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Bruce Lee at the 2010 LAAPFF

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Bruce Lee at the 2010 LAAPFF

As difficult as it may be to believe, the legendary Bruce Lee, would have turned 70 years old this year. And while it may — or perhaps not — be difficult to imagine him as a septuagenarian still beating down bad guys, what can’t be denied is decades after his passing, he remains as influential as ever.

In tribute to and in celebration of the martial arts, action film and cultural icon, the 2010 Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival, in association with his widow, Linda Lee Cadwell and daughter Shannon Lee and their Bruce Lee Enterprises, are organizing a Special Bruce Lee Program at this year’s festival beginning sundown Friday, April 30 at the new Madang Center Courtyard in Los Angeles’ Koreatown with a free screening and other events throughout the weekend.

The Bruce Lee celebration kicks off with a free outdoor screening of THE CHINESE CONNECTION and after party on Friday, April 30 and continues the following day at noon with a special screening of ENTER THE DRAGON followed immediately by a panel discussion entitled, “How Bruce Lee Influenced Pop Culture” featuring daughter Shannon, directors Reginald Hudlin (HOUSE PARTY, THE BOONDOCKS) and Brett Ratner (RUSH HOUR, X-MEN 3: THE LAST STAND), ENTER THE DRAGON co-star Bob Wall and musician Joseph Hahn from the rock band LINKIN PARK.

For the celebration’s finale, a special panel discussion entitled, BRUCE LEE: THE FAMILY MAN featuring Linda Cadwell and Shannon Lee and Goddaughter Diana Lee Inosanto takes place 4 p.m. Sunday at The Directors Guild of America.

The full Bruce Lee Birthday Celebration schedule with details:
BRUCE LEE, CULTURAL ICON: 70th BIRTHDAY CELEBRATION
The Los Angeles Pacific Film Festival is pleased to collaborate with Bruce Lee Enterprises in honor of the 70th birthday of martial arts legend and Asian American cultural icon/actor Bruce Lee.

• FREE OUTDOOR SCREENING:
THE CHINESE CONNECTION
Friday, April 30, 7PM, Madang the Courtyard (FREE Parking)
621 S. Western Ave. (one block north of Wilshire Blvd.),
Los Angeles – Koreatown.
Featuring a pre-screening live performance from rock band LiLA (Lost in Los Angeles) Event is free.

THE CHINESE CONNECTION is “the” film that introduced Bruce Lee to young urban and Asian American audiences (contains action and violence; parental guidance suggested) back in the 70’s!

• FESTIVAL SCREENING and PANEL DISCUSSION:
ENTER THE DRAGON
Saturday, May 1, 12:00 p.m., Laemmle Sunset 5
8000 W. Sunset Blvd. (at Crescent Heights), West Hollywood, CA 90046

ENTER THE DRAGON is considered to be the quintessential Bruce Lee film with an all-star cast of marital artists and actors

Plus Panel Discussion: HOW BRUCE LEE INFLUENCED POP CULTURE
A martial artist agrees to spy on a reclusive crime lord using his invitation to a tournament there as cover. Includes a special post-screening panel with Shannon Lee, Directors Reginald Hudlin and Brett Ratner, martial artist/actor Bob Wall and rock musician Joseph Hahn of Linkin Park, and moderated by Phil Yu of angryasianman.com.
This screening and panel discussion is a “ticketed” event Tickets available at www.vconline.org/festival or at box office.
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• SPECIAL PANEL DISCUSSION:
BRUCE LEE: THE FAMILY MAN
Sunday, May 2, 4:00 p.m., Directors Guild of America, Atrium
7920 Sunset Blvd. (one block west of Fairfax Ave.), West Hollywood, CA 90046
An intimate chat with widow Linda Lee Cadwell, daughter Shannon Lee, and moderated by director/stuntwoman/martial artist and God-daughter Diana Lee Inosanto
This event is free.

THE BRUCE LEE 70th BIRTHDAY CELEBRATION is part of the 2010 Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival, which also features 170 films from over 20 countries beginning April 29 and ending on May 8, 2010.

Enter the Dragon (Behind the scenes)

Ken Ochiai films at 2010 LAAPFF

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Ken Ochiai films at 2010 LAAPFF

Award winning director, Ken Ochiai will screen three of his films, “Half Kenneth,” “Lucky Lotus,” and “No More” at the 2010 Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival (LAAPFF). The films were selected by over 1000 submissions and it is extremely unusual to screen three films by the same director. He will attend the screenings for Q&A.

Most notably “Half Kenneth,” a heart warming story about half-Caucasian/half Japanese brothers who escape from the Japanese American internment camps, has been selected by over 30 international film festivals all over the world and won numerous awards including the Best Short Film at the Rome International Film Festival, Governor of Tokyo Award and Best Short Film at the Short Short Film Festival which is the biggest short film festival in Asia and an Oscar qualified film festival.

Ochiai is the first Japanese native to win the Special Jury Prize from Directors Guild of America for directing “Half Kenneth.” “Making this film was my way of expressing my gratitude and appreciation for those brave immigrants who have opened many closed doors and allowed me to pursue my dream in the U.S. Without them, I wouldn’t have been able to come this far.” said Ochiai at a recent award acceptance speech.

Screenings for Ken Ochiai films will be held at the Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival:

May 1st Saturday
Half Kenneth
PROGRAM21 6:00 PM
Sunset 5
8000 Sunset Blvd Los Angeles, CA 90046

Half Kenneth synopsis:
1945: after the death of his father, Ken escapes Japanese American internment camp to find his Caucasian mother who lives in town. Things become complicated, however, when Ken’s little brother, Jo, joins him at the last minute.

Half Kenneth Trailer

May 1st Saturday
Lucky Lotus
Program17 10:00PM
Directors Guild of America
7920 Sunset Blvd Los Angeles, CA 90046

Lucky Lotus synopsis:
Cong is an aging beauty and a hustling business woman who is also a loving, but controlling mother to her daughter, Lien. Cong owns and operates Lucky Lotus, a prominent hostess bar where men come for flirtatious conversation and friendship. Her daughter Lien is one of the most popular hostesses at Lucky Lotus, but she is tiring of the bar lifestyle her mother forged for her. When Cong discovers that Lien has other aspirations, Cong forgets that she is a mother and instead tries her best to manipulate Lien into staying at Lucky Lotus. Will this obsessive mother learn to let go?

Lucky Lotus Trailer

May 4th Tuesday
No More music video
PROGRAM52 9:15PM
Downtown Independent
251 South Main St Los Angeles CA 90012

We can’t figure out how director Ken Ochiai did this music video. There are forward and backward sequences to form a cohesive music video with a story line. You have to see it to understand what we’re talking about.

No More music video teaser

More about Ken Ochiai

Ken Ochiai made his first film at age 12. Immediately following his high school graduation, he left his hometown of Tokyo to pursue his dream of becoming a film director in the United States. Ken graduated from the University of Southern California’s School of Cinema-Television Production and the American Film Institute’s M.F.A Directing program. He has made more than 30 short films, commercials, and music videos and won over 10 international accolades. Ken also worked on Inception (Waner Bros.) as an interpreter for Christopher Nolan on Japan Unit. He is currently working as a professional writer/director in LA and has a number of projects in development in Japan and the U.S including two feature scripts “Summer 47” and “Half Kenneth.”

Dilated by FPS Productions

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Dilated

FPS Productions at UCLA is premiering ‘Dilated’, an intense action film shot for less than $10,000, yet featuring a high-octane car chase, military HMMWVs, and a cast and crew of more than 200 people. They will also be showcasing ‘Off Campus’, a TV pilot about five disparate roomies trying to make sense of the long days and decadent nights of college, as well as other short films by other UCLA artists and filmmakers. (NOTE: Our LA correspondent Steve Nguyen is one of the producers of ‘Dilated.’)

DILATED:

Left for dead, abandoned, and confused, test subject D.I.C. cant recall anything about his past life. With a group of relentless mercenaries hot on his tail, all he knows is that they want him dead or alive. Slowly unraveling a sinister plot perpetrated by the highest levels of government, he learns that he may be the key to solving a mysterious, adverse epidemic that threatens the very fabric of society; a fact that still doesnt stop him from kicking ass and going out with a bang.

OFF CAMPUS:

An original television comedy about five tight-knit college roommates searching desperately for meaning in the madness of a hysterical three-way relationship, a friend’s failed suicide attempt, and a slew of nightly antics only peripherally related to class.

For more information, visit the website or the Facebook event page.

Watch the Dilated trailer here:

Asian Showcase at 2010 Newport Beach Film Festival

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Asian Showcase at 2010 Newport Beach Film Festival

On Wednesday, April 28, 2010, the 11th annual Newport Beach Film Festival will present its Asian Showcase, an evening celebration of Asian cinema and culture. The event will feature premiere screenings of acclaimed Asian films, followed by a festive post screening gala. Representing China, Japan, and Korea, the Asian Showcase will give filmgoers an opportunity to experience Asian film and culture at its finest.

The showcase will feature the regional premieres of Sophie’s Revenge as the Chinese Spotlight, Air Doll as the Japanese Spotlight and Private Eye as the Korean Spotlight. Sophie’s Revenge was a box office hit in China and stars Zhang Ziyi as a graphic novelist whose boyfriend has left her for a famous actress. Her plans to seek revenge reveal, in time, a deeper understanding of life and love.

Sophie’s Revenge trailer

From the award-winning director, Hirokazu Kore-Eda, Air Doll, is the modern-day Pinocchio story of an inflatable plastic doll, maid costume and all, which comes to life. The journey through her new world prompts key questions of existence. Where do we find meaning in our own lives? What ultimately makes us human?

Air Doll trailer

A favorite on the film festival circuit, Private Eye, is a well crafted mystery-thriller. Set in 1910, the film tells the story of a Korean “Sherlock Holmes” who must help a local doctor, accused of murder, prove his innocence.

Private Eye trailer

The films will screen at the Edwards Island Cinemas, located in Fashion Island at 999 Newport Center Drive in Newport Beach. Attendees can choose one of the three Showcase films and participate in the after event.

Wednesday, April 28, 2010
7:30 p.m. – Air Doll (2009, Japan, 125 min)
7:45 p.m. – Private Eye (2009, Korea, 111 min)
8:00 p.m. – Sophie’s Revenge (2009, China, 107 min)

The post-screening celebration will take place at RED Night Club, located at 4647 MacArthur Boulevard, Newport Beach, CA 92660. RED Night Club is the top ultra lounge in Orange County – Offering an upscale blend of exotic eastern and sophisticated western ambience. Admission to one of the Asian Showcase films and the post event is $35.00. For ticket and information and updates visit www.NewportBeachFilmFest.com

2010 Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival

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As Southern California’s largest and most prestigious film festival of its kind, the 2010 Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival (LAAPFF) launches the celebration of Asian Pacific Heritage Month through this year’s slate of over 170 films and videos from both Asian Pacific American and Asian international directors from 20 countries. Over the past 26 years, the festival has presented over 3200 films and videos by Asian American and Asian international artists since 1983. This year, 36 feature films and 134 shorts and videos will be showcased throughout the 10-day fest.

Berlin Film Festival hit film AU REVOIR TAIPEI from LAAPFF alum/USC grad filmmaker Arvin Chen will open the festival on Thursday, April 29, 2010 at the DGA at 7PM with the filmmaker and cast scheduled to attend the Los Angeles premiere. The romantic comedy executive produced by German film director Wim Wenders and produced by LAAPFF alum In-Ah Lee (The Grace Lee Project, American Zombie) was an audience fave in Berlin.

AU REVOIR TAIPEI Trailer

Another LAAPFF alum, filmmaker Quentin Lee (Drift, Ethan Mao, Shopping for Fangs) brings his hit sex comedy THE PEOPLE I’VE SLEPT WITH to the fest as the American Centerpiece film on Saturday, May 1, 2010 at the DGA at 7PM with director Lee, screenwriter Koji Sakai and film’s stars Karin Anna Cheung (Better Luck Tomorrow), Archie Kao (CSI, Desperate Housewives), and Wilson Cruz (He’s Just Not That Into You, My So Called Life, Noah’s Arc) in attendance.

THE PEOPLE I’VE SLEPT WITH Trailer

Le Thanh Son’s action packed film CLASH – Vietnam’s current box office smash is slated for the LAAPFF International Centerpiece premiering on Sunday, May 2 at 7PM at the DGA. CLASH reunites the team behind the LAAPFF 2007 closing night film The Rebel and stars Johnny Tri Nguyen and Veronica Ngo in this hard-hitting thriller. Incorporating stylish action sequences and stunning cinematography, the film continues to propel the current Viet Wave Cinema. Cast members will join Director Le Thanh Son at the LA premiere.

CLASH Trailer

In a World Premiere slot, the 2010 Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival is proud to present THE MIKADO PROJECT from Festival alum Chil Kong on Saturday, May 1 at 9:30 PM at the DGA. The comedy centers on an Asian American theater troupe – The Angry Buddha Theater Ensemble – as they try to mount the popular theater piece after they lose their leading male star. Director Kong and his all-star cast of actors including Tamlyn Tomita, Erin Quill, David McInnis, Allen Liu and Ryan Yu and others are slated to attend the gala event.

This year, the LAAPFF will present the North American premiere of the hit South Korean comedy THE ACTRESSES from director E. J-yong in the Special Sneak Preview slot on Saturday, May 8 at 7PM at the Downtown Independent Theater. Shot as a documentary, this comedy send-up is an inside look at the dramatics of six of the most famous actresses in Korean film who were gathered together by Vogue Korea for a photo shoot on Christmas Eve 2008. The multi-generational cast played themselves and worked without a script creating their dialogue, while playing up the varied facets of their respective private and public personas. With THE ACTRESSES, it’s always about the drama on and off screen for stars Youn Yuh-jung, Lee Mi-sook, Choi Ji-woo, Ko Hyun-jung, Kim Min-hee and Kim Ok-vin.

Closing out this year’s fest is the Southern California premiere of the current Hong Kong smash BODYGUARDS AND ASSASSINS from director Teddy Chen and featuring an all star cast including Tony Leung, Simon Yam, Donnie Yen and kickboxer/MMA fighter Cung Le. This blockbuster action film will be presented Thursday, May 6 at 7PM at the Aratani Japan America Theatre in Little Tokyo in Downtown Los Angeles with actor Cung Le at the gala.

BODYGUARDS AND ASSASSINS Trailer

Something special this year at 2010 Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival will be the celebration of Asian American icon Bruce Lee’s 70th birthday. Together with Bruce Lee Enterprises, the festival will highlight the life of this legend with special screenings including a free outdoor screening of the classic THE CHINESE CONNECTION on April 30 at Madang the Courtyard in Korea Town at Western and Wilshire Blvd. and a special screening ENTER THE DRAGON on May 1 at Noon at the Laemmle’s Sunset 5 and an outdoor free screening In addition, two special panel discussions are scheduled as follows:

· May 1 – 1:30 PM following ENTER THE DRAGON screening with filmmakers Reginald Hudlin and Brett Ratner, president of Bruce Lee Enterprises Shannon Lee, actor/martial artist Bob Wall and others to be announced. Guests will discuss the impact of Bruce Lee on world wide pop culture.

· May 2 – 4:00 PM at the DGA Atrium – a special panel with the Lee Family and friends including wife Linda Lee, daughter Shannon Lee, God-daughter/actress Diana Lee Inosanto and others to be announced. The guests will discuss Bruce Lee as the man, the father, the husband, and the friend.

This year marks a strong year for non-fiction works at the LAAPFF with submissions way up than other years. The 2010 documentary line-up includes award winners and premieres and a special spotlight on Academy Award® winner/LAAPFF alum Freida Lee Mock. Some of the films are:
· LAST TRAIN HOME – Lixin Fan
· ENEMIES OF THE PEOPLE – Rob Lemkin and Thet Sambath
· ONE VOICE – Lisette Marie Flanary
· STATE OF ALOHA – Anne Misawa
· A VILLAGE CALLED VERSAILES – S. Leo Chiang
· IN THE MATTER OF CHA JUNG HEE – Deann Borshay Liem
· MAMACHAS DEL RING – Betty M. Park
· BEIJING TAXI – Miao Wang
· AOKI – Ben Wang and Mike Chang
· MACHO LIKE ME – Helie Lee
· MY TEHRAN FOR SALE – Granaz Moussavi
· LT. WATADA – Freida Lee Mock
· SING! CHINA – Freida Lee Mock

One of the ongoing objectives of the LAAPFF is to support and present the best of Asian American filmmakers. This year, these films include many filmmakers who are based in the US, but have gone to Asia to film, as well as those here at home:
· AU REVOIR TAIPEI – Arvin Chen
· GOD IS D_AD – Abraham L. Lim
· KTOWN COWBOYS– Daniel Park
· THE MIKADO PROJECT – Chil Kong
· RASPBERRY MAGIC – Leena Pendharkar
· SF STORIES – Raul Jocson
· STRANGERS – Michael Aki
· THE TAQWACORES – Eyad Zahra
· THE PEOPLE I’VE SLEPT WITH – Quentin Lee
· CLASH – Le Thanh Son
· THE MOUNTAIN THIEF – Gerry Balasta

For ticket and program information and to purchase tickets, go here or contact Visual Communications at (213) 680-4462 x68. Tickets are on sale now online.