This year’s Philadelphia Asian American Film Festival (@paaff)– now in its 8th year — will once again highlight the work of Asian and Asian American filmmakers over a jam-packed week and a half of events. It will include 23 feature-length and 30 short films, including 5 East Coast premieres and 14 Philadelphia premieres.
The festival runs from November 12 to November 22, and opens with “Seoul Searching“:
Set against the backdrop of 1980s Seoul Korea and inspired by a summer exchange program that Writer/Director Benson Lee attended in the summer of ‘86, this John Hughes-esque Teen Comedy tells a universal coming-of-age story chock full of pop culture tropes, teen hijinks, and first love.
Director Benson Lee expected in attendance for post-film Q&A, followed by the PAAFF’15 Opening Night Reception featuring 80s dance music and costume contest FREE to all ticket and badge holders.
Opening Reception 9:30pm-12am
The PAAFF lineup also includes several community-oriented projects, including a presentation by the Center for Asian American Media’s Muslim Youth Voices which will highlight short films created by young Muslim American filmmakers, as well as panel discussions on “Asian Americans in Television” and AAPI Feminism.
PAAFF will also showcase music videos, live performances and a panel discussion for Strength in NUMBERS, a crowd-funded album consisting entirely of Asian American hip hop, R&B, rap and spoken word artists and produced by Scott CHOPS Jung, formerly of the Mountain Brothers. I strongly supported the Strength in Numbers project when it was still soliciting donations, and the final album is incredible and still in my iTunes rotation.
Go here for PAAFF’s full lineup, and to get other details.
If you’re in Philadelphia starting next week, you should definitely go check some PAAFF events out, and tweet your experiences to #PAAFF15!
