Three Special Films at #15SDAFF
Every year we have three films that carry a special energy alongside their on-screen stories. On these special nights years past we’ve featured stories like the Filipino man who was discovered on Youtube by legendary rock group Journey. This year Revenge of the Green Dragons, the world premiere of ABC’s Fresh off the Boat, with Meet the Patels are the opening, centerpiece, and closing films, respectively.
Revenge of the Green Dragons
Every generation or so Hollywood announces a high-profile Asian American project and even invites Asian Americans to play the lead roles. For this generation, that film is REVENGE OF THE GREEN DRAGONS. It’s directed by Hong Kong-based Andrew Lau (Infernal Affairs) and the bi-national Andrew Loo and backed by executive producer Martin Scorsese. Based on a true story, Sonny (Justin Chon of Twilight) has to grow up fast and alone in 1980s New York City. Back then it meant being in the shadow of warring gangs, and one day he gets recruited into the nefarious Green Dragons along with his buddy Steven (Kevin Wu of Kevjumba). The film is exciting and it moves much like Hong Kong’s gangster films and fly-by-night American b-cinema. But above all, the film is a showcase of young Asian American talent performing on the big screen.
We’re are taking our operation downtown on Thursday, November 6 to the Gaslamp Redding Cinemas. Cast and crew, as well as plans for the after party, are to be announced.
Fresh Off the Boat
Our centerpiece this year is not a film, but a TV show. A TV show that will premiere in 2015 as the first Asian American sitcom on a major TV network in over 20 years. We are world premiering the pilot for ABC’s FRESH OFF THE BOAT. The pilot of FRESH OFF THE BOAT follows the misadventures of Eddie Huang and his Taiwanese immigrant family from DC down to their new home in Orlando. It’s a classic story of immigrant insanity, seen through the eyes of a second-generation Asian American kid. It’s also a fantastic voyage through the mid-90s: Lunchables, Nas lyrics, Wu-Tang t-shirts. Hoping to pick up where Margaret Cho’s All-American Girl left off 20 years ago, FRESH OFF THE BOAT centers on another firecracker of a commentator. For years now, Huang has been a fresh, outspoken voice on all things Asian American, especially as they relate to style and food (he’s the proprietor NYC’s Baohaus).
This special event takes place at University of San Diego Shiley Theatre on Saturday, November 8. Attending cast and crew are to be announced.
Meet The Patels
A romantic comedy with stunts and testimonials on love and relationships, Ravi Patel and Geeta Patel’s new documentary follows Ravi as he resorts to finding a wife the old-world way– through parental supervision. If all goes well, he’ll find another Patel, an American-born woman of Indian descent, someone he finds physically attractive, and a woman who loves him and he loves in return. The odds aren’t great, but parental tenacity will always be greater. Hilarity ensues, all while Ravi’s director sister Geeta shoots, capturing second-generation dating in all of its comic turbulence.
Meet The Patels rounds out our festival on Friday, November 14, 2014 at Museum of Contemporary Art, Sherwood Auditorium. Cast and crew, as well as plans for the after party, are to be announced.
These energetic moments are the moments you’ve come to expect from the San Diego Asian Film Festival for over the last 15 years. Be a part of the movement and watch these cinematic stories with us. Tickets are available for all three screenings and we hope to see you there.
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