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VIETNAMESE
LANGUAGE
& C U LT U R E
( V N L C )
+
proudly present
A Panel Discussion Featuring
Elizabeth Ai
Michael Chang
Chris Dinh
Ellen Harrington
Mye Hoang
Le Van Kiet
Porter Lynn
Duc Nguyen
Marcus Manh Cuong Vu
Victor Vu
Special Screeing of the “Best of Yxine Film Festival 2011”
Cá Chuối / Mother Never Cries
Dưới bóng cây / Under the Tree’s Shadow
Un Interrogatoire / An Interrogation
The Man Who Was There
April 22, 2012
Dodd Hall 121 - UCLA
1
WELCOME
Vietnamese Language & Culture (VNLC) and Vietnamese American Arts & Letters Association
(VAALA) are proud to present Cinema Symposium 6: Shifting Scenes, the sixth biennial
event that alternates every other year with the Vietnamese International Film Festival (ViFF).
Cinema Symposium 6 brings together both established and emerging cinema artists to share their experiences and ideas.
Together, the panelists and audience will engage in dialogue about the present state and future direction of international cinema.
REMARKS
This year Cinema Symposium 6 explores the shifting scenes of contemporary Vietnamese cinema. The possibilities for filmmakers
to tell stories and for audiences to engage with cinema have greatly expanded due to ongoing ‘shifts’, such as the increasing
fluidity of geographical and cultural boundaries, internet-based distribution and networking channels, and the accessibility of
digital film-making technology. The symposium will provide a forum for audiences to engage with film-industry professionals in
examining the unique opportunities and challenges that present themselves in this dynamic landscape. The featured panelists are
a diverse and talented group. They include actors, directors, a fashion designer, producers, writers, an entertainment industry
attorney, a representative of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, and a director of the cutting-edge online Yxine
Film Festival. Ideal representatives of this year’s themes, the panelists often occupy multiple roles and their work traverse across
national and cultural boundaries.
We thank you for being part of this symposium and helping us maintain the excitement and momentum for our upcoming
Vietnamese International Film Festival in 2013.
Hội Văn Hóa và Ngôn Ngữ Việt Nam (VNLC) và Hội Văn Học Nghệ Thuật Việt Mỹ (VAALA) hân hạnh giới thiệu Hội Luận Điện Ảnh
(Cinema Symposium) lần thứ 6, với chủ đề “Shifting Scenes” (“Chuyển Cảnh”). Cách mỗi năm chẵn, VNLC và VAALA thực hiện
Hội Luận Điện Ảnh, và mỗi năm lẻ hai tổ chức đem đến cho khán giả Đại Hội Điện Ảnh Việt Nam Quốc Tế (ViFF). Hội Luận Điện
Ảnh lần thứ 6 hội tụ các nhà làm phim, mới cũng như đã thành danh, cùng chia sẻ kinh nghiệm và ý tưởng. Các diễn giả của
buổi hội luận sẽ cùng với khán giả thảo luận về hướng đi hiện tại và tương lai của điện ảnh quốc tế, mà trong đó có điện ảnh
Việt Nam, trong nước và hải ngoại.
Đề tài của Hội Luận Điện Ảnh năm nay chú trọng vào sự “chuyển cảnh” với nhiều diễn biến trong lãnh vực điện ảnh đương đại
Việt Nam trên toàn thế giới. Những nhà làm phim Việt, trong nước lẫn hải ngoại, hiện nay có thể đem câu chuyện của mình đến
với một lượng khán giả lớn hơn nhờ vào sự di chuyển vượt qua biên giới quốc gia và văn hóa dễ dàng hơn, sự phát triển liên
tục ở các lãnh vực như phát hành phim qua mạng internet, thành lập những mối liên kết rộng rãi, và sự tiến bộ của kỹ thuật
số (digital) trong quá trình thực hiện phim. Buổi hội luận là một diễn đàn cho khán giả tiếp xúc trực tiếp với các diễn giả nhằm
xem xét những cơ hội và thử thách của lãnh vực điện ảnh vốn không ngừng biến đổi. Những diễn giả của buổi hội luận là những
người tài năng thuộc nhiều ngành chuyên môn khác nhau của điện ảnh. Họ là những diễn viên, đạo diễn, nhà vẽ kiểu mẫu, nhà
sản xuất, nhà viết kịch bản, luật sư chuyên ngành giải trí, một chuyên viên từ Viện Hàn Lâm Điện Ảnh Hoa Kỳ, và sáng lập viên
kiêm giám đốc liên hoan phim ngắn trực tuyến đầu tiên của Việt Nam: Yxine Film Festival. Họ thường kiêm nhiệm nhiều chức vụ
và họ có khả năng đưa công việc (hoặc tác phẩm) của họ vượt qua biên giới các quốc gia và văn hóa.
Chúng tôi xin cảm ơn các diễn giả và khán giả của buổi hội luận đã giúp chúng tôi tiếp tục có được niềm phấn khởi và mở “đà
tiến” cho Đại Hội Điện Ảnh Việt Nam Quốc Tế (ViFF) vào năm 2013.
Linda Ta & Thuy Vo-Dang
Cinema Symposium 6 Co-Directors / Giám đốc Hội Luận Điện Ảnh 6
2
SCHEDULE
OF PROGRAM
2:30
3:00
Reception & Introductory remarks
Ysa Le & Linda Ta
3:00
-
5:30
Panel discussion featuring
Elizabeth Ai
Michael Chang
Chris Dinh
Ellen Harrington
Mye Hoang
Le Van Kiet
Porter Lynn
Duc Nguyen
Marcus Manh Cuong Vu
Victor Vu (from Vietnam via Skype)
Moderatored by
Thuy Vo-Dang & Justin Tran
5:30
-
5:45
Break
5:45
-
6:30
Special screening of the short films
Cá Chuối / Mother Never Cries
Dưới Bóng Cây / Under the Tree’s Shadow
Un Interrogatoire / An Interrogation
The Man Who Was There
Q & A Session
3
ELIZABETH AI
PRODUCER / FASHION DESIGNER
4
Elizabeth Ai is an intrepid traveler that produces feature
films, television, music videos, commercials and digital web
content domestically and internationally. Dirty Hands: The
Art & Crimes of David Choe, a feature documentary she
produced, garnered top honors at film festivals and was
curated into the film archives of the Museum of Modern Art.
She also produced Saigon Electric, a Vietnamese language
feature film shot on location in Ho Chi Minh City, that
garnered top honors at film festivals in the U.S. Elizabeth
is a fellow of Berlin Film Festival’s Talent Campus, HBO’s
National Association of Latino Producers Association, as
well as Film Independent’s Producers and Project:Involve
labs. She has an international slate of films in development
and is currently producing work with National Geographic
and Evolve IMG. Her previous work experience includes
stints at William Morris Endeavor, New Line Cinema,
Merv Griffin Entertainment, and philanthropic work in arts
education for the Los Angeles Unified School District. She
currently resides in Los Angeles and received her B.A. in
Creative Writing from the University of Southern California.
MICHAEL CHANG
ENTERTAINMENT INDUSTRY ATTORNEY
Michael Chang is Senior Counsel, Business & Legal
Affairs, at Warner Bros. Studios, one of the world’s
largest producers of film and television entertainment.
He specializes in the creation, acquisition, exploitation,
and enforcement of intellectual property, with a focus on
building brands and growing the business in emerging
markets in China, India,Vietnam, and across Japan and
the Asia Pacific. Michael has a Juris Doctor degree from
UCLA Law School, where he served as a member of the
editorial board of the Law Review, and a Bachelor of Arts
degree from UC Davis, where he graduated Phi Beta
Kappa. He is a graduate of the Entertainment & Media
Executive Program (EMEP) at the UCLA Anderson
School of Management. Michael is fluent in Mandarin
Chinese and Japanese.
5
CHRIS DINH
ACTOR / WRITER / PRODUCER
6
Christopher Dinh is an actor, writer, producer and video
game-lover. He was born in Garden Grove but spent most
of his childhood on a farm near the Temecula wine county.
He eventually ended up at UCLA where he studied biology
but sat in on theater classes on his free time. Some of his
notable work includes directing/co-writing/acting in the
short film You’ve Got Male which won first place at the AA
Filmlab 72 Hour Shootout, acting in and producing Peter
Long-Cuu Phan’s This Will All Make Perfect Sense, which
screened at Tribeca Film Festival and Tokyo’s Short Shorts
Film Festival, co-writing/acting in Viet Nguyen’s Crush the
Skull, which won best short film at the NBC Short Cuts
Film Festival. He also co-wrote/acted in Viet Nguyen’s
follow up short, Things You Don’t Joke About, which was
honored with the ViFF Audience Choice award. He his
also working with fellow ViFF Alumnus, Danny Do, on a
Science Fiction Adventure project. On the writing front,
Chris and his writing partner, Viet Nguyen, recently sold a
pilot to NBC and are developing a low-budget feature with
Cherry Sky Films.
ELLEN HARRINGTON
EXHIBITIONS DIRECTOR,
Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences
Ellen M. Harrington is the Director of Exhibitions, Special
Events and International Outreach for the Academy of
Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. During her seventeen
years in this position she has organized and designed
the installations for over seventy exhibitions, which have
been installed in the Academy’s Galleries in Beverly
Hills. She has produced hundreds of special screening
events incorporating key anniversaries of significant films,
premieres of film restorations, cast and filmmaker reunions,
and screenings and lectures presented in conjunction with
gallery exhibitions. Harrington developed and directs the
Academy’s International Outreach Project, and organized
its first initiative in 2007, a visiting artist program and film
festival in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. A second
outreach trip to Iran in March of 2009 resulted in the
Academy subsequently hosting a dozen Iranian filmmakers
in Los Angeles for industry meetings, film screenings and
professional training opportunities. The latest initiative saw
the Academy partnering with the Los Angeles Film Festival
to bring a group of filmmakers and an exhibition to the
Havana Film Festival in Cuba, with follow-up programs in
Los Angeles this summer.
7
MYE HOANG
WRITER / PRODUCER / DIRECTOR
8
Mye Hoang was born and raised in Dallas, Texas and
studied film at Southern Methodist University. In 2001,
she founded the Asian Film Festival of Dallas, which
has become the largest showcase of Asian film in the
Southwest. In 2005, Mye moved to New York where
she co-directed and produced a short film called Press or
Say 2 which has premiered in dozens of film festivals all
over the world including the San Francisco International
Asian American Film Festival and Tribeca Underground.
Up until 2011, Mye served as the Artistic Director of the
San Diego Asian Film Foundation where she headed film
programming. She wrote, produced and directed Viette
(her first feature length film) which premiered in 2012
at the 30th Annual San Francisco International Asian
American Film Festival. She currently lives in Los Angeles.
LE VAN KIET
Le-Van Kiet was born in Vietnam. He immigrated with
his family to the United States when he was two years old.
He graduated from UCLA’s School of Film and Television,
where he received a grant to make his short film, The
Silence, Kiet. The film was awarded the best student film
in his class. Dust of Life, Kiet’s feature film debut, was
the Closing Night film for ViFF 2007. The film was a gritty
visual depiction of gang life in Orange County in the early
1990’s. Dust of Life was released theatrically in several
states in the United States in 2009. His second feature
film, Sad Fish, was an official selection for ViFF 2009. His
most recent feature film, Ngôi Nhà Trong Hẻm (House
in the Alley), was released this past Valentine’s Day in
Vietnam and held the record for top-grossing Opening
Day film. His upcoming feature, Bẫy Cấp 3 (High School
Trap), is scheduled for release in May 2012 in Vietnam.
All Kiet’s feature films have been released by Orange
County-based distribution company Coco Paris.
Scene from House in the Alley
WRITER / DIRECTOR
9
PORTER LYNN
Scene from Touch
ACTRESS
10
Porter Lynn was born in Sunnyvale, California and has
loved acting, singing and performing since she was a
child. After studying at UC Davis, she moved to Los
Angeles to pursue her film career. She worked on various
commercials including Resident Evil 5, Wells Fargo, Best
Western and Disney. Her first lead role as well as first
feature film role was the role of Tam in Touch, for which
she won the best actress award at the International Boston
Film Festival. She most recently worked on The Ropes
created by Vin Diesel and co-starred on Ringer with Sarah
Michelle Gellar.
DUC NGUYEN
Duc Nguyen has been working in the entertainment and
television industries for 15 years. From 1997 to 2000, Duc
worked as an interactive television program producer for
GTE mainstreet. In 2001, he produced Mediated Reality, a
documentary capturing the tug-of-war between the U.S.
and Cuba over 6-year-old Elian Gonzalez. An avid traveler,
Duc has done video documenting work in Vietnam, Cuba,
the Andes mountain and the Amazon River. In 2002, he
spent a month in Ecuador documenting archaeologists
searching for a Pre-Inca civilization. In 2003, Nguyen
served as an assistant editor for The New Americans
and My Journey Home, multi-part series on family and
identities. In 2007, he produced and directed Bolinao 52,
Duc’s first feature documentary, which won the audience
choice award at the 2007 Vietnamese International Film
Festival. The film also won two Northern California Emmy
Awards for Documentary and Music Composition in 2009.
Currently, he is producing STATELESS, a documentary
about Vietnamese boat people who were left behind in the
Philippines, Thailand and Cambodia.
Scene from Stateless
PRODUCER / DIRECTOR
11
MARCUS MANH CUONG VU
Marcus Manh Cuong Vu (right) and filmmaker Phan Xine,
co-producer of YxineFF, at the Awards Ceremony of YxineFF
2011 in Ho Chi Minh City
EDITOR/WRITER/FILM FESTIVAL PRODUCER
12
Marcus Manh Cuong Vu graduated in Economics from
the Humboldt University of Berlin and a Grand Ecole in
Paris. Besides his main work as an economist, he has
been committed to cinema and journalism for 10 years. At
present, he is the editor-in-chief of the cinema portal
yxine.com, and writes film reviews, festival reports and
other articles on tourism and culture for Vietnamese media.
His biggest success so far is YxineFF (www.yxineff.com),
an online international short film festival which he founded
and directed voluntarily since 2010. After two seasons,
YxineFF 2012 is putting a call for entries out for this year’s
edition at the end of April. In Germany, Marcus worked for
the German Federal Film Board FFA and collaborated with
the television channel MDR. He was the 1st runner-up for
the International Young Screen Entrepreneur Award 20102011 by British Council Vietnam. He was nominated in the
general round for the German Prize for Civic Engagement
2011. Marcus currently lives in Wiesbaden, Germany.
VICTOR VU
Born and raised in Southern California, Victor Vu studied
film production and received his bachelor’s degree from
Loyola Marymount University, where he wrote, produced
and directed the award-winning short film Firecracker.
Victor’s first full-length feature First Morning (Buổi Sáng
Đầu Năm), was winner of the Best Feature Film Award at
the San Diego Asian Film Festival. His second feature film,
the Vietnamese horror film Spirits (Oan Hồn), was labeled
by Kevin Thomas of the Los Angeles Times as “an exquisite
ghost story; a unique and powerful film.” Passport to Love
(Chuyện Tình Xa Xứ) was Victor’s third feature, a romantic
comedy that won Vietnam’s Golden Kite Award for Audience
Choice and Best Supporting Actress. Victor’s fourth feature
film, a psychological thriller entitled Inferno (Giao Lộ Định
Mệnh), was a box office sensation, opening in Vietnam
Fall 2010. Victor’s fifth feature film, Battles of the Brides
(Cô Dâu Đại Chiến), opened in Vietnam January 2011 and
broke box office records, becoming the highest grossing
Vietnamese movie of all time. Victor’s latest feature film
Thiên Mệnh Anh Hùng (Blood Letter), an action-fantasy
set in Vietnam during the 1400s, was released theatrically
in Vietnam January 2012. Victor is currently in production
on his seventh feature film, a psychological thriller entitled
Scandal, set in present-day Saigon.
Scene from Blood Letter (Thiên Mệnh Anh Hùng)
WRITER / PRODUCER / DIRECTOR
13
SELECTION OF SHORT FILMS
FROM YxineFF
Cá Chuối / Mother Never Cries
2011
Dưới Bóng Cây / Under the Tree’s Shadow
2011
Un Interrogatoire / An Interrogation
2011
The Man Who Was There
2009
14
YxineFF is an annual online short film festival at
www.yxineff.com. YxineFF is a voluntary, non-profit and
independent project.
The goal of YxineFF is to introduce and showcase new
films to the international audience. In addition, YxineFF
wants to form a community of filmmakers to strengthen the
voice of independent cinema. YxineFF follows the motto
“Sharing. Love. Cinema.”
The first edition of YxineFF themed “Love” took place
between May and December 2010 and attracted 120
film entries. In October 2010, the YxineFF project and its
founder – Marcus Manh Cuong Vu – were the 1st runnerup for the International Young Screen Entrepreneur Award
2010–2011 of British Council Vietnam.
SELECTION OF
SHORT FILMS
Cá Chuối / Mother Never Cries
2011
Director: Đỗ Quốc Trung
Producer: Đoàn Minh Anh, Ngô Đài Trang
Cinematographer: Trang Công Minh.
Editor: Đỗ Quốc Trung.
Starring: Nguyễn Như Quỳnh, Trần Đình Cường,
Nguyễn Oanh Oanh, Bùi Minh Phương
Length: 15:34
Genre: Drama
The story is about a middle age woman who by all means
finds a girl to sleep with her mentally challenged son. She
insistently believes that her son is completely normal.
And she expects a grandson to maintain the family line.
The arrangement is usually beyond human planning.
That’s the disheartening message from Mother Never
Cries. The well-arranged frames along with professional
performances by the actors bring a bewildering
atmosphere in the setting of an Hanoi ancient house.
BIOGRAPHY
Đỗ Quốc Trung is currently studying Directing at Hanoi
Academy of Theatre and Cinema. Quoc Trung wishes to
pursue his desired cinema path so as to share
simple stories with other people.
FILMOGRAPHY
The Dunk (2011)
Snakehead Fish (2011)
Lonely Together (2010)
Dancing Sunshine (2009)
Bad Boy (2009)
15
SELECTION OF
SHORT FILMS
Dưới bóng cây / Under the Tree’s Shadow
Due to a boasting from Mouse, Snake takes Frog away.
Mouse goes to save Frog, actually with another purpose.
Director: Đoàn Trần Anh Tuấn
Producer: Colory Animation Studio
Writer: Đoàn Trần Anh
Cinematographer: Nguyễn Hòa Thanh.
Editor: Đoàn Trần Anh Tuấn.
Starring: Đỗ Thị Minh Thư, Đoàn Trần Anh Tú
Length: 07:00
Genre: Animation
Awards at YxineFF 2011: Best Film (Golden Heart),
Audience Award (Red Heart),
Best Directing
Humorous in style and deeply Vietnamese in visualization,
Under the tree’s shadow from Colory tells a story about
self-confidence, about the nature of heroic act and
perception of certain event through the eyes of the “doer”
and the one who coincidentally sees the result. The moral
is gentle yet deep, told here by the filmmakers with much
grace and freshness.
2011
BIOGRAPHY
Colory Animation Studio aims to
develop into the loveliest
animation studio in Vietnam.
FILMOGRAPHY
Under the Tree’s Shadow (2011)
Balut Egg (2009)
16
SELECTION OF
SHORT FILMS
Un Interrogatoire / An Interrogation
2011
Director: Nghiêm Quỳnh Trang
Producer: Đỗ Duy Hoàng
Writer: Nghiêm Quỳnh Trang
Cinematographer: Darius Shah
Editor: Dominik Krutský
Starring: Trương Quế Chi, Romain Deroo, Céline Spang
Length: 15:56
Genre: Drama
Awards at YxineFF 2011: Best Screenplay, Best Acting,
Best Editing
After the wedding with a young Frenchman, Minh (played
by Truong Que Chi) – a Vietnamese student who is about
to graduate from a Fine Arts School in France has to go
through an interview to get her residence permit. Woven
within the interview are memories, lies and eventually
revealed truths. Minh doesn’t know if she could stay longer
or not, yet this is the first time she sees herself wondering
about one much more important thing.
Using conventional flashbacks, Nghiem Quynh Trang
gradually leads viewers into Minh’s puzzling and troubled
inner world. The story explodes with deception and reality,
and agony lingers even after the closing credit has ended.
17
SELECTION OF
SHORT FILMS
The Man Who Was There
2009
Director: Andy Nguyễn
Producer: Andy Nguyễn
Cinematographer: Andy Nguyễn.
Editor: Andy Nguyễn.
Starring: Anphong Nguyen, Natalie Kuhn
Length: 11:58
Genre: Drama
Award at YxineFF 2011: Best Cinematography
BIOGRAPHY
Andy Nguyễn is currently enrolled in the MFA program at
Columbia University Film School in New York.
FILMOGRAPHY
The Man Who Was There (2009)
Thank You, Tommy Feinstein (2009)
Boomerang (2008)
The Manicurist (2007)
A Silent Night (2004)
18
It’s Christmas Eve in New York. A man who lives alone
leaves his flat for the first time in 8 years because of a silly
reason and fortunately a girl helps him. Both of them walk
together in the freezing Christmas Eve. The loneliness has
been spreading from the empty streets.
Andy Nguyen’s film not only brings a melancholy feeling
about people’s inner loneliness in modern society but also
lights up a belief in love as well.
CINEMA SYMPOSIUM 6
VNLC + VAALA
PROGRAM DIRECTORS
OUR SPECIAL GUEST PANELISTS
Linda Ta
Thuy Vo-Dang
Thuy Vo-Dang
Justin Tran
Elizabeth Ai
Michael Chang
Chris Dinh
Ellen Harrington
Mye Hoang
Le Van Kiet
Porter Lynn
Duc Nguyen
Marcus Manh Cuong Vu
Victor Vu
TECHNICAL MANAGER
FILMMAKERS
Victor Lee
Thien Do & Alex Van
RECEPTION COORDINATORS
ALL OUR ENTHUSIASTIC AND DEDICATED VOLUNTEERS
Christina H. Nguyen
Eileen Truong
You know who you are
STAFF
PROGRAM ADVISOR
Ysa Le
MODERATORS
THE SYMPOSIUM CO-PRESENTERS
CATALOG EDITORS
Thuy Vo-Dang
Ysa Le
VOLUNTEERS
Allen Pai
Binh Ngo
Chuong John Pham
Christina D. Nguyen
Jessica Do
Jimmy Le
Lisa Ta
Minhhan Pham
WOULD LIKE TO THANK
Nancy Vu
Nicole Yee
Sara Wang
Steven Le
Teresa Huynh
Tho Kim Nguyen
Tuong-Vy Nguyen
Asian Pacific Coalition
East West Players
Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival 2012 - Visual Communications
UC Irvine Department of Asian American Studies
UCLA Center for Southeast Asian Studies
UCLA Asian American Studies Department
Vietnamese American Oral History Project at UC Irvine
Vietnamese American Chamber of Commerce of Orange County
AND THE FOLLOWING SPONSORS
USA Contingency Programming Fund
Cultural Affairs Commission Programming Fund
Access Group Media
GRAPHIC DESIGNER
James Dinh / Studiodinh
19
VIETNAMESE AMERICAN LANGUAGE & CULTURE
VNLC
Founded in 1994 to preserve and promote Vietnamese
culture, VNLC has grown to encompass serving the greater
community in our mission statement. To realize our goal
of community outreach and sharing the Vietnamese
culture, we run several tutorial and cultural projects.
With our Friday Tutorial, we provide free Vietnamese
language lessons and cultural studies classes to college
students here on the UCLA campus. Our Saturday Tutorial
program, which takes place in the San Fernando Valley
area, offers Vietnamese language classes to children of
age five to high school. In the same area, our REACHE
(Rendering Encouragement in Academic Commitment for
Higher Education) project makes available to students
at Canoga Park High School the opportunity to receive
tutoring for all academic subjects.
Every year, we put together a Tet Festival at UCLA both
to celebrate the Vietnamese New Year and to expand the
understanding of the Vietnamese culture. Additionally,
we collaborate with VAALA (Vietnamese American Arts
and Letters Association) on many artistic and cultural
projects, one of which is ViFF, the first-ever Vietnamese
International Film Festival. Furthermore, we are planning
a new project which involves traveling back to Vietnam to
serve the community there.
VNLC is not simply a community service organization but
is also a close family that has a lot of fun together. New
members often give as their reason for joining VNLC
the fact that they felt very welcome and that the older
members make a big effort in making them feel at home.
Aside from the volunteer work, we also have many fun
activities like ice skating, bowling, skiing at Big Bear,
camping at Yosemite, and much more!
www.vnlcclub.info
20
VIETNAMESE AMERICAN ARTS & LETTERS ASSOCIATION
Founded in 1991 by a group of Vietnamese American
journalists, artists and friends, Vietnamese American Arts &
Letters Association (VAALA) is a community-based, 501 (c)
(3) non-profit organization. VAALA has organized numerous
cultural events such as art exhibitions, book fairs, book
signings, recitals, plays, lectures, the biennial Vietnamese
International Film Festival (ViFF), the biennial Cinema
Symposium, the annual Children’s Moon Festival Art Contest
and year-long art and music classes. VAALA recently
developed smART Program, which offers free art workshops
for non-profit youth organizations in the Orange County and
Los Angeles areas.
VAALA’s mission is to connect and enrich communities through Vietnamese art and culture
VAALA’s objectives include:
- To produce artistic programs that promote the vitality of Vietnamese arts and culture
- To implement the arts as an educational tool for
exploring the Vietnamese experience, with a focus on
the diaspora
- To provide a space for artists and audiences of all
backgrounds to interact in an ongoing dialogue
- To facilitate communication, tolerance and
understanding among people of diverse identities
- To advocate inclusiveness by utilizing the arts to
transcend boundaries both within the community and globally
www.vaala.org
21
VIETNAMESE
LANGUAGE
& C U LT U R E
( V N L C )
+
proudly present the biennial
Vietnamese International Film Festival (ViFF)
Coming to UC Irvine, UCLA, and Bowers Museum in APRIL 2013!
Deadline for entry submissions:
DECEMBER 1, 2012
Please visit www.VietFilmFest.com for more information
22
Princess Grace Foundation-USA Announces New Film Initiative with the Ford Foundation’s JustFilms Program
VAALA is pleased to support the Princess Grace JustFilms Documentary Award by
helping with the distribution of the following announcement to South and Southeast
Asian filmmakers. Past recipients of grants from the Princess Grace Foundation-USA
include Vietnamese American filmmaker Ham Tran and ballet choreographer Thang
Dao. Please visit www.pgfusa.org for more information; all inquiries may be submitted
to the Princess Grace Foundation-USA at [email protected].
The Princess Grace Foundation-USA (PGF-USA) is proud to announce a new initiative for film grants: the Princess Grace
JustFilms Documentary Awards, made possible by the Ford Foundation’s JustFilms program. These funds will be awarded to
help support social justice documentary thesis projects of students in undergraduate/graduate programs and final projects
of individuals participating in production programs at media arts centers. In this inaugural year of the grant, an emphasis is
placed on filmmakers and films that focus on South Asian and Southeast Asian communities.
The Princess Grace Foundation-USA, a public charity, was formed after the death of Princess Grace (Kelly) in 1982. They
present scholarships, apprenticeships, and fellowships to assist artists in the early stages of their careers. The Foundation
has cultivated a diverse group of nearly 600 artists who continue to advance the spectrum of performing arts with innovative,
cutting-edge, and vibrant theater, dance, choreography, film, playwriting and design. Since the Foundation’s inception, more
than 700 Awards have been given to recipients, totaling more than $8.5 million.
PGF-USA will identify and support voices that tell authentic and powerful stories from or about underrepresented communities,
through the Princess Grace JustFilms Documentary Film Awards. Grants will be made in accordance with the applicants’ thesis/
final project budgets. Nominations for film grants are submitted by Deans/Department Chairs in conjunction with the faculty
of established U.S. colleges and universities, or directors of non-profit media arts organizations with structured film production
programs that the Foundation has invited to apply.
“Acknowledging the vision and creativity of promising new filmmakers with an award of this kind, can be a critical moment of
affirmation that we hope will fuel their determination to pursue their talents,” said JustFilms’ Director Orlando Bagwell. “This
partnership, and these awards, will help identify and support new voices in under-represented communities who bring fresh
ideas and perspectives to the field of social justice documentaries.”
In evaluating an application, primary consideration will be given to the talent and potential of the filmmaker as demonstrated
by the sample work submitted with each application. The panel will also consider the quality, originality and mastery of the
subject and approach of the proposed project, as well as the potential impact the work will have on viewers, the community
and the film’s subject(s). An advisory panel, independent of the PGF-USA staff and Trustees, reviews every application on its
merits in competition with other applicants in the same category and awards the scholarships for the next school year.
A current list of accepted schools can be found in the FAQ of the Grants Program section at www.pgfusa.org.
Additional schools/media arts centers who would like to be considered may contact Program Manager Diana Kemppainen at
[email protected].
The postmark deadline for applications is June 1, 2012.
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