Film Independent Forum
October 21-23 2011: Film Independent presented a weekend packed with real world discussions, solutions, and case studies, which reflect the reality of the industry today. Arthur Dong was the focus of the panel, “This Film Has Legs: Extending the Life of your Doc,” moderated by filmmaker Lisa Leeman. For more information:
http://www.documentary.org/magazine/film-independent-forum-career-building-convocation
Sundance Institute’s Documentary Film Program
Goes to China
April 13-16, 2011: Sundance Institute’s Documentary Film Program lead the first ever Institute workshop for independent Chinese documentary filmmakers. Co-hosted with CNEX, a Beijing-based foundation dedicated to supporting artistic documentaries about contemporary Chinese life. Filmmakers Arthur Dong, Stanley Nelson, and Lixin Fan joined Sundance Institute director, Cara Mertes, in providing feedback to filmmakers about their projects. For more information: http://www.sundance.org/filmforward/blog-entry/sundance-institutes-documentary-film-program-goes-to-china/
Beijing LGBT Center Screens Family Fundamentals
April 16, 2011: Beijing’s LGBT Center hosted a SRO screening of Arthur Dong’s Family Fundamentals, with the filmmaker in attendance. For more information:
CALIFORNIA ARTIST GRANT AWARDED
The Center for Cultural Innovation awarded $200,000 in grants to 24 recipients under it’s Investing in Artist program that was established to enhance the working lives and strengthen the creative support system for California artists working in all disciplines. Arthur Dong received a grant for the acquisition of artistic equipment and tools. For more information, visit www.cciarts.org.
FILM ON FOOTBINDING NOW ON DVD
Lotus, the award-winning film about footbinding in 1914 China, is now available on DVD. “This story is not only a fascinating truth about the past in China, it is a story about our choices today,” Gloria Steinem. DVD special features include a letterboxed widescreen version, a showcase of vintage bound feet shoes from the Beverley Jackson Collection and a gallery of archival photos showing women with bound feet. Order now at our online store or call 800/343-5540.
OAKLAND MUSEUM EXHIBITION
Excerpts from Hollywood Chinese were selected for permanent exhibition at the newly renovated Oakland Museum of California. Sequences on Charlie Chan and The Curse of Quon Gwon will be projected continuously in the museum’s Hollywoodland screening room, alongside rare movie memorabilia. Visit our Facebook photo album for pictures.
THE HOLLYWOOD CHINESE MUSEUM EXHIBITION
Hollywood Chinese: The Arthur Dong Collection presents selections from the over 1,000 pieces of movie memorabilia that was collected during the ten-year research for Arthur Dong’s groundbreaking film, Hollywood Chinese. Through posters, lobby cards, film stills, scripts and documents dating from 1916, visitors journey into a vivid and graphic study of how the Chinese have been imagined in the movies. Exhibition dates are October 24, 2009 through November 7, 2010. For more information, please visit this link.
EMMY WIN
PBS’ American Masters won the 2009 Primetime Emmy for “Outstanding Nonfiction Series,” with Hollywood Chinese in the series line-up.
LOS ANGELES DVD LAUNCH PARTY: STORIES FROM CHINESE AMERICA
Visual Communications presents a DVD launch party to celebrate the release of Stories from Chinese America: the Arthur Dong Collection, Vol. 2. Headlining the event will be a screening of the newly scored and restored 1916 film, The Curse of Quon Gwon, the earliest known Chinese American feature film. Dong will be on hand to give a tour of the many hours of extra archival and interview footage that comes with his new DVD anthology. A reception follows. Co-presented by the Chinese American Museum, API-Equality, and CAPE. DOWNLOAD A FLYER
Nov. 6, 2010, Saturday, 3pm
@ The National Center for the Preservation of Democracy
111 N. Central Ave. Los Angeles, CA 90012
Tickets: $12 general; $10 for members of Visual Communications, students and seniors.
Available starting Tuesday, Oct. 12. Please call (213) 680-4462, ext. 32, or visit www.vconline.org
SAN FRANCISCO DVD LAUNCH PARTY: STORIES FROM CHINESE AMERICA
The Asian American Studies Department at San Francisco State University presents a DVD launch party to celebrate the release of Stories from Chinese America: the Arthur Dong Collection, Vol. 2. Headlining the event will be a screening of the newly scored and restored 1916 film, The Curse of Quon Gwon, the earliest known Chinese American feature film. Dong will be on hand to give a tour of the many hours of extra archival and interview footage that comes with his new DVD anthology. The party includes a guest appearance by the Grant Avenue Follies. A reception follows with door prizes. Proceeds from this event support Asian American Studies programs and students @ SFSU. Co-presented by the Center for Asian American Media.
Nov. 13, 2010, Saturday, 12 noon
@ the Four Star Theatre
2200 Clement Street San Francisco, CA 94121
Tickets: $25 minimum donation. Order at Brown Paper Tickets or purchase at the Four Star Theatre box office (415-666-3488). More info: SFSU Asian American Studies, 415-338-2273, aas@sfsu.edu, www.sfsu.edu/~aas DOWNLOAD A FLYER
ARTHUR DONG VISITING ARTIST
@ UNIVERSITY OF NORTH TEXAS
The University of North Texas in Denton will host filmmaker Arthur Dong for two days of screenings and guest lectures, October 18-19. During the day, the filmmaker will make stops at classes in documentary production, directing, and LGBT film theory. Screenings will take place in the evenings, 7:30pm, at the university’s Lyceum Auditorium. Free of charge, the programs include Hollywood Chinese and Forbidden City, U.S.A. on Monday; and for Tuesday, Coming Out Under Fire and Family Fundamentals. For more information, please visit http://web3.unt.edu/news/story.cfm?story=11982
LIGHTS, CAMERA, Q-ACTIVISM!
API Equality-LA will host an all-day media training session for their active core volunteers and for those who wish to join their media efforts. Filmmaker Arthur Dong will share invaluable tips for preparation and shooting out in the field. Videographer Joe Hoffman of Jump House Design will discuss tricks and basic camera operation, and Debra Nakatomi of Nakatomi Associates will cover techniques on how to speak in soundbites and provide effective messaging.
October 23, 2010, 10am-4pm
Asian Pacific American Legal Center
1145 Wilshire Blvd., LA CA 90017
RSVP required, subject to approval
Questions/RSVP: contact@apiequalityla.org, 213/290-5535
LOS ANGELES FILM FESTIVAL JURY
Filmmaker Arthur Dong has been invited to serve on the Los Angeles Film Festival Documentary Competition jury. The Documentary Competition includes films made by talented emerging filmmakers that compete for an unrestricted $50,000 cash prize. Dong has previously served as a juror for the Sundance Film Festival, the International Documentary Festival at Amsterdam, Outfest, the Morelia International Film Festival, and others.
HOLLYWOOD CHINESE SELECTED “ONE OF THE BEST”
The National Federation of Humanities Council selected Hollywood Chinese for it’s inaugural film festival. The eight films chosen showcase the best of films supported by state humanities councils nationwide and will be screened in a month-long series in conjunction with the National Humanities Conference in Omaha. Hollywood Chinese is schedule for a November 5, 2009 screening during the conference. For more information, please visit http://www.omaha09.org/
“HOLLYWOOD CHINESE” LICENSED TO AUSTRALIA
Hollywood Chinese has been licensed to the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, ABC, Australia’s public broadcaster. Negotiations were finalized by Louise Rosen, Ltd.
PBS NATIONAL BROADCAST PREMIERE
From the sexed-up Suzie Wong to the kung fu fighting Bruce Lee, PBS’s American Masters tackles issues of race and representation in Hollywood Chinese. Timed for broadcast during Asian Pacific American Heritage Month, American Masters: Hollywood Chinese premieres nationally Wednesday, May 27, 2009 at 9 pm on PBS (check local listings). For more information, please visit http://www.pbs.org/wnet/americanmasters/episodes/hollywood-chinese/introduction/1146/
TELEVISION CRITICS ASSOCIATION PRESENTATION
The Television Critics Association featured Hollywood Chinese at their annual Winter Press Tour held January 8, 2009 at the Universal Hilton in Los Angeles. Participating were actors Nancy Kwan, B.D. Wong, and James Hong, filmmaker Arthur Dong, and American Masters executive producer, Susan Lacy. See exclusive photos at: http://www.flickr.com/photos/pbs_press_tour/sets/72157612281507049/“HOLLYWOOD CHINESE” LICENSED TO AL JAZEERA
Hollywood Chinese has been licensed to the Al Jazeera broadcast network. Al Jazeera is the largest and most controversial Arabic News Channel in the Middle East, offering news coverage 24 hours a day from around the world and focusing on the hottest regions of conflict. Founded in 1996, and based in Qatar, the Al Jazeera news network is the fastest growing network among Arab communities and Arabic speaking people around the world. For more information, please visit http://english.aljazeera.net/
ISRAEL TELEVISION BROADCAST
Hollywood Chinese has been licensed to Yes-TV Israel, the sole satellite television provider (DBS) in the country. Yes-TV provides television services to more than half a million customers. Hollywood Chinese international television agent, Louise Rosen, negotiated the sale. For more information, please visit http://service.yes.co.il
“HOLLYWOOD CHINESE” DVDs NOW AVAILABLE
Advance DVDs of Hollywood Chinese are now available for purchase. Starring Ang Lee, Nancy Kwan, Joan Chen, B.D. Wong, Amy Tan, Wayne Wang, and David Henry Hwang, with special appearances by veteran actor Christopher Lee (Fu Manchu) and double Oscar® winner Luise Rainer (The Good Earth). Featuring a dazzling treasure trove of clips from over 90 films, including Better Luck Tomorrow, Big Trouble in Little China, Brokeback Mountain, Charlie Chan in Honolulu, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, Enter the Dragon, Father of the Bride, Flower Drum Song, The Good Earth, The Joy Luck Club, The Last Emperor, The Vengeance of Fu Manchu, The World of Suzie Wong, and the newly re-discovered 1916 film, The Curse of Quon Gwon, the earliest known feature made by Chinese Americans.
Educational and Institutional editions of the DVD include a study and discussion guide.
LICENSED TO KILL LAUNCHES PROBE INTO HOMOPHOBIA IN TURKEY
The Istanbul International Independent Film Festival presented a special screening of Licensed to Kill to kick off the program, “What? Where? How? When? Why? Who? Homophobic Hate Crimes and Murders.” A panel discussion with activists and professionals discussed the growing number of homophobic hate crimes and murders in Turkey. Among the participants were Lambda Istanbul activist, Dr. Begüm Başdaş, İzlem Aybastı (Psychologist), Bora Bengisun, Fırat Söyle (Lawyer), Özlem Çolak (Psychologist), and moderator Aykut Atasay. The program took place on February 12, 2010.
For more information, please visit http://2010.ifistanbul.com/en
LICENSED TO KILL SELECTED FOR HUNGARIAN SOROS/SUNDANCE EVENT
The OSA Archivum in Budapest, Hungary has selected Licensed to Kill for a retrospective screening series that presents some of the most outstanding documentaries that were supported by the Soros/Sundance Documentary Fund the past fifteen years. The program is slated for March 2010.
For more information, please visit www.osaarchivum.org