Pig Roast & Tank of Fish

Oregon Live has a good article on Ivy Lin's new documentary about Portland's Chinatown, which is the second oldest in the nation, and the struggle to revitalize the neighborhood and some of the obstacles in its way - including the voices that are sometimes silent within that community.


"Pig Roast & Tank of Fish" trailer from Ivy Lin on Vimeo.

Pig Roast & Tank of Fish will have its premiere Sunday at 7PM down at the Someday Lounge.

Jodi Long Interview

Photo From Asiance Magazine (Shannon Lin)

There's a good inteview down at Asiance Magazine with Filmmaker Jodi Long on her documentary Long Story Short:

Jodi Long is the actress you may recognize from Broadway, The Hot Chick, or Margaret Cho's mother in All American Girl, or currently as Eli Stone, a judge. Now she is a filmmaker herself and with the help of Christine Choy, the Chair of NYU’s Graduate Film and Television Department and Patricia Richardson (of Home Improvement) she has come out with an inspiring documentary called Long Story Short, about her parents' struggle as Asian American actors/vaudevillians in the 40's and 50's. The film details the lives of her parents' through photographs, pictures, their special appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show in 1950 and snippets from her own monologue performances. She talks with her mother about the experience of being sent to a Japanese internment camp during WW2. Her father's experience as a Chinese-American is shown through the film and his early role on Broadway, in Flower Drum Song, which (the later version) Jodi herself was cast in.

Check out the full interview here.

Film: That Asian Thing

This is coming pretty late, but you still have time to watch the documentary That Asian Thing online for free down at Lycos Cinema, as well as - and more importantly - vote for it to become part of the Independent Features Film Festival at the Tribeca Cinemas.

All you need to do is vote for it by going to http://cinema.lycos.com/movies/that_asian_thing.

Here's a synopsis of the film:

'That Asian Thing' is a culmination of interviews by Jonald Reyes, an Asian-American, who attempts to figure out why there is a low impact of Asian-Americans in mainstream American culture. As he explores his city of Chicago, IL, he finds a growing Asian-American community that continues to educate people on the cultural medium between what is 'Asian' and what is 'American.' Along the way, questions are brought to the forefront: What is mainstream culture? What is Asian-America? and how does this 'model minority' not excel in mediated entertainment? This film exposes performances from amazing spoken word artists, rappers, folk singers, and rock bands. Also, his interviews with actors and comedians spark up thoughts of Asian-American representation and observations.

I haven't seen it myself yet, but caught some clips and while rough, looks like it could be pretty cool. Here's a list of Asian American artists from the film's website at http://www.thatasianthing.com/:

• Alcantara, Charlene Haze - Writer, Spoken word performer www.myspace.com/charlenehaze
• Aoki, Tatsu - Bassist - Assistant Professor, Art Institute of Chicago - founder, Chicago Asian American Jazz Festival http://www.tatsuaoki.com/
• Chan, Jeff - Tenor saxophonist/Composer home.earthlink.net/~jfchan
• Biesenbach, Robert - Actor, Writer http://www.robbiesenbach.com/
• Esguerra, Anida Yoeu - Contemporary artist http://www.atomicshogun.com/
• Inspired By U (I.B.U.) - R&B group Chanthasene, Tommy Musni, Michael Shauf, Jonathan http://www.ibumusic.com/
• Kina, Laura - Assistant Professor, DePaul University - Artist http://www.laurakina.com/
• Lee, Larry - Artist, Educator http://www.larryleechicago.com/
• Lin, Cynthia - Folk/jazz singer http://www.cynthialin.com/
• Lozano, Dr. Elizabeth - Associate Professor, Loyola University www.luc.edu/communication/academics_facultystaff_lozano.html
• Manalansan, Martin - Associate Professor, Univ. of IL, Urbana-Champaign - Author www.anthro.uiuc.edu/faculty/manalansan
• Maxwell, Dobie - Comedian, Instructor Monteverde, Jon (XYZR_KX) - Rock/Electronica musician, Filmmaker jonmonteverde.com
• Munoz, Dr. Romeo - author, Filipino Americans: Journey from Invisibility to Empowerment Munoz, Stephen - Folk/Jazz singer www.myspace.com/stephenmunoz
• Oishi, Carly - singer www.myspace.com/oishimusic
• The Pacifics - Hip hop/rap group KP Norman Rockwell Strike3 http://www.thepacifics.com/
• Park, Mia - Host, Chic-A-Go-Go – actress, writer, director http://www.miapark.com/
• Posen, Brian - Director, Yellow - Artistic Director, Chicago Sketchfest - Instructor http://www.chicagosketchfest.com/
• Quartermile - Rock Band Carey, Paul Chang, Mark Pomerantz, Jon Rarang, Bruce Sono, Shinya www.myspace.com/quartermiletheband
• Robbi - Rapper, Singer http://www.robbilives.com/
• Soni, Rupal - writer, educator rupalisinindia.blogspot.com
• 4 Sons of the Orient - R&B group Insixiengmay, Toby Jang, Luke Reyes, Jesch Robinson, Gary www.myspace.com/4soto
• Stir Friday Night - comedy troupe Canciller, Melissa Lee, Andrew Liu, Jennifer Mok, Ron Nguyen, Foo Pak, Harrison Shyn, Aimee http://www.stirfridaynight.org/
• Yuan, Chien - Actually, Records founder http://www.actuallyrecords.com/
• Chen, Jane - Producer, Red Doors http://www.reddoorsthemovie.com/
• Coats, Mercedes - Co-Director/Producer, To You Sweetheart, Aloha www.walking-iris.com/sweetheartaloha
• Hugh, Tim - Festival Director, Chicago Asian American Showcase http://www.faaim.org/
• Kwan, Julia - Director, Eve and the Firehorse http://www.eveandthefirehorse.com/
• Lee, Georgia - Director, Red Doors http://www.reddoorsthemovie.com/
• Riverton, Mia - Actress, Producer, Red Doors http://www.reddoorsthemovie.com/
• Filipinos in Alliance - University of IL in Chicago (UIC)www2.uic.edu/stud_orgs/cultures/fia
• Indian Student Association - University of IL in Chicago (UIC) - India Night 2006 www2.uic.edu/stud_orgs/cultures/isa
• Kaibigan Organization - Northwestern University - Cultural Show 2006 groups.northwestern.edu/kaibigan
• South Asian Student Alliance - Loyola University www.luc.edu/orgs/sasa
• Young Asians With Power (YAWP!) - Untranslatable 2006 www.thecollectivechicago.org/yawp