VAFF 2011 – Day 3 & 4 of the Vancouver Asian Film Festival
Allan Cho, guest blogger, checks out the films and Closing Night's after party at Wild Rice restaurant
Had a wonderful time at #VAFF2011. Saw Anna
May Wong: In Her Own Words.
Screened at a number of festivals, Anna May Wong, documents the first
Chinese American female actress in Hollywood.
The after party at Wild Rice
was unbelievable. Great food,
excellent drinks, and fantastic atmosphere.
The chatter was pleasant. Met
many wonderful people. The night ended
on a strong note – Surrogate Valentine
– was a huge hit. Audience members
enjoyed the jokes, laughing often at the witty dialogue and clever script.
PROGRAM 7
– CHICKS ON FLICKS – WOMEN IN HOLLYWOOD: THEN AND NOW
SLAYING THE DRAGON RELOADED: ASIAN WOMEN IN HOLLYWOOD AND
BEYOND
Canadian Premiere
Director In Attendance
TRAILER
DIRECTOR / WRITER: Elaine H.
Kim
PRODUCERS: Elaine H. Kim, Asian Women United of California
Documentary | Digibeta | Colour | 2010 | 30 min | USA | English
Previous Screenings/Awards: San Francisco Int’l Asian American Film Festival 2011; Int’l
Women’s Film Festival in Seoul 2011
Slaying the Dragon Reloaded: Asian Women in
Hollywood and Beyond explores representations of Asian and Asian American in
American media to explore what has changed, what has been recycled and what we
can hope for in the future. Designed primarily but not exclusively for college
classroom use, the first half of the documentary examines Hollywood images of
Asian women from 1984 to the present to examine how commercial visual media in
the U.S. reflect or ignore the dramatic social and demographic changes of the
past quarter of a century. The second half showcases the exciting ways Asian
American cinema and new media such as YouTube seek to broaden, diversify and
challenge common notions of Asian women.
ANNA MAY WONG:
IN HER OWN WORDS
Canadian Premiere
DIRECTOR: Yunah Hong
PRODUCER: William Smock
Documentary | Digibeta | Colour/B&W | 2010 | 58 min | USA/South Korea
| English
Previous Screenings/Awards: San Francisco Int’l Asian American Film Festival 2011
Anna May Wong was the first Chinese American
movie star. She started out in silent films when she was 17, and went on to
make dozens of films in Hollywood, London and Berlin, co-starring with Marlene
Dietrich, Anthony Quinn and Douglas Fairbanks. She was glamorous, talented and
cosmopolitan. Yet she spent most of her career typecast either as a painted
doll or a scheming dragon lady. Filmmaker Yunah Hong paints a vivid portrait of
a Hollywood original, narrated in Wong’s own words by actress Doan Ly. Generous
excerpts from Wong’s films, archival photographs and interviews enhance this
richly detailed picture of a woman and her times.