Philadelphia Asian American Film Festival

PAAFF Film Club - The Terrorizers

PAAFF Film Club – The Terrorizers

May’s Film Club will be a discussion on Edward Yang’s The Terrorizers. Considered a pivotal film in the era of New Taiwanese Cinema, The Terrorizers presents a startling look into urban life in the form of a tangled narrative web, complicated by changing perspectives and puzzling timelines. It is a story not only of Taipei in the 1980s, but of the modern city in general, what it does to people and the many ways they manage to exist within its confines. Our May PAAFF Film Club meeting is scheduled for May 18 at 6PM ET. The Terrorizers is available to stream via Mubi subscription, and to rent on Amazon. Make sure you join the PAAFF Film Club Discord server if you’re interested in continuing the conversation outside of our monthly meetings! Sign up for our Film Club newsletter below! *Please make sure to check the “PAAFF Film Club” box when signing up!

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PAAFF Film Club - Lucky Grandma

PAAFF Film Club – Lucky Grandma

June’s meeting will be focused on a film from PAAFF’s own history: Sasie Sealy’s Lucky Grandma. Tsai Chin stars as the titular character–a chain-smoking, gambling grandma in New York City’s Chinatown–in Sealy’s debut feature, a darkly funny crime story that subversively highlights the role of elders in an immigrant community. This discussion will coincide with The Free Library of Philadelphia’s “One Book, One Philadelphia” watchlist, also featuring Lucky Grandma. Our June PAAFF Film Club meeting is scheduled for June 15 at 6PM ET. Lucky Grandma is available to rent on Vudu, Google Play, and Amazon. Make sure you join the PAAFF Film Club Discord server if you’re interested in continuing the conversation outside of our monthly meetings! Sign up for our Film Club newsletter below! *Please make sure to check the “PAAFF Film Club” box when signing up!

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PAAFF Preview Party 2022

PAAFF Preview Party 2022

Do you want to be one of the first people to catch a sneak peek of our 2022 Film Festival? Join us on Thursday October 6 (rain date Oct 7) at the Rail Park for our Preview Party! Come mingle with fellow film lovers, nibble on some snacks, and sit back as we unveil the imaginative, absorbing, provocative, and just plain fun lineup of features, documentaries, and shorts programs we have in store for you! This event is a preview party to celebrate the unveiling of the lineup, and is not a screening of feature length films. Attendees will enjoy discounts on festival tickets if they purchase on the night-of the preview party! This party is totally FREE TO ATTEND! We ask for pre-registration so that we have an idea of how many people may be attending (: Know Before You Go: The Rail Park has one ADA-accessible entrance on Noble Street. You can enter the Rail Park by ramp East of Broad on Noble Street, or by stairs on Callowhill Street between 11th and 12th St. The Callowhill entrance requires using stairs. The Rail Park is completely outdoors with the tree cover only. We recommend dressing appropriately for the weather, with comfortable and protective clothing. There are no restrooms at the Rail Park. Masking is strongly encouraged within six feet of other people. We will have protective face masks and hand sanitizer available at the park. There will be amplified sound during screening. Individuals with auditory sensitivity should come prepared with earplugs. The staff and volunteers at this event will be speaking English. Pre-register for the PAAFF Preview Party 2022 here!

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Contemporary Video Art Exhibition Presented by 12Gates & PAAFF

Contemporary Video Art Exhibition

Twelve Gates Arts and PAAFF invite you to attend The 4th Annual Contemporary Video Art Exhibition on August 28th, 2022. The Experimental Video Art Exhibition is a platform for South Asian (SA), Southwest Asian, and North African (SWANA) experimental video artists whose work stretches beyond the unconventional. This year’s exhibition centers on three themes: Censorship and Empire; Queer Poetics as Audio/Visual Lexicon; and Migration/Displacement as a Consequence of Colonialism. Our jury has carefully selected 12 works from hundreds of noteworthy submissions. The exhibiting artists span the SWANA & SA regions and diasporas, including Syria, Palestine, Lebanon, India, Iran, Morocco, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Canada, and the US. Register for this pay-what-you-can event here. Credit: Image by Sarah Trad

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Inventing Ourselves: Asiam Women's Stories of Self Discovery graphic

Inventing Ourselves: Women’s Stories of Self-Discovery

A film screening presented by Philadelphia Asian American Film Festival and Philly Solidarity in celebration of Women’s History Month Due to COVID-19, only water is allowed during the event. Food and drink will not be served. ‼️ COVID-19 Protocols ‼️ 🔖 Proof of COVID-19 vaccination with photo ID is required. 💉 At least 3 doses of COVID-19 vaccine required. Last vaccine dose must be administered 2 weeks PRIOR to event. 😷 Attendees are required to wear a medical-grade mask (KN95 and N95 preferred) at all times. Surgical masks must be doubled. 🙊 Masks must be worn over mouth and nose at all times. Please do not remove your mask for photos. In observance of Women’s History Month, Philadelphia Asian American Film Festival is partnering with Philly Solidarity to screen a short-film program followed by a community discussion. This collection of short films explores some of the ways in which Asian women are impacted by beauty standards, cultural roles, or societal constructs. From navigating the perceived conflict between Chinese identity and basketball to the dissonant experiences of living as a trans woman in South Korea— these stories show the complexities of self-defined womanhood. Through this film program, PAAFF and Philly Solidarity intend to create an open space where the experiences of Asian women, including trans, non-binary, gender non-conforming people, are validated, embraced, and can be bravely discussed within our community. We will also be hosting a raffle featuring products from local Asian women-owned and -operated businesses: Càphê Roasters, Sabbatical Beauty, and Tita Emmie’s. Raffle tickets and other products are included in the ticket price. We will also be hosting a raffle featuring products from local Asian women-owned and -operated businesses. Raffle prizes include: Sabbatical Beauty’s Camelia Gold Beauty Oil, Tita Emmie’s Kaya Natin Ito Pin, Philly Solidarity Tee, and PAAFF Tee. Raffle tickets and other products are included in the ticket price. The event is open to all including those who may not identify as Asian women, but the discussion will be facilitated to center Asian women (trans, non-binary, and gender non-conforming inclusive) experiences. Due to film security reasons, we are not able to provide online access to this event. However, some of the films in the program are available to view online. Details below. Join us for a discussion on the following films: Unfair & Lovely (2018) | Director: Anita Kalathara In India, products like Fair and Lovely are sold to lighten skin. Fairer-skinned women are more likely to obtain high-profile jobs and social status, while darker-skinned women are shamed. This short exposes this dated bias that runs rampant in numerous cultures. This short is available to view on YouTube. God’s Daughter Dances (2021) Director: Sungbin Byun A transgender female dancer, Shin-mi, gets a call from the Military Manpower Administration, to attend the Military Service Examination. Americanized (2021) | Director: Erica Eng Growing up in Oakland’s hip-hop culture, Eng struggles with her Chinese American identity. To her high school basketball team, she’s just that girl who sits on the bench; but to the Asian kids she’s “Americanized.”

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PAAFF July 2022 Film Club Graphic - Reads "Come discuss Persepolis - July 10 | 1 PM EST. Join our Film Club Mailing List for the meeting link!" Cartoon child smiling and playing in front of her mother smoking a cigarette looking jaded

PAAFF Film Club – Persepolis

July’s PAAFF Film Club will be centered around our first animated feature: Marjane Satrapi’s Persepolis. A 2007 adaptation of her graphic novel of the same name, Persepolis is an inventive expressionist coming-of-age story about one girl’s journey into womanhood during and following the 1979 Iranian Revolution. Our July PAAFF Film Club meeting will be on July 10 at 1PM ET. Persepolis is available for rent on Vudu and iTunes. Make sure you join the PAAFF Film Club Discord server if you’re interested in continuing the conversation outside of our monthly meetings! Sign up for our Film Club newsletter below! *Please make sure to check the “PAAFF Film Club” box when signing up!

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PAAFF August 2022 Film Club Graphic - Reads "Come discuss House - August 7 | 1 PM EST. Join our Film Club Mailing List for the meeting link!" Woman's floating head in front of background of blue painted heads with wide open eyes

PAAFF Film Club – House

We’re finishing up this year’s PAAFF Film Club with something a little different: Nobuhiko Obayashi’s cult horror classic Hausu (1977). Known for its wild visuals and campy tone, Hausu/House is an iconic haunted house story about seven schoolgirls contending with violent supernatural forces in a country home. A precursor to later J-horror, a surprising influence on contemporary experimental film, or just a singularly bizarre B-movie? Let’s talk about it! Our August PAAFF Film Club meeting is scheduled for August 7 at 1PM ET. Hausu/House is available through HBO Max subscription and for rent on Vudu. Make sure you join the PAAFF Film Club Discord server if you’re interested in continuing the conversation outside of our monthly meetings! Sign up for our Film Club newsletter below! *Please make sure to check the “PAAFF Film Club” box when signing up!

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PAAFF March 2022 Film Club Graphic - Reads "Come discuss Shirkers - March 20 | 1 PM EST. Join our Film Club Mailing List for the meeting link!" Woman wearing glasses and headphones lying in the grass with her eyes closed

PAAFF Film Club – Shirkers

Join us for our first Film Club meeting of 2022! We’ll be starting out with a discussion on Sandi Tan’s 2018 documentary Shirkers. A recent revelation in the genre of movies about movies, Shirkers tells the decades-spanning story of a group of friends attempting to make an independent feature with help from a mysterious stranger. Our March PAAFF Film Club meeting is scheduled for March 20 at 1PM ET. Shirkers is available through Netflix subscription. Make sure you join the PAAFF Film Club Discord server if you’re interested in continuing the conversation outside of our monthly meetings! Sign up for our Film Club newsletter below! *Please make sure to check the “PAAFF Film Club” box when signing up!

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PAAFF June 2022 Film Club Graphic - Reads "Come discuss Spa Night - June 12 | 1 PM EST. Join our Film Club Mailing List for the meeting link!" Man looking at himself in a wet mirror

PAAFF Film Club – Spa Night

June means Pride! Andrew Ahn’s 2016 feature Spa Night explores the intersection of LA’s Korean-American and LGBTQ communities, through the eyes of one young man who straddles both worlds. Join us as we discuss the film’s place in both Asian American and queer cinema, and much more! Our June PAAFF Film Club meeting is scheduled for June 12 at 1PM ET. Spa Night is available to rent on iTunes and Vudu Make sure you join the PAAFF Film Club Discord server if you’re interested in continuing the conversation outside of our monthly meetings! Sign up for our Film Club newsletter below! *Please make sure to check the “PAAFF Film Club” box when signing up!

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PAAFF April 2022 Film Club Graphic - Reads "Come discuss Devdas - April 10 | 1 PM EST. Join our Film Club Mailing List for the meeting link!" Man in background looking at woman in the foreground with her hand holding her head in despair

PAAFF Film Club – Devdas

For April’s Film Club we will be traveling back in time to 1935 and discussing a classic of Indian cinema: Pramathesh Barua’s Devdas. One of several adaptations of Sarat Chatterjee’s novel, originally published in 1917, Devdas tells the story of two lovers kept apart by class. Considered highly influential in its time, it is particularly remembered for its critique of India’s feudalistic society and caste system. Our April PAAFF Film Club meeting is scheduled for April 10 at 1PM ET. Devdas (1935) is available on Prime Video through Eros Now subscription. Make sure you join the PAAFF Film Club Discord server if you’re interested in continuing the conversation outside of our monthly meetings! Sign up for our Film Club newsletter below! *Please make sure to check the “PAAFF Film Club” box when signing up!

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