The 27th annual Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival takes place April 28 – May 7, 2011 at the Directors Guild of America, Laemmle’s Sunset 5 Theatre, and CGV Cinemas. This amazing festival is hosted by Visual Communications, the nation’s premier Asian Pacific American media arts center.
There’s a lot of great Asian American films to check out, but for those of you interested in supporting works by Taiwanese or Taiwanese Americans, pay particular attention to these programs:
Fast Five (Opening Night Film)
Taiwanese American director Justin Lin brings us the fifth installment of the Fast and the Furious series. Since 2006, Justin has been bringing us non-stop action-packed street races and promises an even greater punch with this new film. Justin has been a favorite of this festival over the years with his past indie films Better Luck Tomorrow and Finishing the Game, so it’s no surprise that he’s chosen to debut Fast Five here at this festival.
http://laapff.festpro.com/films/detail/fast_five_2011
Love In Disguise (Closing Night Film)
This romantic comedy is the directorial debut of Mandopop superstar Leehom Wang. “A likeable modern Chinese take on Cyrano De Bergerac, Love In Disguise features numerous comic and romantic set-pieces, and enough great-looking stars to leave audiences swooning.”
http://laapff.festpro.com/films/detail/love_in_disguise_2011
Wong Fu Productions Presents: Fast Forward
This special program features Philip Wang, Ted Fu, and Wesley Chan of Wong Fu Productions and some of their fellow YouTube stars who will be showcasing some of their work and discussing the state of new media. Among their popular YouTube friends will be KevJumba, who was recently seen in the Amazing Race with his Taiwanese dad.
http://laapff.festpro.com/films/detail/wongfu_productions_presents_fast_forwar_2011
Pinoy Sunday
The main characters are Filipino, but the setting is the streets of Taipei as these two migrant workers carry a sofa back to their dorm “so they can lounge on it after a hard day’s work, drink beer and dream of their family back home or that girl they met at the nightclub the night before.” Hilarity ensues along the way.
http://laapff.festpro.com/films/detail/pinoy_sunday_2011
This film is being co-presented by Taiwanese American Professionals in LA. Visit their Facebook event page, and buy a ticket through them if you’re a member:
http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=196859150353207
The Case (Short Film Program)
Taiwanese American director Timothy Tau brings us a genre-bending short film mixing 1950s Film Noir, Sci-Fi, Horror and Spaghetti Westerns under the overarching structure of a detective film.
http://laapff.festpro.com/films/detail/the_case_2011
In the Shadow of Taipei 101 (Taiwanese Films)
To see a list of several other features and shorts produced in Taiwan such as Once Upon a Time in Kinmen, Huan Dao, and others, be sure to browse the following page:
http://laapff.festpro.com/films/country/10
Visit the Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival website here: http://asianfilmfestla.org/
Great coverage and selection! I’d also add to this list Taiwanese American filmmaker Bertha Bay-Sa Pan’s “Almost Perfect”:
http://laapff.festpro.com/films/detail/almost_perfect_2011
Which is featured as the Festival Centerpiece Presentation, and is also nominated for a Jury Award for Best Feature Narrative.