FESTIVALS
GAIJIN - Love Me As I Am (Ama Me Como Sou)

2006 - SAN FRANCISCO INTERN. ASIAN AMERICAN FILM FESTIVAL - Special Presentation
2006 - LOS ANGELES ASIAN PACIFIC FILM FESTIVAL - Special Presentation
2005 - FESTIVAL GRAMADO – Best Film, Best Director, Best Music, Best Supporting Actress Aya Ono
2005 - FESTIVAL DE BIARRITZ CINÉMAS ET CULTURES D’AMERIQUE LATINE
2005 - TOKYO INTERNACIONAL FORUM - Special Presentation - Brazilian Embassy – President Luis Inácio Lula da Silva in Japan
2005 - NAGOYA - Special Presentation Brazilian Consulate in Nagoya

Please RSVP online before Nov 22 to reserve your tickets: http://gaijin.eventbrite.com/

VANCOUVER ASIAN FILM FESTIVAL - Nov 6 to 9

VANCOUVER ASIAN FILM FESTIVAL 2008 Film Highlights
(subject to change without notice)

OPENING NIGHT – Thursday, Nov 6 – 7:00pm
Western Canada Premiere
Ping Pong Playa (directed by Jessica Yu)

Friday, Nov 7 – 2:30pm
Western Canada Premiere
Yellow Fellas (directed by Tetsuro Shigematsu)

Friday, Nov 7 – 7:00pm
Canadian Premiere
Santa Mesa (directed by Ron Morales)

Friday, Nov 7 – 9:30pm
Canadian Premiere
Finding Madison (directed by Tuan Tran)

Saturday, Nov 8 – 7:00pm
Western Canada Premiere
Kissing Cousins (directed by Amyn Kaderali)

Saturday, Nov 8 – 9:30pm
Encore Presentation
Ping Pong Playa (directed by Jessica Yu)

CLOSING NIGHT – Sunday, Nov 9 – 7:00pm
Canadian Premiere
West 32nd (directed by Michael Kang)

Sunday, Nov 9 – 9:30pm
Encore Presentation
West 32nd (directed by Michael Kang)

VAFF 2008 will screen over 40 films made by Asian filmmakers from Canada, USA and around the world at Cinemark Tinseltown Theatre, Vancouver from Nov 6 to 9.

Academy Award winner Jessica Yu (director/Ping Pong Playa), Jimmy Tsai (writer & star of Ping Pong Playa), and actor Grace Park (West 32nd) will be in attendance along with many other directors, producers, actors, and notable individuals from the filmmaking community.

There will be fun social events including the Opening Night Red Carpet Reception, VIP Gala, Flaunt It Party, Wrap Party, Industry Luncheon, Q & A discussions, and indie filmmaking workshop for festival goers to enjoy.

VAFF VIP/Industry Passes, Special Event Tickets and General Admission Tickets
are available now for purchase in advance on the festival website
http://www.vaff.org/festival

Don't delay! Get your VAFF Pass before October 31 and save $$$

Casting Call for “Dismantle the Bridge” - Oct 26/27

SFU Film Production

Audition Location:
SFU Harbour Centre, Vancouver

Audition Dates:
October 26-27, 2008

Call Backs:
November 3, 2008

Shooting Dates:
December 2-8, 2008

Shooting Location(s):
Burnaby

Contact Info:
pej.treehouse@gmail.com

Deadlines for Submissions:
October 25, 2008

Storyline:
The film is about a girl struggling through her theatre endeavours because of dominating cultural values and an unsupportive community. The story is set during a major Chinese holiday which conflicts with the night of her debut on stage.

This is an ensemble piece. For more detailed description and script, please send an e-mail to the address above.

Characters:

Janie (Lead) Female, 20
Janie is a Cantonese-speaking arts student. She is a typical Canadian-born Chinese about 5’5” tall. At home, she is constantly scolded for a lack of manners. At school, she is an outcast. Her parents generally do not support her choice of career and her older brother, Lok, is the sole supportive stake.

Lok (Lead) Male, 24
Lok is Janie’s older brother. He immigrated to Canada at the age of 3 with his parents. He is about 5’11” and works as a businessman. His parents praise him for his choice of career. However, he wishes he had the freedom like Janie to choose what he wants to aspire in. Lok is the one person in Janie’s family who support her career.

Mrs. Chan (Lead) Female, 50
Mrs. Chan is the mother of Janie and Lok. She grew up in a traditional household where the females took care of the family and chores. In Canada, she expects the same manner of behaviour from Janie but is often disappointed by her. On the other hand, she boasts about Lok’s “right” career.

Mr. Chan (Lead) Male, 55
Mr. Chan is the father of Janie and Lok. He is retired and only interested in news relating to his home, Hong Kong. Coming to Canada, he always felt separated from the Western culture so h expects the same from his children.

Classmate 1 & 2 (Extras) Female/Male, 20s
Non-Asian theatre students with Janie. They are outgoing and hang out together often but make Janie feel left out unintentionally.

Bartender Female/Male, 20s
S/He is tall, attractive and friendly.

Chinese family members Female/Male, various ages

Party attendees/classmates Female/Male, 20s-30s

Please submit a headshot and resume. We will contact you with detailed information regarding the auditions.

NOTE: The four leads (Janie, Lok, Mrs. Chan and Mr. Chan) MUST be able to speak Cantonese.

Centre A presents The Living Blanket - Oct 24 to Nov 7

Opening Reception: Saturday, October 25, 2 pm.

Performances by Dalannah Bowen and the Downtown Eastside Women's Centre Taiko group

Scrap: A Political Fashion Show (in collaboration with Philippine Women's Centre of BC) Sunday, October 26. Two shows: 2pm-4pm $10. 7pm-9-pm $25 or VIP $50

Coyote Comforts, a performative Sew-In by Maggie Winston and Lois Klassen, Friday, October 31, 11am – 4pm, Free

Doris Buttignol, Lead artist, public talk, Vancouver Art Gallery, 750 Hornby Street,
Thursday, October 30, 7pm

Gallery Hours: Tuesday - Saturday 11:00 -18:00
2 West Hastings, Vancouver, BC,
Tel: 604-683-8326
www.centrea.org

New Paintings By Won Seok Lim - Oct 17 to Jan 23

See Them Everywhere
New Paintings By Won Seok Lim

OPENING: Friday, October 17, 2008, 3-6pm, Won Seok Lim in Attendance
“Four dots. Accident?” Art Beatus (Vancouver) Consultancy Ltd. is pleased to present new paintings by local artist, Won Seok Lim in a solo exhibition titled, “See Them Everywhere”. As seen through the eyes of the artist, the works present something extraordinarily simple, and leads viewers to witness the metamorphosis of something, upon first glance, that we might not really see or understand. “See Them Everywhere” will open with an afternoon reception on Friday, October 17 from 3pm to 6pm. The artist will be in attendance and the public are encouraged to attend.

Currently living in Vancouver, Won Seok Lim, also known as Sok, was born in 1966 in the heavily populated region of Seoul, Korea. A theology major from Chong Shin University (Korea), writer, and self-taught painter, the artist shares his discovery and the basis of his recent works. Somewhere between an idea and the physically visualized, Sok did not seek out his subject – he feels his subject presented itself to him. It was always around him in the here and the now, but was not previously noticeable. With time, his subject [and soon to be subjects] became more visible, and he was seeing them everywhere and in every thing.

The new series starts with a pattern of four black dots on a roughly painted canvas of white. Sok’s almost unrecognizable figures are formed in brisk, repetitive patterns with aggressive paint strokes. With each painting, viewers are offered a glimpse of what becomes steadily more apparent. The transformation into something more recognizable quickly manifests and similarly with the progression, the artist’s painting style evolves. While his technique is still very dark and bold, the figures become more clearly defined, and are then revealed with softer, feathery brushstrokes and black-as-ink backgrounds.

Art Beatus (Vancouver) Consultancy Ltd.
108 - 808 Nelson Street Vancouver BC
t: 604.688.2633

Please visit our website for more information at www.artbeatus.com

WANTED: Asian Guys & Gals for VACT Commercial - Oct 10 & 11

VACT will be filming a commercial on Saturday, October 11 from 8:30am to 11:30am at the Roundhouse.

We need Asian guys, dressed like bad guys and gals dressed in bright colours, to be part of a crowd to chase the Asian Austin Powers. In the commercial, there will also be 10 seconds of a 30 second dance routine. Must be non-union.

To be in the commercial, you MUST attend a dance rehearsal Friday, October 10 from 7:30pm to 9:30pm at Moberly Arts & Cultural Centre, 7646 Prince Albert Street, Vancouver.

There is no compensation, just bragging rights that you are on a commercial.

To register yourself, please email info@vact.ca

Please forward to anyone who may be interested in participating.

www.vact.ca

CENTRE FOR KOREAN RESEARCH - Oct 3 - 3pm

3:00-4:30pm
1855 West Mall, C.K. Choi Building Conference Room #120

Needless Quarrel: The Second North Korean Nuclear Crisis

By Professor James Matray (California State Univ. at Chico)

In this seminar, Professor James I. Matray will describe the events surrounding the Second North Korean Nuclear Crisis that began in October 2002. He will focus attention particularly on identifying the reasons why the Bush Administration decided to abandon the Agreed Framework of October 1994, as well as questioning the legitimacy of its claim that North Korea’s development of a Highly Enriched Uranium program justified initiating this confrontation. He then will describe the ongoing efforts to end the crisis, tracing negotiations at the Six Party Talks beginning in August 2003 in Beijing. Professor Matray will present evidence to support the conclusion that Bush’s neo-conservative advisors were responsible for implementing a militant and aggressive policy aimed at toppling the government of Kim Jong Il. Instead of achieving regime change, however, this U.S. policy has strained relations with South Korea, elevated the status of China in East Asia, and forced North Korea to expand its nuclear weapons program as an act of self-defense.

Professor James I. Matray is professor of history at California State University, Chico, where he completed his final term as department chair in August 2008. He has published more than forty articles and book chapters on U.S.-Korean relations during and after World War II. Author of The Reluctant Crusade: American Foreign Policy in Korea, 1941-1950 and Japan’s Emergence as a Global Power, his most recent books are Korea Divided: The 38th Parallel and the Demilitarized Zone and East Asia and the United States: An Encyclopedia of Relations Since 1784. During 2003 and 2004, Matray was an international columnist for the Donga Ilbo in South Korea. From 2005 to 2007, he served on the Board of Editors for Diplomatic History.

CENTRE FOR CHINESE RESEARCH - Oct 3 - 12 noon

12:00-1:00PM
1855 West Mall, C.K. Choi Building Conference Room #120

Why has China grown so fast for so long?
Prospects for the future

By Khalid Malik
UN Resident Coordinator
UNDP Resident Representative
China

In a single generation, the world’s most populous nation has undergone one of the most dramatic and most dramatically successful transformations the world has ever seen. As high growth and steady reform continue unabated, China is not only reinventing itself but fundamentally altering political and economic relationships across the globe.

Yet right from the start of reforms, most international economic observers harbored profound skepticism towards China’s unorthodox path and expected it to fail disastrously. Curiously, this disbelief has persisted through decades of stellar growth, moderated only recently by the increasingly obvious fact that we are witnessing the greatest sustained economic expansion in human history. But economists over the world still struggle to understand just how the Chinese bumblebee has been able to defy the laws of economic gravity in such a conspicuous way.

This lecture will argue that the problem is inherent in traditional economic theory, which is by construction incapable of capturing the process that has taken place and thus fundamentally insufficient to provide us with the full explanation. Instead, there is a need for a more holistic understanding of the underlying social transformation necessary for growth to take hold in developing economies.

Outlining a different interpretation of China’s reform process and its success factors, Mr. Malik will provide some generalized lessons useful for other countries as well as a look into the future prospects of the Chinese economic endeavour.

Mr. Khalid Malik is a development practitioner with extensive leadership and management experience. Educated as an economist at the universities of Oxford, Cambridge, Essex and Punjab, he has held a variety of key managerial, technical and policy positions in UN/UNDP both in the field and at headquarters.

Mr. Malik is currently serving as the UN Resident Coordinator and UNDP Resident Representative in China (since August 2003).

Odissi Indian Classical Dance by Sitara Thobani - Sept 24 - 7pm

Sitara Thobani will present Odissi Indian classical dance

Odissi dance is steeped in rich artistic and spiritual traditions, characterised by its striking poses, complex rhythmic footwork and emotional intensity. The dance and its practitioners were once significant in temple worship. However, after undergoing serious decline during the colonial era, Odissi was revived in the mid-twentieth century. This performance pays homage to the groundbreaking work of the dedicated artists who devoted their efforts to reconstructing and continuing Odissi dance. In doing so, it brings together both traditional and modern concepts within this art form.

Experience an evening of dance, music and drama as Sitara Thobani showcases some of the most captivating choreorgaphies of this style.

About the Artist:
Sitara Thobani began training in Odissi under Dr. Ratna Roy in 1997. She has also undertaken intensive training in India at the esteemed Nrityagram dance school and with leading choreographers in Bhubaneswar, Orissa. She has performed at many cultural and art events in Canada, the United States, India, Tanzania, and London, England. Her performance highlights include the Second and Third International Odissi Conferences (Washington, DC, 2003; Bhubaneswar, Orissa, 2006), the Mahari Festival (Bhubaneswar, 2007) and her solo productions of Arpan (London, 2006) and Sthayi (Vancouver, 2007)

At the Jericho Arts Centre
1675 Discovery

Tickets $15
ONLINE RESERVATIONS or 604-913-4368 or at the door
www.jerichoartscentre.com

New Asia Film Festival - Free Screening - Sept 27 - 7pm

Lecture Hall, Richmond Cultural Centre
7700 Minoru Gate, Richmond
7pm – 10:30pm

778-869-3278, ying@cinevolutionmedia.com

Presented by Richmond Cultural Centre & Cinevolution Media Arts Society

Way of Fortune
(China/2007/Director: Chang Chao Wei/73 min/CNEX/Documentary) Mandarin + English subtitles
The 2008 Beijing Olympics have really shaken up the westerners; the world is both astounded and perplexed by this new China’s considerable wealth and prosperity. What are the factors that led to the current economic development? What is the driving force of fortune-making in the Chinese history? How do Chinese people see money and wealth? What are the challenges China has to face in the future? This documentary seeks answers to these important questions.

Shanghai Quest
(America /2007/Director: Kim Taylor /78 min/ Documentary) Mandarin/ English+English / Mandarin subtitles
The Paris of the Orient in the 20s and 30s, Shanghai is now the New York of the Far East. Three Westerners abandon their respective lands of opportunity to try and “make it” in China. The film provides us with an open view of contemporary urban China and the astonishing rate with which the city has undergone a 
“lifestyle revolution” since the economic reforms of 1992.

The Cinevolution Media Arts Society will present a series of free monthly film screenings every fourth Saturday leading up to the 2nd annual New Asia Film Festival, May 8-10, 2009. A one-time only membership fee of $5 must be purchased to enter the theatre and is valid for any screening until April 30th, 2009.

Call for Volunteers - Vancouver Asian Film Festival

Every November, dozens of dedicated and enthusiastic volunteers from Metro Vancouver get together to make the Vancouver Asian Film Festival a success. VAFF volunteers serve in a variety of capacities including box office and ticket handling, front of the house, audio/visual equipment operators, coordinators for receptions, hosts for special Festival guests, and more! Most importantly, VAFF Volunteers have fun meeting industry people and making new friends. Be part of the VAFF team and help support the local Asian Canadian filmmaking community!

More info & to sign up:
http://www.vaff.org/volunteer

UBC Women's Volleyball vs. Zhejiang (China) - Sept 25 - 7pm

When: Thursday, September 25, 2008 7:00 PM - 9:00 PM download
Where: UBC Point Grey Campus
Description: UBC Women's Volleyball vs. Zhejiang (China)

Time: 7:00 p.m.
Location: War Memorial Gym
Tickets: $10 adult/$4 youth and senior/$2 student

Come out and cheer on the 2007-08 CIS Champions as they take on a visiting team from China in women's volleyball preseason action.

WINNING IS MORE FUN WITH YOU THERE!!!
Don't forget to get your season's pass -- get you into every home game for every sport.
$50 adult/$20 youth/$10 student (Blue Crew)

For more information, including previews, recaps, and a complete season schedule, head to gothunderbirds.ca

NBC UNIVERSAL OPEN CASTING CALL! - Sept 22 & 23

SEEKING ETHNICALLY DIVERSE & MULTI-CULTURAL ACTORS
Talent representatives from NBC Universal, Los Angeles, will be in Vancouver to meet diverse actors for non-specific roles. Specifically seeking East Indian, African American, First Nation, Asian and Latino actors.

DATES
Monday, September 22nd
&
Tuesday, September 23rd

TIME
10:00am-12:00pm

LOCATION
North Shore Studios
Building 4
555 Brooksbank Avenue
North Vancouver, B.C.
(Studio is located next to Park and Tilford Shopping Center. Plenty of street parking)

* Please bring picture, resume and demo reel (if available)

This open call is designed to add diverse, new faces to our expanding talent pool for film and television (Psych, Battlestar Galactica and Eureka)

For more information on NBC’s Diversity Initiatives go to www.diversecitynbcuni.com

Gumboot to China - Sept 5 - 7:30pm

Silk Road Music presents a fascinating performance of Chinese and African dance. Highlife,Gumboot and Step-dancing from the African diaspora, Central Asian music of Xin-Jiang, colorful dance and costumes of hill tribes from Yunnan to the Mongolian plateau. The journey will unite some of Vancouver’s finest artists: Jacky Essombe, a heart warming Cameroonian dancer; Jessica Jone and Cheng xin Wei, a highly creative team redefining Chinese dance; Qiu xia He on Chinese pipa and vocal, Andre Thibault on guitar, oud and winds plus Pepe Danza on world percussion.

Enchanted Evenings Concert Series
Dr. Sun Yat-Sen Classical Chinese Garden
578 Carrall Street, Vancouver

All concerts begin promptly at 7:30pm. Doors open at 7pm.

Ticket Prices: $18.00 (non Garden members) and $15.00 for members.

Call 604-662-3207 ext 208 for tickets or email assistant@vancouverchinesegarden.com

Silk Road Music
www.silkroadmusic.ca
www.myspace.com/silkroadtocanada

Wild Birds - Carvings by Tad Yesaki | Photographs by Roy Hamaguchi - Oct 2 to Dec 24

Nikkei Place, 6688 Southoaks Crescent, Burnaby, BC.

This exhibition celebrates wild birds through the works of two Nikkei artists—photographer Roy Hamaguchi and woodcarver Tad Yesaki. A full-colour book about the artists and their art, written by Donna Yoshitake Wuest, featuring photographs by Hamaguchi and the graphic design by Lotus Miyashita, will accompany the exhibition.

Tad Yesaki began, as a youngster in the mid-1940s, carving decoys for duck hunting in Picture Butte, Alberta, where his family relocated during the internment years. As his appreciation for the beauty of birds emerged, Yesaki’s craft of carving decoys evolved to the art of carving decorative birds. He has exhibited his carvings in shows and competitions throughout BC’s Lower Mainland and across Canada and the United States. He’s won numerous prizes, including two firsts at the Canadian National Wildfowl Carving Championship in Kitchener, Ontario in 2008.

Roy Hamaguchi’s interest in photography also began in the mid-1940s at Minto Mine, near Lillooet, where his family had evacuated to during WWII. His adventures in photography have taken him from the Canadian Arctic to the Serengeti in Africa to Asia, yet some of his favourite locations are right here in beautiful British Columbia. Hamaguchi’s photographs have been featured across Canada, including at the 1986 International Ornithological Conference in Ottawa and in a permanent exhibition of his bald eagle photographs at the Brackendale Art Gallery. His photographs have appeared in publications such as Marsh Notes, Canadian Geographic, Equinox, Nature Canada, Time-Life, and Beautiful British Columbia, and on a Canada Post stamp.

Public Programs

The following programs will be held in conjunction with the exhibition. All programs are open to the public, free of charge.

Reception
Thursday, October 9, 7pm
Please RSVP to museum@nikkeiplace.org or 604.777.7000 ext.109.

Speaker Series
Two Cranes, Two Continents
By Roy Hamaguchi
Thursday, November 6, 7pm
Roy Hamaguchi will give a digital presentation on two species of cranes, the Sandhill Crane of North America and the Red-crowned Crane of Asia. As a species, they are the oldest living birds in the world. Come and witness their intimate behaviors as they struggle to raise a family and glimpse at some of their human-like antics.

Carving demonstration
By Richmond Carvers Society
Saturday, November 22, 2-4pm
Come see members of the Richmond Carvers Society demonstrate carving in a variety of styles. The Richmond Carvers Society is a non-profit organization dedicated to the advancement of woodcarving as a hobby and an art form. Starting in 1988, the Society has grown to become one of the largest in the area with a membership of 60 carving enthusiasts.

Speaker Series
From Dumpsite to Dragonflies
By Patricia Banning-Lover and John Lowman
Saturday, November 29, 2pm
An inspiring story of how Wild Bird Trust - a fledgling conservation organization - turned the former degraded industrial area at Maplewood Flats into the North Shore's first wildlife sanctuary.

Patricia M. Banning-Lover co-founded WBT in 1993, was President for eight years and is now the Trust's CEO. In 1997 she was presented with the federal Certificate of Environmental Citizenship by Environment Canada. Patricia has four grandchildren.

John Lowman took up bird photography in 2001 prompted by a series of encounters with spectacular predators like Osprey and Northern Pygmy-Owl in the Conservation Area at Maplewood Flats. Since that time he has worked in conjunction with Wild Bird Trust of British Columbia to document the wildlife residing in and passing through Maplewood, and create photographic art in the process.

Please join us for this Wild Birds exhibition program at the Japanese Canadian National Museum in Burnaby, from October 2 to December 24, 2008.

Supporters:
British Columbia Waterfowl Society
Patricia M. Banning-Lover
CustomColor Professional Imaging Lab
Ducks Unlimited Canada
George Reifel
Richmond Carvers Society
Wild Birds Trust

National Nikkei Museum & Heritage Centre
tel 604.777.7000
6688 Southoaks Crescent, Burnaby,
www.jcnm.ca / www.nikkeiplace.org

The Mighty Asian Moviemaking Marathon (MAMM) Gala - Sept 6 - 6:30pm

The Vancouver Asian Film Festival's "The Mighty Asian Moviemaking Marathon (MAMM)" contest premieres a record-breaking fifteen new short films, and rewards the top three, at a gala premiere screening and awards ceremony on Saturday, September 6.

Awards are courtesy of the Cineworks Independent Filmmakers’ Society, and the top three films will be screened on Shaw Multicultural Channel (SMC) as well as receive a spot in the lineup of this year’s upcoming 12th annual Vancouver Asian Film Festival (VAFF) running November 6–9. The event is hosted by VAFF at Tinseltown, followed by a wrap party at Kentizen Fusion Lounge in the International Village.

“The contest was capped at fifteen teams, and fifteen entrants past the finish line is a record for us — people are responding to the direction we’re taking. From the quality and variety of story outlines shown at the pitch, we’re very excited to see the results,” says Grace Chin, MAMM Coordinator.

MAMM is the Lower Mainland’s only annual short film contest with a declared diversity angle. It entered its fourth successful year with a new, more serious filmmaking direction this August, by dropping random elements and compulsory themes, and by incorporating an adjudicated story concept pitch session; a shorter final film length; a longer contest duration that approximates the production timeline of a typical low-budget independent film shoot; and awards with a filmmaking community-building and educational focus.

At least two of each team’s key creative members must be from a visible minority, and at least one of the key creative team members and lead actors must be of Asian heritage. Otherwise, the evocatively abbreviated MAMM is an exhilarating, challenging filmmaking event that fosters local entertainment industry talent and gives independent filmmakers a focused opportunity to produce a film festival-ready short film. Past entries have been accepted in film festivals, screenings and for airing on cable television throughout North America.

From August 10 to August 26, filmmaking teams of 10 members or less had almost a month to produce a short film with a maximum 9-minute length, of a specific genre. The films were judged by a panel of experienced industry professionals, and scriptwriting mentorship was available to all teams.

The MAMM premiere screening and awards ceremony are at 6:30 pm on Saturday, September 6, followed by a wrap party at 9 pm. There will be a second screening of all films the same evening, at 9:45 pm. For a limited time, “combo” tickets are available at $20 in advance for both the first screening and the wrap party.

Visit www.vaff.org/events for more information and to purchase tickets.

This year’s Mighty Asian Moviemaking Marathon teams (alphabetically):

Team Name | Team Leader | Genre(s)

A.L. & Associates | Alphonse Leong | Action/Drama
alwaysfurther | Patrick Collins | Comedy
Band of Buddhas | Suzi Nitta Petersen | Comedy
Chubby Brothers | Vincent Ternida | Comedy
Darkhorse | Ian Tang | Comedy/Detective
Daydreaming | Krista Jang | Comedy
Eggroll Express | Victor Khong | Comedy
Eyelash King & His Illegal Aliens | Jonas Salzburg | Love/Comedy/Myth
Fuku Fun | Kana Sawamoto | Comedy
Fumbling Chopsticks | Byron Lee | Love/Comedy
Mad Rush | Alan Yu | Action/Drama
Maplewood | Erick Boychuk | Comedy/Romance
North Films | Jeff Chan | Romantic Comedy
SPAZZ | Lau Tin Pak | Romance
Stray Cat | Chris Tom | Comedy

Come and celebrate the art and accomplishment of some of our community’s best up-and-coming talent!

Visit www.vaff.org/events for more information and to purchase tickets.

TaiwanFest 2008 - Aug 30 to Sept 1

Plaza of Nations
750 Pacific Blvd, Vancouver

One Day Pass: $12.00

FREE for kids aged 12 and under, and seniors aged 65 and over.

Tickets are available during admission on the days of the festival.

Taiwanese Canadian Cultural Society was established in 1991, helping immigrants to adapt the Canadian society and promoting cultural harmony. This organization introduces Taiwanese culture through large-scale events such as hosting the annual award-winning Taiwanese Cultural Festival, and Lunar New Year in Taiwan Exhibition and other multicultural activities. With continuing effort, they are striving to make the Taiwanese Canadian voices heard.

http://www.taiwanfest.ca/events/tcf08/vancouver/programming.php

The Japan Film Show - Sept 20 - 1:15pm

The Consulate General of Japan presents
THE JAPAN FILM SHOW
A Double Feature Matinee

Saturday, September 20, 2008
at Pacific Cinematheque
1131 Howe Street, Vancouver

FREE ADMISSION
RESERVATIONS RECOMMENDED
event@consuljpnvan.com

At 1:15 p.m.

Togenkyo No Hitobito (Shangri-La) 2002, 104 min. colour
(Japanese with English sub-titles)

When Umemoto's small printing company's biggest client, Uwazoko-ya goes bankrupt, he appeals to the president, Kourishima, for payment but is rebuffed. Consequently, he's about to lose everything and lands in a community of homeless called "SHANGRI-LA." There, after receiving some unconventional advice, a scheme to avenge Kourishima's treatment of him in an elaborate money con-game begins. This film is a collaboration between non-stop film machine, Takashi Miike, and the best selling comic book artist/novelist Yuji Aoki in an adaptation of his autobiographical novel. (unclassified)

At 3:10 p.m.

Shinkokyu no Hitsuyo (Breathe In, Breathe Out) 2004, 123 min., colour
(Japanese with English subtitles)

Seeking a fresh start in life, Hinami heads to a remote Okinawan island to work harvesting sugarcane and finds herself among four very diverse youths. Together, they must harvest 70,000 plants for the elderly plantation owners to avoid ruin. The hard labour, their foreman's leadership, and rising conflicts make the option of quitting attractive and the chance of a successful harvest doubtful. (unclassified)

Through the Lens of Japanese Canadian Redress - Aug 19 to Sept 21

An exhibition about Japanese Canadian internment and redress

Japanese Canadian National Museum presents
Re-Shaping Memory, Owning History:

Through the Lens of Japanese Canadian Redress

Nikkei Place, 6688 Southoaks Crescent. Burnaby, BC.

Japanese Canadian National Museum presents a unique history of Japanese Canadians to commemorate the 20th anniversary of redress. Violations of human rights were conducted against Canadians of Japanese ancestry, under the War Measures Act, between 1941 until 1949. The federal government’s acknowledgement of wrongdoing and compensation, on September 22, 1988, redressed the past. Layers of voices, drawn from government documents, newspapers, books, poetry, diaries, letters, and oral histories, together with poignant photographic images and memory-laden artifacts, speak to losses and absences, and of issues of community, identity, representation, and human rights.

VAFF's THE MIGHTY ASIAN MOVIEMAKING MARATHON 2008 - deadline Aug 8

The Vancouver Asian Film Festival presents the 2008 Mighty Asian Moviemaking Marathon

Choose a genre. Pitch your story. Make the film.
Free your creativity, keep it real, and have a blast making movies this summer! For the fourth year running, the Mighty Asian Moviemaking Marathon raises the stakes.

MAMM is 17 days this year – running from August 10 to 26!

WHAT’S NEW FOR MAMM 2008?

Compulsory elements? What compulsory elements? Choose your genre, (almost) any genre, or combination of genres. That’s it. Pitch your story to a panel of industry professionals, just as you would have to if you were actually trying to get a film made (which you are). Shoot and edit a 9-minute film, a full minute shorter than in previous MAMMs – because less, is really more. Get awards (if you place in the top three) that help you develop as a filmmaker, and see a film project through from start to finish. Have your awarded film shown on television, aside from being screened at the West Coast’s premier Asian film festival. You just might get your own sixty seconds of fame by being interviewed by the media, while you’re at it.

DEADLINE:

Friday, August 8, 2008 – 6:00 PM

REGISTRATION FEE:

$50.00 per team
Fee must be submitted by Friday August 8, 2008, 6 PM

TEAM SIZE:

Each team can include up to 10 crew members
You can include as many actors or performers as you like

TEAM LIMIT:

Registration will be granted to the first 15 teams that apply, in the order applications are received
Hurry! Sign up now!

For detailed information:
http://www.vaff.org/home/sign-up-your-2008-mighty-asian-moviemaking-marathon-team

explorASIAN is a Community Partner of Vancouver Asian Film Festival

VACT Presents The Odd Couple - Aug 13 to 21

Latest VACT comedy asks: Can two polar-opposite Asian guys live together?

This summer, Vancouver Asian Canadian Theatre (VACT) is bringing a fresh and unique twist to the classic Neil Simon play, THE ODD COUPLE. In this hilarious version, the cast will be predominantly actors of Asian-heritage – and for the first time for the theatre company, all performances will include Chinese subtitles.

Tickets are available in advance online at www.vact.ca and at the door

VACT, now in its ninth season continues its run as Western Canada’s only theatre group devoted solely to staging cultural stories focusing on the modern Asian experience in North America. With its new production of Neil Simon’s 1965 smash hit, THE ODD COUPLE, VACT is hoping to bring several segments of the community together. “We really have an opportunity here to grow our audience base in a big way,” says producer and VACT president Joyce Lam. “This production appeals to our core audience of first generation and “Generation 2.0” young acculturated Asian Canadians, but we think we’ll also attract recent immigrant Chinese especially those living in Richmond, plus older Asian Canadians and parents especially those who are familiar with the works of Neil Simon, and then finally every one else who aren’t Asian Canadian but are looking for a unique and entertaining cross-cultural experience.”

THE ODD COUPLE, first performed in 1965, is about two men – one divorced and one estranged and neither quite sure why their marriages fell apart – move in together to save money for alimony and suddenly discover they’re having the same conflicts and fights they had in their marriages. Oscar is a messy, slovenly sportswriter who takes in Felix, a neurotic neat freak news writer. They skip the honeymoon phase of their new arrangement and go straight into the hilarious bickering.

THE ODD COUPLE is directed by actor/director Raugi Yu. Most audiences will recognize him as the hilarious gangster Kam Fong from the CBC Television series, jPod. Oscar is played by actor/journalist Ron Yamauchi and Jimmy Yi plays Felix. In the supporting roles as the poker buddies are Sean Cummings (Speed) and past Sex In Vancouver members Jono Lee (Murray), Tom Chin (Vinnie) and Ed Fong (Roy). And rounding out the cast as the sexy Pidgeon sisters are Carmine Bernhardt (Gwen) and Lissa Neptuno (Cecily).

The Odd Couple by Neil Simon

Roundhouse Performance Centre
Pacific Blvd & Davie (Yaletown), Vancouver

August 13 through 21
All evening performances at 8:00 PM, matinees at 2:00 PM
Tuesdays to Saturdays (evenings) + Sundays (matinees)

Ticket prices
$23 in advance (www.VACT.ca)
$25 by reservation (cash only, pickup at the door) (Phone 778-885-1973)
$25 at the door (cash only)

Service charges are included
Please call for Group Rates

For more ticket information please visit http://vact.ca

VACT (Vancouver Asian Canadian Theatre) aims to produce quality plays in which Asian-Canadians take on culturally or artistically significant roles. VACT works to dispel Asian stereotypes by producing leading and/or supporting roles where Asian-Canadians are depicted realistically in the performing arts.

explorASIAN is a Community Partner of Vancouver Asian Canadian Theatre

SKETCH ON 2 the POWELL STREET FESTIVAL - Aug 3 - 8:30pm

At The Firehall Arts Centre, 280 East Cordova Street, Vancouver

Featuring Asian Sketch Comedy Groups:
SFUU MAN CHU - 2nd place Rice Bowl Winners in 2007 and
The Yangtzers - 2008 People's CHOYS Award Winner from the Vancouver Asian Canadian Theatre's annual SKETCHOFF!#$%!! sketch comedy competition.

SFUU MAN CHU and The Yangtzers will be presenting new sketches reflecting Japanese Canadians humour! Come laugh and celebrate Japanese Canadian heritage with us at The Powell Street Festival.

With Host Tom Chin and dancers from studioone.

14+ Content Level

Tickets $10 general admission, $5 students/seniors + service charges. Purchase ONLINE HERE or reserve by phone at 778.885.1973. At door $12 + $1 Firehall Endowment Fee, cash only. Don't miss out as seating is limited!

32nd Annual Powell Street Festival - Aug 2 & 3

OPPENHEIMER PARK, 400 block of Powell Street

Taiko extravaganza featuring several Vancouver-based taiko groups and Jodaiko, featuring Tiffany Tamaribuchi from California • Martial arts demonstrations • New work by Kokoro Dance commemorating the 20th Anniversary of Japanese Canadian redress • Dress me up in your love, an intimate theatrical experience by Theatre Replacement • Dance performances by Hiromoto Ida/Ichigo Ichieh Dance (Nelson) and mask and mime artist Yayoi Hirano • Launch of pH6,a collection of haiku-inflected poetry by six Asian Canadian writers • Jazz by Yuji Nakajima’s Coracao Boemio • Historical Walking Tours of the Powell Street area • Animated shorts by Japanese Canadian filmmakers

Sensu: An all-encompassing, modern Japanese word meaning “style,” derived from the English word “sense.” Also literally translated as traditional Japanese fan, a symbol of Japanese functional art.

Design is a process of relating. Whether to our time, our place, or each other, every moment of relating is an opportunity for interaction and with interaction, an opportunity for design. By attempting to describe how we live while defining our limitations, design allows us to form our ideas so that they may meet in a level field and be sculpted by those at play. Design from Japan is refined. A limitation of resources combined with an ongoing dialog between the tradition of craft and the chaos of play has created recognizable artefacts from centuries past to the present day. It is both a reaction to the world which has formed it as well as an exemplary method for living in that world.

Sensu will explore how on one side of the field stand the history, tradition, and limitations that have formed our past; and on the other side, stands the contemporary reaction to a modern climate of technology and excess. Where the two interact, stands opportunity. A focus on visual arts, media arts and performances that interact with other media will be evident in Sensu.

http://www.powellstreetfestival.com/festival/this_fest.html

explorASIAN is a Community Partner of the Powell Street Festival

Paul Bae & Jeffery Yu - July 31 to Aug 2 - 8:30pm

It's time for the Asian Invasion!
Two Headliners for the price of one!
Double the laughs for regular price.

604-696-9857

Crash & Burn Tuesdays $5
Pro-Am Wednesdays $5

Century Plaza
Hotel & Spa
1015 Burrard Street, Vancouver

http://www.yukyuks.com/location.aspx?LocationID=12

CBC NEWS: VANCOUVER Launches Chinese Language Website

CBC News: Vancouver, in association with Radio Canada International (RCI), enhances its news delivery to British Columbia’s Chinese communities with a comprehensive news website in Chinese. The news site brings together the best of CBC’s local, national and international news in simplified and traditional Chinese characters. The site (www.cbc.ca/bc/chinesenews ) features the day’s top news stories with content updated several times daily.

“We are always looking for ways to serve the rich diversity of British Columbia, not only in the content of our news but also in the way we deliver it,” explains regional director for CBC British Columbia Johnny Michel. “While the site includes both national and international news it also makes the high quality local journalism CBC News: Vancouver is known for, more accessible to our Chinese communities than ever before.

According to Statistics Canada’s 2006 census, B.C.’s visible minority population grew 21 per cent between 2001 and 2006 and represents 25 per cent of the province’s population of more than four million. Our Chinese communities are the largest of the visible minorities in B.C., making up 40 per cent of this group. Solutions Research Group data indicates that Canada’s Chinese population has the highest online usage amongst Canadians.

CBC News: Vancouver provides the most complete local coverage of the events that shape Vancouver. Twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week, CBC delivers the most up to date and accurate news and weather on TV, Radio and Online. RCI has broadcast around the world since 1945, increasing awareness of Canadian values internationally, as well as its social, economic and cultural activities with new immigrants to Canada.

Radio Canada International presents 'A NEW FACE FOR BEIJING'

Radio Canada International presents a unique and innovative web series 'A NEW FACE FOR BEIJING'.

The series is about a 25 year-old Chinese-Canadian, Jennifer Hsiung, who moved to China to work for CCTV international as their sports anchor 2 years ago. The series documents her integration into the Chinese community and the transformations of Beijing in the last few months.

The atmosphere is Beijing is electric, and the series captures the environment and mood of the people in the capital as the Olypic Games' Opening Ceremony fast approaches.

The series is shot by Jennifer's sister, Tiffany, and together they offer a different lens through which to view Beijing from the point of view of CBC's (Canadian born Chinese) and ABC's (American born Chinese) living in the city. This unique viewpoint has made the series a great success so far.

We invite you to look online and make your own opinion heard at
www.rcinet.ca/rci/pekin

Lehera - July 31 & Aug 1 - 7:30pm

Lehera at the Rhizome Cafe
July 31st
7:30 pm
$10-5
www.Lehera.net

Sun Yat Sen Gardens with guest tabla player
August 1st
7:30 pm
$15

Direct from Bangalore,India,LEHERA brings together their roots in North and South Indian classical music and Western musical forms to create a genre – tripping vibe both energetic and contemplative. Vocals in English and Classical Indian styles intertwine with Hindustani slide guitar, violin, and bamboo flutes driven by exciting Ghatam (Clay pot drum), Konnakol(Carnatic drum language)peppered with funky and bluesy guitaring.

www.tandava.com
www.lehera.net

MADELEINE THIEN Reading - July 17 - 3pm

THE IRVING K. BARBER LEARNING CENTRE, UBC

Born in Vancouver, Madeleine Thien is the youngest of three children of Malaysian-Chinese immigrants. Her first work of fiction, /Simple Recipes/, won the Ethel Wilson Fiction Prize in 2001 and was named a Kiriyama Prize notable book. That same year she published "The Chinese Violin", a children’s book based on the true story of a young girl who emigrated from China with her father. Thien's first novel, "Certainty", was named a Kiriyama Prize finalist in the spring of 2007, just before it was published in the United States. Thien has also received the Canadian Author's Association/Air Canada Award for the most promising writer under the age of 30. The event takes place on Thursday, July 17, from 3 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. in the Lillooet Room (Room 301) in the Irving K. Barber Learning Centre, 1961 East Mall.

A Tribute to HARRY AOKI - July 20 - 2pm

Date: Sunday July 20th
Time: 2 p.m. to 5 p.m
Place: The Firehall Arts Centre, 280 Cordova Street, Vancouver

Harry Aoki, musician/composer/ethnomusicologist, has devoted most of his life to the presentation of world music and intercultural dialogue to promote harmonious diversity in society. Harry continues to pursue this goal of integrating music with other mediums, such as storytelling, poetry, dance or dialogue, for the purpose of celebrating and promoting intercultural understanding on the First Friday of each month at the Nikkei Centre.

A committee of friends and admirers have come together to organize a tribute to Harry and to ensure the continuation of his First Friday Forum.

Please join us for our celebration of Harry's achievements with a special program of multicultural music, storytelling and more by his friends.

Tickets ($26 per person, food & refreshments will be served) are available through the Firehall Arts Centre box office 604-689-0926

THE ODD COUPLE - July 17 to 27

Latest VACT comedy asks: Can two polar-opposite Asian guys live together?

This summer, Vancouver Asian Canadian Theatre (VACT) is bringing a fresh and unique twist to the classic Neil Simon play, THE ODD COUPLE. In this hilarious version, the cast will be predominantly actors of Asian-heritage – and for the first time for the theatre company, all performances will include Chinese subtitles. Also, the show will run in two locations – in both Richmond and Vancouver. Through July 17 to 27, the play will be at the Richmond Cultural Centre and through August 13 to 21, the production moves to Vancouver’s Roundhouse Performance Centre.

Tickets are available in advance online at www.vact.ca and at the door

VACT, now in its ninth season continues its run as Western Canada’s only theatre group devoted solely to staging cultural stories focusing on the modern Asian experience in North America. With its new production of Neil Simon’s 1965 smash hit, THE ODD COUPLE, VACT is hoping to bring several segments of the community together. “We really have an opportunity here to grow our audience base in a big way,” says producer and VACT president Joyce Lam. “This production appeals to our core audience of first generation and “Generation 2.0” young acculturated Asian Canadians, but we think we’ll also attract recent immigrant Chinese especially those living in Richmond, plus older Asian Canadians and parents especially those who are familiar with the works of Neil Simon, and then finally every one else who aren’t Asian Canadian but are looking for a unique and entertaining cross-cultural experience.”

THE ODD COUPLE, first performed in 1965, is about two men – one divorced and one estranged and neither quite sure why their marriages fell apart – move in together to save money for alimony and suddenly discover they’re having the same conflicts and fights they had in their marriages. Oscar is a messy, slovenly sportswriter who takes in Felix, a neurotic neat freak news writer. They skip the honeymoon phase of their new arrangement and go straight into the hilarious bickering.

THE ODD COUPLE is directed by actor/director Raugi Yu. Most audiences will recognize him as the hilarious gangster Kam Fong from the CBC Television series, jPod. Oscar is played by actor/journalist Ron Yamauchi and Jimmy Yi plays Felix. In the supporting roles as the poker buddies are Sean Cummings (Speed) and past Sex In Vancouver members Jono Lee (Murray), Tom Chin (Vinnie) and Ed Fong (Roy). And rounding out the cast as the sexy Pidgeon sisters are Carmine Bernhardt (Gwen) and Lissa Neptuno (Cecily).

The Odd Couple by Neil Simon

Venue #1
Richmond Cultural Centre
7700 Minoru, Richmond

July 17 through 27
All evening performances at 8:00 PM, matinees at 2:00 PM
Thursdays to Saturdays (evenings) + Sundays (matinees)

Venue #2
Roundhouse Performance Centre
Pacific Blvd & Davie (Yaletown), Vancouver

August 13 through 21
All evening performances at 8:00 PM, matinees at 2:00 PM
Tuesdays to Saturdays (evenings) + Sundays (matinees)

Ticket prices
$23 in advance (www.VACT.ca)
$25 by reservation (cash only, pickup at the door) (Phone 778-885-1973)
$25 at the door (cash only)

Service charges are included
Please call for Group Rates

For more ticket information please visit http://vact.ca

VACT (Vancouver Asian Canadian Theatre) aims to produce quality plays in which Asian-Canadians take on culturally or artistically significant roles. VACT works to dispel Asian stereotypes by producing leading and/or supporting roles where Asian-Canadians are depicted realistically in the performing arts.

explorASIAN is a Community Partner of Vancouver Asian Canadian Theatre (VACT)

SPATIAL POETICS VII - July 12

OPENING Saturday, July 12th, 2008 with performances at 7:30pm at Hunt and Gather, and at 8:00pm at Nouvelle Nouvelle
Hunt & Gather, 225 Carrall Street
Nouvelle Nouvelle, 209 Abbott Street
Various poster-boards around Gastown
More information: 604 683 8240

Featuring premieres of collaborative pieces by
Vanessa Kwan & Diyan Achjadi: So long we miss you forever
Madoka Hara & Lee Hutzulak: Shizuku
Natalie Purschwitz & Kimberley Cooper: Street Surgery

Powell Street Festival Society presents the seventh annual Spatial Poetics, an interdisciplinary event which celebrates collaboration, experimentation and innovation by a diverse line-up of artists. The end result will be a collection of new works exploring community, identity, boundaries, and the nature of performance by emerging and established Asian Canadian artists, building on the successes of previous Spatial Poetics events. Contributing greatly to the 2008 Festival theme of SENSU, this edition of Spatial Poetics will allow artists to present design-influenced works in a critically engaging, anything-goes environment. On opening day, Saturday, July 12, the event will be presented as a walking tour during which the audience can view each installation and poster piece in one wander. Performances take place at Hunt and Gather at 7:30pm and at 8:00pm at Nouvelle Nouvelle.

Spatial Poetics VII combines works by partnered artists, Vanessa Kwan & Diyan Achjadi, Madoka Hara & Lee Hutzulak, and Natalie Purschwitz & Kimberley Cooper. These three groups will present an eclectic mixture of print-based works, textile art, dance, music and installation art in various sites throughout Vancouver7rsquo;s Gastown and Downtown Eastside.

So long we miss you forever is a poster project by Vancouver artists Diyan Achjadi and Vanessa Kwan. Focussed in the Downtown Eastside/ Chinatown area, the work imagines a fond farewell from the old signs in the neighbourhood; in the wake of rapid development in the area, they are old friends bidding adieu. Natalie Purschwitz and Kimberley Cooper will create Street Surgery, a lighthearted attempt to investigate the theme of construction in Vancouver. Inspired by the long lasting Vancouver drizzles, Shizuku is an installation by Madoka Hara and music performance with Lee Hutzulak. The project is a reflection of interest in repetitions.

This is a pre-festival event for the 32nd Annual Powell Street Festival, held in Oppenheimer Park and the Firehall Arts Centre on August 2nd and 3rd, 2008.

http://www.powellstreetfestival.com/season/2008/spatial_vii.html

The Konspiracy Group - July 11 - 8pm

Hataken (Tokyo), Gunshae (Vancouver), Connect_icut (Vancouver)

Blim
197 east 17th Avenue, Vancouver

Friday, July 11, 8 pm $7

The Konspiracy Group with support from PSFS presents “a little night music” for your summertime listening pleasure. In anticipation of this year’s Powell Street Festival, we open a cross cultural dialogue between Vancouver and Tokyo. Join us for an evening of electro acoustic collaboration with Pacific Rim ambienteers, Hataken (Tokyo), Gunshae (Vancouver), and Connect_icut (Vancouver).

8th Chinatown Arts & Cultural Festival - July 5, 12, 19, 26

Dr. Sun Yat Sen Park Courtyard
578 Carrall Street, Vancouver

Saturdays in July starting July 5

Art and culture enrich the heart of historic Chinatown! Enjoy four colourful and diverse cultural showcases on July 5 (Asia Day – co-programmed by PSFS), 12 (Africa Day), 19 (Drums Around the World), and 26 (Traditions of Old Russia).

This festival enhances Chinatown’s role as the host of arts and cultural events in the City, promotes the diversity of art forms, and strengthens neighborhood collaborations.

www.vancouverchinesegarden.com

Beautiful Beast - Prints of Wuon-Gean Ho - July 11 to Sept 5

OPENING: Friday, July 11, 2008, 3-6pm, Wuon-Gean Ho in Attendance

Art Beatus (Vancouver) Consultancy Ltd. is pleased to present the print works of Wuon-Gean Ho in a solo exhibition titled, "Beautiful Beast". The exhibition will open with an afternoon reception open to the public on Friday, July 11 from 3pm to 6pm, and the artist, visiting from London, England, will be in attendance. Four series of works will be featured, all sharing recurrent themes of life, death, love, the attractive and repulsive through animal, human and otherworldly subjects. While Ho has had many exhibitions in the UK, USA and Japan, this will be her debut exhibition in Canada. "Beautiful Beast" begins Friday, July 11, 2008 and runs through to Friday, September 5, 2008.

Life, death, memories and nostalgia are common themes in Wuon-Gean Ho's work. As a veterinarian, the artist witnesses death on a daily basis and is moved to reflect her response to these experiences through her art. There is a deliberate ambiguity in many of Ho's works; interactions between human and animal subjects sometimes portray the animals in sleep-like poses, but there is also a sense that the animal may have gently passed on, "I am fascinated by how sleep and death may be confused with each other, particularly in a 2 dimensional image, which lacks the aspects of time and sound". Ho leaves it open to interpretation for the viewer, much in the way she does with her latest series of works, ìMasks Unmaskedî.

Hand printed in her East London studio, the prints in the "Masks Unmasked" series explore the notion that there is more to the surface appearance of humans than meets the eye. Masked faces appear disturbing and haunting, yet mesmerizing and beautiful. Powerful gestural marks and sharp incised lines dominate the faces, while hidden in the depths and layers of imagery are beasts, monsters, angels and lovers struggling within. "As we walk through life, we accumulate memories: ghosts; attachments and connections; nostalgia for the past and expectations for the future. The work focuses on the expression of inner emotions and true histories, and shows faces that are essentially stripped of the mask of social pretences".

Print works by Wuon-Gean Ho in the "Beautiful Beast" exhibition will include the "Masks Unmasked" series as well as her "Spirit" series whose subject is a female figure closely linked to the animal form with a protective and nurturing role; "Puppy Play", showing how dogs playfight in a realistic and terrifying way, yet also appear absurdly unnatural; and "China Love", an imaginary love story between a man and a supernatural woman.

Born in 1973 in Oxford, UK to Malaysian and Singaporean parents, Wuon-Gean Ho graduated with a BA in History of Art, and a professional licence as a veterinary surgeon from Cambridge University before taking up a Japanese Government Scholarship in 1998 to study woodblock printmaking in Japan. In between residencies in the US and Japan, she bases herself in London, working part time as a vet, and creating art and handmade artist books the rest of the time.

Art Beatus (Vancouver) Consultancy Ltd.
108 - 808 Nelson Street Vancouver
t: 604.688.2633 e: info@artbeatus.com

www.artbeatus.com

Origami talk by Joseph Wu - July 19 - 3pm

National Nikkei Heritage Centre
6688 Southoaks Crescent. Burnaby, BC.

'Origami: The State of the Art'

For adults and teens. Free.

Origami artist Joseph Wu discusses the recent development of origami from children's pastime into fine art. Examples of modern origami art will be shown.

Storigami/Origami Time Workshop - July 19 - 1pm

National Nikkei Heritage Centre
6688 Southoaks Crescent. Burnaby, BC.

Saturday, July 19, 2008, 1-2pm

For families ages 6 to adult. Free. Pre-registration is advised.

Email museum@nikkeiplace.org or call 604.777.7000 ext.109

Come and learn to create origami pieces step-by-step and through STORIGAMI, a form of storytelling that uses paper folding. Featuring origami storyteller Yukiko Tosa and origami artist Lisa David, members of PALM (Paperfolders Around the Lower Mainland).

Japanese Canadian National Museum Speaker Series - July 10 - 7pm

Andrea Geiger

Racializing the Far Corners of Empire: Japanese Immigrant Challenges to B.C.’s Efforts to Pass a Natal Act, 1898-1908.

Venue: Nikkei Place, 6688 Southoaks Crescent, Burnaby

Tel. 604.777.7000

Dr. Andrea Geiger will present a talk, which was presented at the British World Conference in 2007, about successful Japanese immigrant efforts to challenge the Natal Acts by forcing the issue in courts. Dr. Geiger is assistant professor of history at Simon Fraser University. She holds a PhD in history, an MA in history and a Juris Doctor degree from the University of Washington, and a BA in Japanese language and literature from Edison State College. Her research interests focus on Trans-Pacific & borderlands history, race, migration, and legal history.

www.jcnm.ca /
www.nikkeiplace.org

Sawan Mela 08 - July 13 - Noon

12 - 8pm

Sunset Community Centre (6810 Main Street)

FREE

http://www.safa.ca/

A whole afternoon of music, art, handicrafts... super fun

Bollywood Under The Stars - July 11 - 9pm

Friday July 11, 6pm. Movie starts at 9pm

Cloverdale Millenium Amphitheatre (176 Street + 64th Avenue)

FREE

http://www.safa.ca/

Pandit Jasraj - June 29 - 7pm

Centennial Theatre (2300 Lonsdale Ave, North Van)

tix 40-60$ @ 604-984-4484

http://www.myspace.com/pjsom

One of the most famous Hindustani classical singers alive. He has won almost every award possible. This is Panditji's first Vancouver performance in years, and may be your last chance to see this legend. Don't miss it!

More info at http://www.panditjasraj.com

Romance of the Phoenix Chamber - June 28 - 7pm

Presented by Vancouver Cantonese Opera

Michael J. Fox Theatre, 7373 MacPherson Avenue, Burnaby

Ticket price: $60, $50, $40, $30

Info & Tickets: Call 604.764.8181 or 604.594.8189

Romance of the Phoenix Chamber was written in the 1960s and has been a classic of the Cantonese opera repertoire in Hong Kong ever since. Though it lacks the elegance of the operas of the renowned Cantonese dramatist, Tong Dig-seng [1917-1959], it is just as popular as “Princess Ceng-ping”. Its uniqueness lies in some innovations that break the mold of most traditional operas. For instance, the theme song is presented in the first act. Moreover, the whole plot is developed around two female characters, who are pregnant but not married, and their pregnancy is displayed blatantly on stage. This was considered fairly daring at the time it was written as pregnancy was considered a taboo in Cantonese opera – something to be heard about but not seen. The commonness of this opera, for example the lowbrow, vernacular puns, definitely appeals to the general public.

Vince Mai Project @ The Yale Hotel - June 24 - 9:45pm

You may know Vince Mai by the sound of his trumpet or his compositions in Canadian film, television, radio concerts and even jingles. In fact if you turned on CBC radio this morning, you heard themes he composed for the Early Edition.

Well.. he has a musical group that will be performing at The Yale Hotel - 1300 Granville Street, Tuesday June 24 - 9:45pm - 1:15am. Admission is FREE.

They'll be playing original tunes, some Latin-flavoured Jazz and Smooth jazz.

The band features Brent Gubbels, Daryl Jahnke, Pepe Danza, Brad Turner, Tim Proznick and Timmy Fuller (TDaddyMack)

Vince Mai
www.mai-music.com
www.myspace.com/vincemai

“Thunder Begins” - Celebration of Drums - June 27 - 7pm

Cheondoong Performing Arts Society proudly presents, “Thunder Begins” - Celebration of Drums, a dynamic two-hour presentation that marks its first official theatre showcase. Translating to “thunder” in English, the word Cheondoong accurately depicts the invigorating passion and energy delivered by the team’s heart-stirring performance that features traditional Korean percussion music with modernistic originality. Team Cheondoong invites you to experience with exhilaration its first thunderous movement. Take an exciting journey into your soul and emotions of life emanating through the sound and motion of the performers. Experience the best of Percussion Music.

Place: Massey Theatre (735 Eighth Avenue, New Westminster)
Date: June 27, 2008 (Friday)
Time: 7:00 pm – 9:00 pm

Tickets: $30 / $20
Purchase from: Massey Theatre Ticket Centre - 604-521-5050

http://www.koreanbeat.org/

BETWEEN THE LAUGHTER - June 17

CBC has scheduled BETWEEN THE LAUGHTER for another telecast on THE LENS on CBC Newsworld on: Tuesday June 17th at 7pmPacific (10pmET), 10pmPT (1amET) and 1amPT (4amET)

Comedy is an unusual pursuit for someone who is hearing impaired - Stephen must work as hard on his pronunciation as he does on his material. "Of course I talk funny.I'm a comedian!" he jokes. Still, the lawyer-turned-comedian never shies away from a challenge. Capturing footage of Stephen in the comedy spotlight, at home and at work, Between the Laughter interweaves lively snapshots of a complex but extraordinary life.

This intimate portrait was shot over a period of nine months. Filmmaker Barbara K. Lee immerses viewers in the heart of the comedian's demanding life, observing him as he spends time with his young son, runs a business with his wife, prepares to move into a new home, and nurtures his blossoming comedy career.

Between the Laughter is directed by Barbara K. Lee and produced by Selwyn Jacob at the National Film Board of Canada (Pacific and Yukon Centre). The film was a winning selection in the NFB's Reel Diversity Competition, a national diversity initiative in partnership with CBC Newsworld.

http://www.cbc.ca/thelens

"Between the Laughter" materials © National Film Board of Canada, 2006.
All rights reserved.

THE LENS on CBC Newsworld - Tuesday at 10pmET/PT
www.cbc.ca/thelens www.cbc.ca/docs
Sign up for our e-newsletter about CBC docs: www.cbc.ca/mycbc/do/newsletter/tvdocumentaries

Powell Street Festival Society's Fundraising event - July 6 - 5pm

An Evening of Sake and Savouries.

5:00 - 6:30 pm

Hapa Izakaya's new Kitsilano location
1516 Yew Street, Vancouver
$45 PSF members/ $50 non-members

Enjoy a sampling of 5 different kinds of sake (courtesy of Blue Note Wine and Spirits Inc.), as well as scrumptious food pairings from Hapa Izakaya kitchen!

Tickets are limited and are available by advance purchase only.
For tickets and information, contact Kristen Lambertson at 604-683-8240 or kristen@dkam.ca

Vancouver Singapore Film Night - June 7 - 4:30pm to 10:30pm

Asia Pacific Bizlinks (APB) and the Toronto Singapore Film Festival (TSFF) are proud to present the inaugural Vancouver Singapore Film Night (VSFN), to be held on Saturday, June 7th 2008 at the James Cowan Theatre at the Shadbolt Centre for the Arts in Burnaby, B.C.

The TSFF has held 3 successful film festivals in Toronto since February 2006, with the recent 3rd TSFF being held from April 4 to 6 which was well attended. This event was well covered by the press and media in Toronto and Singapore. TSFF brings this experience and expertise with us to partner with APB for the organizing of the VSFN.

The VSFN will showcase a movie marathon featuring made-in-Singapore films with genres ranging from action, comedy and horror, to drama, politics and romance.

Tickets are $25 inclusive of two feature films and three short films, as well as a buffet dinner featuring authentic Singaporean/Malaysian cuisine. Available at the James Cowan Theatre at the Shadbolt Centre for the Arts (6450 Deer Lake Avenue, Burnaby), online at: boxoffice@burnaby.ca or by telephone: 604-205-3000

Details of the films that will be screened at VSFN are as follows.

Feature films:

Just Follow Law - Directed by Jack Neo and produced by Simon Leong, Hazel Wong and Kok Siok Mien in 2006. Duration: 111 Minutes. English, Mandarin, Hokkien (English and Chinese Subtitles). Cast: Fann Wong, Gurmit Singh, Brandon Wong, Suhaimi Yusof, Lina Ng, Amy Cheng, Moses Lim and Steven Woon.

Synopsis: Lim Teng Zui is a junior employee working under Tanya Chew, a high-ranking officer in one of Singapore's statutory boards. When Teng Zui's incompetence leads to the injury of a government minister, he is sharply reprimanded by Tanya. Infuriated at being singled out for blame, Teng Zui confronts Tanya. But when their argument leads to a car crash in which they exchange souls, Teng Zui and Tanya are given a rare opportunity to experience life from the other person's perspective.

JUST FOLLOW LAW was an official selection at the 3rd TSFF. It has received a Golden Horse Award nomination for Gurmit Singh as Best Actor.

Visit the film's website at http://www.jteam.com.sg/justFollowLaw and trailer at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=llOiIOppC8A

Director Jack Neo is a familiar name to Singaporeans. Following his success in local television productions like the highly rated Comedy Night, he ventured into filmmaking in 1998 with his debut Money No Enough, Singapore's highest grossing feature film to-date. This was followed by I Not Stupid, Homerun, The Best Bet, and his latest work Just Follow Law. In recognition of his achievements and contributions towards Singapore's media industry, Jack Neo was awarded the 1999 Lifetime Achievement Award and the 2004 Multi-Talent Award from Mediacorp Singapore during the Annual Star Awards. The recipient of the Public Service Medal Award in August 2004 and the Arts Cultural Medallion Award in October 2005, Jack Neo is also known in Singapore as a producer, screenwriter, composer, and singer.

Singapore Dreaming - Directed, written, and produced by Yen Yen Woo and Colin Goh in 2006. Duration: 105 minutes. Mandarin, English, and Hokkien (English Subtitles)
Cast: Richard Low, Alice Lim Cheng Peng, Serene Cheng, Yeo Yann Yann, Lim Yu-Beng, Dick Su.

Synopsis: A dissatisfied husband and his devoted wife, a married couple expecting their first child, and a newly engaged couple looking forward to their upcoming marriage form the core of this poignant yet darkly humorous look at the aspirations of Singapore's middle class. Set against the twin backdrops of the global marketplace and the elaborate rituals of a traditional Taoist funeral, Singapore Dreaming captures the hopes and trepidation of one family looking towards an uncertain future.

SINGAPORE DREAMING was the closing film of the 3rd TSFF. Visit the film's website at http://www.singaporedreaming.com and trailer at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mk2N-SLVxfM

Husband-and-wife team Yen Yen Woo and Colin Goh have made numerous films together, including 3 Meals, Talking Cock: The Movie, and eAhlong.com: Loan Shark Online. The founders of Singapore's most popular satirical website, TalkingCock.com, they are also the compilers of a definitive Singlish dictionary, which the Times of London pronounced 'indispensable'. Singapore Dreaming has been screened around the world to great acclaim, including the Montblanc New Screenwriters Award at the 54th San Sebastian International Film Festival in 2006.

Short films:

Café – Written and directed by Kelvin Sng in 2005. Duration: 22 minutes in Japanese, Mandarin, English, Filipino.

Synopsis: "What is love?" asks Yutaka, a disillusioned Japanese man. He sits in a café night after night watching others' stories unfold before his eyes, trying to find his answer. One night, the tales from three of the surrounding tables respond to him: Candy and May May, two childhood friends, discuss the man who is beginning to come between them; Gabriel and Sophia, long-time lovers, are rushing towards a precipice in their relationship; and a high-school reunion takes an interesting turn. All the while, a beautiful young woman searches for something. Four tables, five stories – Café reflects the cosmopolitan society of modern Singapore while contemplating upon universal ideas of self-deception and hypocrisy.

CAFÉ was the opening film at the 1st TSFF.

Visit the film's website at http://www.cafe.ai-films.com

G23 - Written and Directed by Anthony Chen. Produced by Felicia Tan in 2005.
Duration: 19 minutes · Cantonese, English, Mandarin and Tamil (English Subtitles)

Cast: Rick Tan, Renu Joane, Ding Chu Hui and Li Xie

Synopsis: An usher obsesses over three regular patrons in an old cinema where he works, is empathizing with the reasons they keep returning to this escapist realm. For one of them, it's a caged existence in an ironhanded household; for another, it's the loss of a loved one who had meant everything; for one other, it's the deprivation of love and affection. Little insanities - syndromes that cinema has mediated time and again throughout its history. Fusing moody romanticism with degrees of harsh reality, Anthony Chen's debut short also recalls some recent features set in cinemas, but whose inhabitants are just a tad more incomprehensible - notably Goodbye, Dragon Inn (Tsai Ming-liang, 2003) and its Argentinean homage, Fantasma (Lisandro Alonso, 2006). The title, G-23 refers to the usher's choice seat in the house, much like Susan Sontag's third-row-centre fetish.

G-23 was the opening film for the 2nd TSFF. It was also screened at over 30 international film festivals, notably the Tous les Cinémas du Monde sidebar at the 2006 Cannes Film Festival. It also won awards in Belgium, France, Korea, Malaysia and Singapore.

Blood Ties - Written and Directed by Yuwei Chai in 2007 Duration: 12 minutes. Mandarin and Cantonese with English subtitles

Synopsis: Qing was the sole witness to her brother's murder. But when her brother's murderers turn up dead, things don't appear to be as simple as it seems. Madam Lee, after having to cope with the recent death of her son, now has to deal with the possibility that her daughter is involved with the deaths of these killers.

Visit the film's website at http://www.bloodtiesthemovie.com

For more information please contact:
Albert Lee
Asia Pacific Bizlinks Inc.
Tel: 604-463-9506
Cell: 778-991-3988
Email: asiapacbizlinks@gmail.com

Screenings info: http://vancouver.shawtv.com/smc/smc_singapore.htm#films