Boston Asian American Film Festival

shorts: be true

Saturday, October 22, 2016, 1:30 PM

Bright Family Screening Room, The Paramount Center
559 Washington Street, Boston MA
(T: Park Street, Downtown Crossing, or Boylston)

Be honest. Be determined. Be insightful: BE TRUE
Depicting the courage of conviction, BE TRUE depicts the challenges and triumphs of being authentic. Shining the spotlight on the LBGTQ Asian American community’s inner and outward struggle to embrace identity while honoring family and community; respecting traditional views as they compete with modern relationships; bridging the generation gap through the discovery of common threads and finding the superhero in each of us…BE TRUE beckons us to do just that.

Got it Maid | Encore | The Monkey King is in Town | Fanny Pack | Bá | Gayasians | Pamanhikan

Followed by Q&A with
Gaysians
Vicky Du, Director

Pamanhikan
Angelo Santos, Director

Co-presented by:

Got it maid

2016 | USA | 12 mins | Drama
Directed by Shawn-Noel Semana

When her son presents her with an opportunity to sing again, Mila, a hardworking, underprivileged Filipina maid, must decide if she is willing to chase after her dream and leave the life she has grown accustomed to

Director's Bio:
SHAWN-NOEL SEMANA is an independent filmmaker from Seattle, WA. As a graduate from UCLA's School of Theater, Film and Television, he created several narrative shorts, including his directing thesis, Got it Maid. He has worked as a videographer, production designer, producer and editor on many independent projects from musicals to feature films. Upon graduating, he founded Soarin' Productions, a production house which attempts to seek out untold stories from disadvantaged communities and share them in a unique and uplifting way. He plans to continue his passion for storytelling while serving in the US Navy as in officer.

encore

2016 | USA | 3 mins | Drama (Animated)
Directed by Jerry Suh

A girl with a passion for music struggles to continue playing as no one accepts her "terrible" music until a street musician shows her something very special.

Director's Bio:
JERRY SUH: I am a Visual Development Artist, specializing in establishing the unique and distinguished aesthetic styles and mood of animated series. Animation has always been my huge passion and inspiration since I was very little. I still vividly remember the moment I watched the opening scene of the Prince of Egypt and teared up with overwhelming emotion. To pursue my career for animation, I went to Savannah College of Art and Design to receive BFA in Animation. Since then, I have constantly been involved in critically acclaimed productions including Student Academy Nominated film Baxter as an Art Director. I have been very fortunate to work with Pixar Animation Studios, Microsoft Game Studios Headquarters as an intern, Psyop, JibJab, Gentleman Scholar, Awesome Inc, and Nickelodeon Animation Studio as a designer/illustrator. Through my art, I aim to bring audience to the world of the narrated story in forms of animation. I strive to bring meanings and stories for each piece so it can communicate with audience beyond its aesthetics.

the monkey king is in town

2016 | USA | 11 mins | Drama
Directed by Liang Ce

9-year-old Chinese American Alex struggles to find a Chinese superhero costume for a halloween party. Later, he obtains courage through making his own Monkey King costume and decides to fight against a school bully for his friends.

Director's Bio:
LIANG CE is a Chinese filmmaker with diverse cultural background. He obtained a BA in Communication Studies in Nottingham University with three years in the China campus and one year in the U.K. campus. During undergraduate, he did volunteer jobs in Ecuador and has traveled to countries like France, Italy and Germany. After graduation, he works mainly on short film projects as a line producer and production manager in China. He also worked on big co-production TV projects in Israel and Greece.

After he had written and directed several short films, he decided to come to America to systematically study the craft of good storytelling and improve himself in a faster pace. He is currently studying at Chapman University for a MFA degree in Directing.

fanny pack

2016 | USA | 11 mins | Comedy
Directed by Uttera Singh

Fanny Pack is a comedy about a young Indian-American woman who wants to follow her dreams, and a fanny pack clad Indian father who chases his daughter through an airport hoping that she will follow his.

Director's Bio:
Drama has always been a part of UTTERA SINGH'S life. On the day she was born, her 9 months pregnant mother was hit by a firecracker, and her father rescued the mother and rushed her to the hospital. That’s how this real life firecracker was born. That fiery spirit is still very much alive in her. Uttera is an MFA graduate of the USC School of Cinematic Arts. She is the recipient of the Ryan Murphy Diversity Fellowship and just finished directing her thesis film “Fanny Pack” a proof of concept for a half hour TV show starring Brian George from Big Bang Theory and Seinfeld. Her one-woman show “ Indian Lady Shakespeare wears Underwear” is set to premiere in Los Angeles in the fall. Uttera was chosen as one of the directors on the USC/James Franco feature film “Mad Whale” starring Camilla Belle, Dominic Rains, Summer Phoenix and James Franco. Uttera lives in Los Angeles and spends her time going on adventures and then writing about them.

Bá

2015 | Brazil | 13 mins | Drama
Bruno, a 5-year-old Japanese-Brazilian boy, has his life turned upside down when his Japanese grandmother moves in to live with his family. He has to give up his bedroom as well as the backyard, his favorite territory in the house, where he used to play soccer every day. The yard is taken by the large collection of potted plants that the grandmother brings to the house with all her belongings. The little boy resents her presence in his house until she welcomes him into her world, teaching him how to take care of the plants. The arrival of the grandmother, however, disturbs the routine of everyone in the household and when the conflicts inside the family peak, the little boy realizes that his grandmother has invaded his heart.

GAYASIANS

2016 | USA | 13 mins | Documentary
Directed by Vicky Du

GAYSIANS is an exploration of family, immigration and language through the voices of five queer and trans Asian-Americans from New York City.

The subjects share stories about their families, and in doing so, shed light on the complicated histories that have shaped these intimate and personal relationships.

Director's Bio:
VICKY DU is a Taiwanese-American documentary filmmaker based in New York City. Her short film Gaysians was selected for Outfest,Frameline and Newfest. She is currently developing a feature on the birth tourism experiences of single Chinese women in the US.

PAMANHIKAN

2016 | USA | 29 mins | Mockumentary
Directed by Angelo Santos

Pamanhikan showcases the Filipino marriage tradition where the parents of an engaged couple meet for the first time. This comedy about two grooms' parents meeting tackles the quirkiness of interracial relationships, examines the dysfunction of family and challenges traditional views on marriage.

Director's Bio:
ANGELO SANTOS is an award-winning writer, director and short film producer. His screenplay for Pamanhikan was awarded Best Screenplay Short at the 2013 Vail Film Festival. Pamanhikan has been screened at several film festivals, winning an Audience Choice Award at the 2016 Ithaca Pan Asian American Film Festival and a Programmer's Award at the 2016 Disorient Asian American Film Festival of Oregon. Angelo has worked in the production departments for corporations such as New York Life Insurance Company and for reality TV shows, most notably Project Runway. He is ambitious in getting into a writer's room while continuing to write narratives about being gay and Asian-American.