Emir

I really loved Emir in spite of the fact that musicals usually drive me crazy.  Maybe it's because I'm Filipino and so is this film.  I've been longing for a renaissance in Filipino cinema, but it seems to be a long way off... which is why I found this film so impressive, the production values and acting quality were quite good compared to most Filipino movies I've seen.

Filipinos have a flare for melodrama....I once saw a commercial for a Filipino TV show (it may have been a movie) that consisted of--I shit you not--a carousel turning in slow-mo, a guy running up to the carousel, looking around for somebody, not finding them, then a zoom in to the guy's face where a single tear rolls down his cheek.  It was 100% serious.  So yeah, Filipinos have a tendency to overdo the emotionality in cinema, and do what they call "OA" or "over acting."  The whole OA concept seems to just be a way of life...and we all know that corny overacting really lends itself to musicals, which is part of what really made Emir work, I think.

The film follows Amelia ^ a Filipino girl from the middle of nowhere that goes overseas to be a maid.  The story kind of both pokes fun at/is a tribute to the "OFW" or "overseas Filipino worker."  The story actually follows Amelia until she is like middle aged...they used the same actress which works, I guess, with Asians because you can never really tell how old we are, anyway...

Some of the ballads really dragged but the dancey numbers were really fun.  Oh and, Filipino names are awesome.  Sup, Boyong?

I brought my mom with me to see the film because she actually grew up in the Philippines and speaks good Tagalog.  I really lucked out that this film showed right here in my hometown of San Jose during the SJ portion of the SFIAAFF.  Unfortunately, after this film, all the festival excitement that's been brewing lately is over!

Chickenproof

On Friday I headed out with a couple of friends to the Chickenproof shorts program at the SFIAAFF to see my friend Kevin Ung's short, Chubby Can Kill.  The program was at New People, a sort of gallery-cum-cafe-cum-shop-cum-cinema in San Francisco.  I'd been before, it's a cool spot, but I'd never had the chance to see anything at the Viz Cinema (they show Japanese films!) prior to this event.  I hope to catch more in the coming months.

The theme of the night as I interpreted it seemed to be unlikely heroes and surprise endings.  

cool poster

Masala Mama was the first film; a funny little comic book themed short.

Next up was Junko's Shamisen.  This was filmed with an interesting mix of live action, stop motion and animation...it looked really cool.  The story was a sort of Japanese fairy tale (not sure if it's a real one).  It was a kind of a cool Japanese/Canadian vibe with parts in English and Japanese.  This one showed at SXSW too!

Hang in There was a stop motion using paper dolls...it looks a lot cooler in motion than it does in the above picture.  It was cute/disturbing...I think this was a music video, I can't find it on IMDB!  

For some reason I couldn't find Gophers in Space on IMDB, either.  At first I was like "eh" about this, but the surprise ending was funny enough to win me over.  It feels like something that probably started as a joke between friends and became a movie.

Amazonia was another CG short.  It was cute and entertaining and it's clear that a lot of work, heart, and soul went into this short!

To Wander in Pandemonium  was cool in spite of the slightly overwrought title.  This was one of the two most professional looking films screened that night.  I discovered during the Q&A that the director, Edward Kim , went to UCLA (my alma matter, although I did not study film).  COOL~?

The Godmother was a sort of action-comedy-parody-homage to both The Godfather and Jersey Shore (from what I could tell).  This was a USC thesis film...they always say that film students at USC get a lot of money to work with, and it really showed with this film, I think.  It looked really professional and I enjoyed it. We actually had a chance to converse with the director and the producer after the screening and they were both really cool.

Finally, my friend's film Chubby Can Kill was the last film screened.  It's about a fat guy ^ who decides to take control of shit, etc.  It was funny and I really liked the color palette in the scenes in the video shop.  I thought the acting was all quite good too and that "Chubby" did particularly well/was funny.  It wouldn't have worked out without him, I don't think!  I was really glad to finally see my friend's film!  It's crazy to think that we all pretty much grew up together.

Some shots of New People--

my camera sucks. this is my friend Tammy, who was kind enough to drive...but my camera made her the same color as the orange walls ^^;

the theater interior is pretty snazzy with light decorations.  a bit much for a theater, but still cool.

Q&A after the screenings.

cool chandelier detail.

SFIAFF Opening Night Gala

I was last minute invited to the San Francisco International Asian American Film Festival opening night gala by an old friend, Kevin Ung (you can read about Kevin's thoughts on the gala here), whose short, Chubby Can Kill, is playing at the festival.  I'm super thankful that Kevin invited me, because I'd never really gone to an event like this.  It was...interesting.  We met all types...directors...wanna-bes..."been there done that the world is so passe" types...everyone.  

The event was held at the Asian Art Museum.  A great museum and a logical choice for an Asian Am film festival party...but I'm not sure the small foyer is the best place to cram so many people!  The whole museum was available for perusal as well, though.  There were plenty of free drinks and  hors d'oeuvres, and it was fun.

sponsored by Toyota

some museum shots. a great time to get them because it wasn't crowded with regular patrons.

We me this guy, James ^ who was really interesting. I saw a man leaning against the wall in overalls not talking to anybody and I was thinking he was an employee or something.  We walked up to him and struck up a conversation and it turned out that he is just a dude from San Francisco that loves Asian cinema.  We spent a lot of time talking with him about film and he was really interested in Kevin's short.  I am so glad we talked to this guy.

After they told everyone "party's over, get the hell out of the museum", I bummed a cigarette from some people who looked in-the-know outside and figured out where the afterparty was through them.  Seriously, bumming a cigarette is my best social tactic.  I'm not really even a smoker anymore but it's a great way to strike up a conversation.  The afterparty was at Passion Cafe, a bar kinda straddling the Civic Center/sketchy Tenderloin district.  There we met and conversed with many interesting people.  It was great.

A blogger revealed.  This is me with one of the actors from West is West, the opening night film that we unfortunately did not make it out to...! I loved his look, I think he has an intense face so I really wanted a picture.  Me, on the other hand...I just looked faded in this picture (hence the pound sign).