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MAY 6 - 12:00 p.m. • Directors Guild of America, Theater 2
Alone with someone they may or may not want to be with, the characters in this diverse collection of well crafted shorts find ways to work out their troubles with their "other". From rivals, to friends, to couples, each film explores a unique story of a partnership in transition.
TRT: 95 minutes
THE END OF AN ALLEY (Kol-mok-eui-Kkeut)
(South Korea, 2005) Dir.: Hung Won Chan
Kindly Sergeant Park, on his last day patrolling a luxurious residential street in Ilsan, shows the ropes to rookie patrolman Private Han. Park, ever courteous, loves the calmness and richness in this village. He wants to live here one day. But while Sergeant Park steps away temporarily, Corporal Kang assaults Private Han for the heck of it...
Video, 25 minutes, color, narrative, in Korean w/E.S.
NO MENUES PLEASE
(United States, 2005) Edward Shieh
Two competitive immigrants embrace an ingenious solution while distributing restaurant menus. But Ming (Richard Chang) quickly learns that competition is tough in New York City. When his job is in jeopardy, he must take action to keep his vision of the American Dream alive.
Video, 15 minutes, color, narrative
TYCHO'S NOVA
(United States, 2005) Dir.: Soo Jin Hwang
Finn, an Asian girl who was abandoned and rescued by a fisherman, has a mysterious light in her chest. Whenever she sings, her light begins to glow brightly. However, the more she is eager to sing, the more she fears her lights will burn out and she will leave her father figure, the fisherman. Her choice to sing, to reach for her dream regardless of the outcome, might seem wrong to some people. But that is how she must live her life...like a supernova.
Video, 15 minutes, color, narrative
THE KISS
(United States, 2006) Dir.: Huy Chheng
Two brothers who are nothing alike find out that they have more in common than the same last name. Neal is a U.S. Marine and Andy is a nerdy PhD student, resolve to make both of their girl problems go away by determining that, just like in the movies, kissing the girl of their dreams is enough to win her heart. They both learn, however, that sometimes a kiss is just a kiss and other time a kiss can turn the world upside down.
Video, 20 minutes, color, narrative
NEW YEAR
(United States, 2005) Dir.: Susan Tuan
On a stormy New Year's Eve in Mississippi, 1959, an old black gas station attendant and a young Chinese immigrant struggle to communicate, momentarily lifting each other from their lonely existence.
Video, 13 minutes, black & white, narrative
HAPPY HAMPTONS HOLIDAY CAMP FOR TROUBLED COUPLES
(United States, 2005) Dir.: Greg Pak
A man and a woman work out their relationship problems at a holiday camp. But he gets the hiccups, which raises the question of what he's really hiding...
Video, 7 minutes, color, narrative
MAY 6 - 12:00 p.m. • Laemmle's Sunset 5 Theatre
Whether literal or figurative, the task of enacting change is not for the meek. Just ask the protagonists of this quintet of revealing short works, who must deal with a changing of the guard, the passage of time, emotional disconnection, and finding a human connection in the age of AIDS. When the weight of the world is on one's shoulders, there is nothing else to do but lift.
TRT: 83 minutes
CHESSMEN, THE
(United States, 2004) Dir.: Ken Kokka
An aging Japanese American nurseryman befriends a young carnation grower, inadvertently hastening his own downfall in this intimate portrait of life in California after internment.
16mm, 18 minutes, color, narrative
MUSIC PALACE
(United States, 2005) Dir.: Eric Lin
Once a central part of community life, Chinatown's movie palaces are nearing extinction. As New York's last Chinatown movie theater is about to close, its caretakers ruefully look back at the life that was.
35mm, 9 minutes, black & white, documentary
UNDER CONSTRUCTION (Gong sa joong)
(South Korea, 2005) Dir.: Lee Hyung-suk
A man conducts covert construction activities in his apartment, going so far as to lease increasingly elaborate power tools at the local hardware shop to get the job done. But what was the ultimate result of his "construction?" A unique take on the task of recovering one's lost humanism.
35mm, 22 minutes, color, narrative, in Korean w/E.S.
MISSING
(United States, 2005) Dir.: Kit W. Hui
Trying to uncover the disappearance of his girlfriend, Samuel follows a mysterious trail of notes she has left behind, and catches a haunting glimpse of New York.
35mm, 14 minutes, color, narrative, in Cantonese w/E.S.
LUCKY
(United Kingdom, 2005) Dir.: Avie Luthra
Lucky is an AIDS orphan desperate to leave his rural Zulu village for the bright lights of Durban. He is full of excitement and hope until he moves in with his uncle who just wishes he wasn't there. As so Lucky has to learn about life the hard way, not through school or education, but through an unlikely bond with a racist Indian neighbor.
35mm, 20 minutes, color, narrative
MAY 6 - 1:00 p.m. • Directors Guild of America, Theater 3
From an insane asylum to a quiet bedroom to a ticket booth, in here, conflict and desire have but one friend. Whether it is finding a shoe, a state of mind, or even a protection of choice, the characters in this eclectic program of shorts are left to confront their hopes and desires alone.
TRT: 86 minutes
WAKE
(United States, 2005) Dir. Keun-Pyo Park
WAKE is the heartbreaking story about a 5-year-old girl who spends four days in a small apartment when her mother doesn't wake up from sleeping, and not understanding the concept of death.
Video, 17 minutes, color, narrative
INSIDE
(South Korea, 2004) Dir.: Park In-chul
Hee-sun works in a lottery booth believing that she can know what he or she is like if seeing somebody's hand. She clings to a man whose hands are beautiful and he always comes every Monday. She opens the booth door and comes out to meet the "Monday's man."
Video, 15 minutes, color, narrative, in Korean w/E.S.
DANCING PEE
(United Kingdom, 2005) Dir.: Minkuen Choi
A guy in desperate need to relieve himself can't use public toilets if someone is there because of a terrible accident. Focusing on the terrible accident in the present tense, we see how a normal guy is driven mad by it. The film comes and goes between reality and fantasy reflecting K's state of mind.
Video, 13 minutes, color, narrative
LOST SOLE
(Singapore/Australia, 2005) Dir.: Sanif Olek
Haji Sabtu embarks on a journey of regression when he fails to locate his sandals after a Friday noon solat at the mosque.
Video, 19 minutes, color, narrative
TAKE IT OR LEAVE IT?
(United States, 2005) Dir.: J.P. Chan
A young woman prepares for a blind date-and all its possibilities.
Video, 4 minutes, color, narrative
TOBA TEK SINGH
(United States/Pakistan, 2005) Dir.: Afia Serena Nathaniel
Based on a short story by Saadat Hasan Manto, TOBA TEK SINGH is set against the backdrop of 1947 where India has just been partitioned into "India" and "Pakistan." The governments of India and Pakistan wish to exchange lunatics. TOBA TEK SINGH is a search for an identity in a world suddenly gone mad.
Video, 18 minutes, color and black & white, narrative
MAY 6 - 2:15 p.m. • Laemmle's Sunset 5 Theatre
Desire, Partnerships, and Friendships can be fleeting or full. This set of short works challenges any single notion of a love story. At times excruciating, exhilarating or introspective, relationships and/or human motivations are artfully explored in this compelling program.
TRT: 99 minutes
SATURDAY MORNING
(United States, 2005) Dir.: Phil Yu
It's early. But sometimes life's simple pleasures beckon.
Video, 2 minutes, color, narrative
JAY WALKING
(Philippines, 2005) Dir.: Gerard James C. Gutierrez
A young man loves his girlfriend. After their first intimate night together, he becomes more aware of the possible consequences of what they did. When he was younger, he thought that if he had sex, he would be able to prove his manhood to himself, akin to a rite of passage; similar to his best friend whom he looks up to because of his sexual experiences. However, after his first night with his girlfriend, he slowly realizes how relationships are.
Video, 15 minutes, color, narrative
BLUSH
(United States, 2005) Dir.: Jerome Austria
A cat. A mirror, A dream. Nothing is as it seems in this fairy tale exploration of a young woman's struggles with maturity. When a mysterious cat decides to appear at the doorstep of young Sara, she begins to question what is real and what is just fantasy.
Video, 17 minutes, color, narrative
THE FEVER IN DEEP BLUE SEA (Kang-reung-ei-seo)
(South Korea, 2005) Dir.: Lee Jang-wook
Elite student, Bo-yung runs into problem students, Tae-wook and Jin-hwan, who were in a rock band. Five years earlier, the three became friendly and attended a school field trip in Kangneung together. There, an incident occurred that remained unspoken until Tae-wook and Bo-yung's reunion, during which some secrets are revealed about that trip five years ago.
Video, 22 minutes, color, narrative, in Korean w/E.S.
WORKING OUT
(United States, 2006) Dir.: Michael Velasquez
A young man fastidiously works out in order to keep in shape, a stark contrast to his inability to maintain a relationship when all that's needed from him is a little tender lovin' care.
Video, 7 minutes, color, narrative
WAKE
(United States, 2005) Dir.: Kevin Inouye
A coming of age story about an introverted college student, and the girl whose poem causes him to have the same dream night after night.
Video, 24 minutes, color, narrative
4 LOVE POEMS
(United States, 2005) Dir.: Dominic Mah
4 LOVE POEMS is an imagistic, non-narrative piece based on poems written by the director. An expansion on "3-5 AM," the vignette that leads off the film, 4 LOVE POEMS reveals a story to each poem...but it's suggested, rather than exposed.
Video, 12 minutes, color, narrative
MAY 6 - 2:30 p.m. • Directors Guild of America, Theater 2
CONVENTIONEERS
(United States, 2005) Dir.: Mora Mi-Ok Stephens
Massey, a Republican delegate to the Republican National Convention, falls into an unlikely affair with a girl he knew in college-Lea, a Liberal who has returned to the city to protest the Republican agenda. Both are political virgins who have surrounded themselves with like-minded colleagues and have never really confronted the "enemy " in the flesh. Meanwhile, Dylan, a former protester who dropped out of the scene after becoming a father, must also confront his dedication to the cause when he is hired as a sign language interpreter for the President's speech at the convention. When he tells his activist friends about the job, they try to convince him to stage a protest during the President's speech instead. The tension builds as Dylan reaches the convention floor itself, takes his place next to the President, while Massey and Lea try and find each other in the chaos outside. What follows will test their beliefs about politics, love and commitment, and will push buttons on both sides of the divide.
Video, 95 minutes, color, narrative
MAY 6 - 4:00 p.m. • Directors Guild of America, Theater 1
THE MISTRESS OF SPICES
(United Kingdom, 2005) Dir.: Paul Mayeda Berges
In a scented shop in the enchanted town of Oakland, California, the mistress works her magic. One of a secret clan of women, Tilo (Bollywood superstar Aishwarya Rai) deals in fenugreek, lotus root, chilies, cinnamon - roots, plants and powders from all over the world. Drawing on ancient wisdom, she measures out remedies to cure heartache, banish bad luck and rescue the wretched from life's wrong turns. Tilo opens her shop doors to the whole neighbourhood: Haroun (Nitin Ganatra), the taxi driver with a dark cloud over his future; Geeta (Padma Lakshmi), the woman in love with a forbidden man; and Jagjit (Sonny Gill Dulay), the adolescent drifting from his family into a thug life. Tilo has a remedy for each, so long as she abides by the rules of her craft: use her power for others, not herself; never leave the spice shop; never touch another's skin. All this seems simple, until she meets an American man (Dylan McDermott) who tempts her far beyond her boundaries. Adapting Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni's acclaimed novel, director Paul Mayeda Berges and producer Gurinder Chadha (BEND IT LIKE BECKHAM) concoct a film in which spices not only excite the senses, but can heal the spirit.
35mm, 92 minutes, color, narrative
MAY 6 - 4:00 p.m. • Directors Guild of America, Theater 3
This search for identity will lead the viewed from a bookshop in Vancouver to a call center in India, over the pole to (somewhere in Canada) and into the animated and imagined mind. Who we are can be defined by what we do, what we believe and what others think. But rarely is it as simple as what we look like. Go beneath the surface to find what lies beneath.
TRT: 91 minutes
WHAT ARE YOU ANYWAYS? (De Toute Façon, Qu'est-ce Tu Es?)
(Canada, 2005) Dir.: Jeff China Stearns
Filmmaker Jeff Chiba Steams explores his cultural backgrounds growing up a mix of Japanese and Caucasian in a small white-bred Canadian city. This classically animated film looks at particular periods in Jeff's life where he battled with finding an identity being a half minority. WHAT ARE YOU ANYWAYS? is a humorous yet serious story of struggle and love and finding one's identity through the trials and tribulations of growing up.
Video, 11 minutes, color, animation
COMRADE DAD (Lao Ba Tong Zhi)
(Canada, 2005) Dir.: Karin Lee
Writer/director Karin Lee reflects on her father Wally Lee and the Communist bookstore that he ran on Vancouver's Skid Row from the mid-1960s until early 1980s. COMRADE DAD explores both the person and the effect that his ideological beliefs had on his family, set within the political landscapes of Canada and China at the time of the Cultural Revolution. It is also a little-known story about how a segment of Vancouver's Chinese community embraced Chinese socialism and how their idealism was affected by a changing political climate in China.
Video, 27 minutes, color, documentary
NALINI BY DAY, NANCY BY NIGHT
(United States/India, 2005) Dir.: Sonali Gulati
NALINI BY DAY, NANCY BY NIGHT is a documentary on outsourcing of American jobs to India. Told from the perspective of an Indian living in the U.S., the film journeys into India's call centers, where telemarketers acquire American names and accents to service the telephone-support industry of the U.S. The film incorporates animation, live action, and archival footage to explore the complexities of globalization, capitalism, and identity.
Video, 27 minutes, color and black & white, documentary
A CHINK IN THE ARMOR
(Canada, 2004) Dir.: Baun Mah
A CHINK IN THE ARMOR investigates racial stereotypes while revealing what it means to be Chinese-Canadian in today's society. Gathering a large group of volunteers from Toronto, five of the major stereotypes will be tested to see if they are true. Do Chinese really know kung fu? Are they all good at math? The oftentimes hilarious results offer a unique glimpse into Chinese-North American culture.
Video, 25 minutes, color, narrative
MAY 6 - 5:00 p.m. • Laemmle's Sunset 5 Theatre
FISHING LUCK (Deng Dai Fei Yu)
(Taiwan, 2005) Dir.: Tseng Wen-chen
Lanyu-Orchid Island-is a small tropical island where its aboriginals take preys on the flying fish, a symbol of bliss and abundance, to make their living. Three young men Behong, Jeddah and Qingkuang known on the island as the 'Three Musketeers" for their life long friendship and strong bond are enjoying their little piece of tranquility.
One summer day, a beautiful young girl named Zing arrives on a business trip to survey remote regions for cellular coverage. Zing loses her wallet by accident and cannot pay her house rent. Behong accommodates her in his house. Their love slowly grows. Time passes and Zing senses her boyfriend who she left behind in the city is starting to change his feeling within their relationship. In anger she throws her ring away. After finding her wallet, Zing hurries to return to Taipei. Just before leaving, Behong gives her a wood flying fish hairpin and returns her ring that she threw away. To choose the hairpin or the ring? That's a question for Zing....
35mm, 90 minutes, color, narrative, in Mandarin w/E.S.
MAY 6 - 5:00 p.m. • Directors Guild of America, Theater 2
With all the excitement generated by hallyu, the Korean Wave phenomenon currently sweeping Asian popular culture, it's good to note that the well isn't going to run dry anytime soon. Indeed, this astounding selection of works by Korean film academy graduates and emerging filmmakers may in fact be a harbinger of a new generation of filmmaking masters.
TRT: 100 minutes
SAN FRANCISCO BLUES
(South Korea, 2005) Dir.: In Huh
Gusul works hard to get a saxaphone; her friend Bumsik, a gay youth, dreams of emigrating to San Francisco. One day, he finds a flyer about green card fake marriage at a motel room. He is so excited about this plan that he tries to raise a hundred million won for the marriage. But when things don't work out for Bumsik, he runs off with Gusul's brand new saxaphone to get money. Months later, they run into each other...
35mm, 22 minutes, color, narrative, in Korean w/E.S.
BRAVO! MR. KIM (Bravo! Kim Soon-bong)
(South Korea, 2005) Dir.: Jeong Seung-koo
Mr. Kim cannot get economic support from his jobless son. Under pressure from his landlord to pay his overdue rent, Kim but there is no way to get the rent money by himself. After trying everything he visits his son once more to get money but a more serious situation awaits him, which causes him to attempt to end his life. His today is in danger!
35mm, 16 minutes, color, narrative, in Korean w/E.S.
A PERFECT RED SNAPPER DISH (Wan-byuck-han Do-mi-yo-ri)
(South Korea, 2005) Dir.: Na Hong-jin
A colossal lack of culinary talent is no deterrent to cooking a perfect red snapper dish. Practice makes perfect!
35mm, 9 minutes, color, narrative, in Korean w/E.S.
ABOUT A BAD BOY (Mi-seong-nyun-ja Kwal-ram-bool-ga)
(South Korea, 2005) Dir.: Park Shin-woo
A teenage boy killed his mother. A detective examines him harshly. The truth lies behind their unbearable suspense.
35mm, 10 minutes, color, narrative, in Korean w/E.S.
HER EARRING
(South Korea, 2005) Dir.: Bora Kim
Young-jin and Ki-suk used to be a couple. They bump into each other one day, and end up spending the night and morning together. Seemingly, when the love is over, pain and ridicule are the only emotions left.
16mm, 23 minutes, color, narrative, in Korean w/E.S.
WAR MOVIE (Jeon-jang Yeong-hwa)
(South Korea, 2005) Dir.: Park Dong-hoon
Yu-jeong and Hak-song, a handsome couple in 1965 Seoul, meet up for coffee at the trendy Western-style Kukje Jungang Cafeteria. Though it their fourth date, they still feel awkward toward each other. However, on this day there is a purpose to their meeting-their lives will perhaps change forever.
35mm, 20 minutes, color, narrative, in Korean w/E.S.
MAY 6 - 7:00 p.m. • Laemmle's Sunset 5 Theatre
SAIGON LOVE STORY
(Vietnam, 2005) Dir.: Ringo Le
Saigon, late 1980s: Danh, a young boy who should help his single mother sell noodles from a cart out of their house, often sneaks out to buy cassettes. On one of his excursions, Danh meets Tam, a free-spirited girl, who sells cassettes on the streets. Intrigued by her music, he buys a cassette only to find that it's blank. Upon unraveling the mystery, Danh learns that Tam has fallen victim to a dubious producer. With no money, Tam repays Danh by singing the title song from her cassette, "Saigon Love Story." Danh soon finds that her music brings him closer to freedom. Meanwhile, Danh's mother, Linh, wants her son to have a better life than the one she's lived, finds him a job at a local furniture factory. Moreover, she wishes her son would consummate a union with the factor owner's daughter, Zuan. But what Linh doesn't know is that Danh's been carrying on a secret relationship with Tam. When Ling finds out about the liason, Linh's relationship with her son takes an irrevocable turn. Danh in turn, is left to choose between his head and his heart.
35mm, 115 minutes, color, narrative, in Vietnamese w/E.S.
MAY 6 - 7:00 p.m. • Directors Guild of America, Theater 1
EVE & THE FIREHORSE
(Canada, 2005) Dir.: Julia Kwan
Past Golden Reel Award nominee Julia Kwan (THREE SISTERS ON MOON LAKE, 2002) returns with her first feature, a deceptively weighty dramedy that observes the different path taken by two sisters, Eve and Karena, as they attempt to reverse the misfortunes that have befallen their Vancouver, British Columbia family. While Eve seeks solutions through deep introspection, Karena seeks her answers through Catholicism. Caught between her sister's quest for premature sainthood and her own sense of right and wrong, Eve faces the challenges of childhood with fanciful humor and wide-eyed wonder. Along the way, she proves that sometimes the most troublesome children are the ones that touch our hearts most deeply. Features stellar performances by Phoebe Jojo Kut as the titular character, and Vivian Wu (THE JOY LUCK CLUB, THE LAST EMPEROR, THE PILLOW BOOK) as Eve and Karena's snake-bitten mother.
35mm, 93 minutes, color, narrative
MAY 6 - 7:30 p.m. • Directors Guild of America, Theater 3
i have no memory of my direction
(Canada, 2005) Dir.: Midi Onodera
I HAVE NO MEMORY OF MY DIRECTION unfolds through a Canadian-born Japanese woman's voice-over as she dreams her way though Japan. Ostensibly searching for an emotional connection with her aging father, the woman contemplates her own inherited culture and familial touchstones. Her North American pop culture sensibility fuses with a distorted Japanese perspective to create a surreal interpretation of a "Japan of the imagination." As an entry point, I HAVE NO MEMORY OF MY DIRECTION references Chris Marker's groundbreaking SANS SOLEIL (1983) but moves into a fictional landscape, peppered with invented Japanese myths, ruminations on memory loss, the temporal space of digital photography and the ghosts of inherited imagination.
Video, 77 minutes, color, documentary
MAY 6 - 7:30 p.m. • Directors Guild of America, Theater 2
FIRE BALL (Hong Hai Er)
(Taiwan, 2004) Dir.: Toon Wang
FIRE BALL is about the Chinese monk called Tripitaka who leads his fairy animal neophytes- Monkey, Pigsy, Sandy and Horse-on a long journey to India in search of the "Script of Wisdom and Truth." Along the journey they come to a place constantly in flames called Flame Mountain. Our heroes try to put out the fire with the Princess's mighty fan. However, Redhead ambushes them, because she wants to cure her mother's ill with (She-li-zi), drinking a potion made with Tripitaka's cremated bones. On other hand, Spider evil queen also wants to get (She-li-zi) for her eternal life; besides, she want to get the Princess's mighty fan for her assumption of power. Yes, she is very greedy. But our heroes survive as a result of their courage, wisdom and strength.
35mm, 87 minutes, color, animated narrative, in Mandarin w/E.S.
MAY 6 - 9:30 p.m. • Directors Guild of America, Theater 1
NEVER BE THE SAME AGAIN
(United States, 2004) Dir.: Jack Song
A young couple break up, and later act like they don't even know each other when in mixed company.
Video, 4 minutes, color, music video
THE BLOSSOMING OF MAXIMO OLIVEROS (Ang Pagdadalaga ni Maximo Oliveros)
(Philippines, 2005) Dir.: Aureaus Solito
An award-winning example of the new digital cinema revolution currently sweeping the Philippine movie industry, this neo-realist feature essays the story of a young boy who cheerfully fulfills the role of dalaga (young lady) in a motherless family composed of an outlaw father and two older brothers. Maxi cleans the house, cooks, washes clothes and repairs tattered jeans for his relatives, who are all petty thieves. He even supplies them with the odd alibi, when needed. Maxi's homosexuality is accepted by his nearest and dearest. Loved and protected by his relatives, Maxi has a calming influence on the family and is the one in charge of the day-to-day running of the household. Things work out fine until Maxi meets Victor, a respected, principled policeman who awakens Maxi's dreams of a better life-on the straight and narrow. This is a recipe for disaster as far as the family is concerned, and it is not long before the situation incurs the wrath of his father, his brothers and his sisters.
Video, 100 minutes, color, narrative, in Tagalog w/E.S.
MAY 6 - 9:45 p.m. • Laemmle's Sunset 5 Theatre
TYPHOON (Taepung)
(South Korea, 2005) Dir.: Kwak Kyung-taek
Myung-sin, who has become a pirate, lives with hatred in his heart and endures the hardships, seeks revenge on the two nations, North and South Korea, using nuclear waste that has the devastating power of plutonium. Se-jong, a South Korean naval officer departs with his team of elite forces to prevent Sin's master plan of Nuclear Typhoon. Born under the same skies of the same race, but of a completely different nation... Living a life so different, the two point their guns at each other's heart...
35mm, 125 minutes, color, narrative, in Korean w/E.S.
MAY 6 - 10:00 p.m. • Directors Guild of America, Theater 2
Little did you know, we live in a crazy, mixed-up world of wonder women, confused cowboys, Bruce Lee-wannabes... and Tada. Uncover the double lives, hidden truths, and untold tales of greatness within this hilarious collection of wacky stories and spoofs.
TRT: 80 minutes
SUPER POWER BLUES
(United States, 2005) Dir.: Greg Pak
Being a superheroine has its drawbacks. How do you have a life when you're too busy saving everyone else's?
Video, 7 minutes, color, narrative
COWBOY JOHNNY YAMADA
(United States, 2005) Dir.: Yohei Kawamata
Long boots, short pants, and toy guns...his name is Johnny Yamada. He came from nowhere. He wants to be a cowboy because it's cool. What he didn't know is that he has to get a college degree to be a professional cowboy. He goes to college and falls in love with Emily. She helps him go through hardships such as riding a pony and chewing tobacco, and he adores her personality and body.
Video, 18 minutes, color, narrative
LAW OF THE JUNGLE
(United States, 2005) Dir.: Anthony Chun
A businessman confronts the terror within in a spectacular chase through dystopic downtown Los Angeles.
Video, 7 minutes, color, narrative
RETURN OF THE DRAGON (AGAIN)
(United States, 2005) Dir.: Phil Yu
Everybody loves Bruce. But not everybody can be Bruce. This guy, left alone for an afternoon, takes his fandom one step further.
Video, 5 minutes, color, narrative
ALL ABOUT TADA (Tada No Subete)
(United States, 2005) Dir.: Tadakuni Yasuda
Pokemon meets MTV meets Pee Wee Playhouse meets Tada! Tada, originally from Tokyo, Japan, is an innocent, fun, cute, entertainer who lives in TADA world. Tada wakes up in the morning, greets Mr. Sun, brushes his teeth, combs his hair, lifts weights, meets friends, and visits New York City. He makes different kinds of unique friends, and always ends up killing them.
Video, 8 minutes, color, narrative
GREAT MOMENTS IN ASIAN AMERICAN HISTORY
(United States, 2005) Dir.: Jeff Liu
Lodestone Theatre Ensenble proudly salutes the little-known Asian American pioneer, Lonng Ching, and his indelible contribution to Asian American history.
Video, 3 minutes, color and black & white, narrative
DRY CLEAN ONLY
(United States, 2005) Dir.: J.P. Chan
A young clerk at a dry cleaners is visited by a mysterious couple with a secret, leaving him with a secret of his own.
Video, 6 minutes, color, narrative
SUSPENSION
(United States, 2005) Dir.: Rhianne Paz Bergado
Bergamonte High School is a quiet place, filled with bustling students, neatly kept uniforms, and bake sales. Natalie Cordia is about to change all that. Class President Kara LeBlanc is in an uproar over the new batch of students from the wrong side of the tracks. Natalie can't help but feel different, she defies Kara by befriending the class outcast, and refusing to conform to the uniform code. Natalie makes powerful allies that protect her, but can they protect her from her greatest enemy?
Video, 26 minutes, color, narrative
MAY 6 - 12:00 MIDNIGHT • Laemmle's Sunset 5 Theatre
REINCARNATION (Rinne)
(Japan, 2005) Dir.: Shimizu Takashi
Japan's foremost cinematic master of the macabre, Takashi Shimizu (the JU-ON/GRUDGE films, MAREBITO), returns to Danger After Dark with this SHINING-like tale of a hotel haunted by its violent history. With this, his new film, Shimizu has delivered a surprisingly traditional, linear ghost story that may be his most accessible film to date-and also one of his scariest. Actress Nagisa is hired to star in a new horror film that will recreate the actual mass murder that occurred in a hotel decades earlier, where a professor slaughtered eleven people. Nagisa is slated to play the professor's murdered daughter, and when the film crew settles into the original, now-abandoned hotel that housed the actual murders, Nagisa finds herself haunted by images of the murders that occurred years earlier...and she also comes across a camera that may contain undeveloped footage of the crimes themselves. While Shimizu's earlier films were principally collages of jolts and shocks that gave little importance to linear narrative, REINCARNATION represents the director's most engrossing storyline yet, and the film is wholly engaging on the level of a suspenseful mystery. You won't jump in your seat so much as you'll be riveted into it.
35mm, 95 minutes, color, narrative, in Japanese w/E.S.
