05/07/21
THIS WEEK: ICYM THESE FILMS, CONSIDER THIS YOUR SECOND CHANCE.
TRENDS THIS WEEK
☞ Youtube Stranger Things 4
☞ Letterboxd THE MITCHELLS VS THE MACHINES
☞ TikTok #MentalHealthAwareness
☞ Spotify YOUR POWER – Billie Eilish
☞ Netflix THE CIRCLE
☞ Twitter Floyd Mayweather
PS WEEKLY ツ
LIFE & CULTURE
This first week of Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month is a good time to remind ourselves that while Asian Americans are often grouped into a monolithic block, there are a number of different ethnicities that make up the larger community. CNN breaks down the complexity and history of the catch-all term, and it’s an interesting read that gives context to the celebrations this month. Also, if history is the kind of thing you’re into, get excited, because our Tiny History Lessons on Instagram are back—check ‘em out every Wednesday this month!
On the news front, fast food chain Panda Express announced its new $10M fund to support AAPI community organizations. The company shared that it kicked off the fund with a $1.5 million pledge to AAPI organizations dedicated to offering critical aid, as well as promoting cultural understanding and acceptance. In an Instagram post sharing info about the new five-year initiative, Panda Express detailed that “as a proud American-born company founded by Chinese immigrants, we are celebrating our multicultural heritage all month long.”
If you’d like to contribute on your own, we’ve got a few ideas. Our friends at CAPE put together this list of community-based orgs in LA specifically that we can all support, but I recommend checking out community organizations in whatever neighborhood you’re a part of, too.
If you watch one video on TikTok this week, make it this one. Creator @spoiledmel tackles mental health in a way that’s very relatable for anyone who spends time on social media. So, probably all of us. And this video depicts an elite level of life that I am now striving to achieve one day.
—Darlene Kenney, Digital Strategist\
FILM
Somehow no one has written about MINARI (trailer here) yet in this newsletter, so I’m on the job! I’m not going to ask what’s taken you so long to see Lee Isaac Chung’s beautiful and intimate family drama, but if for some reason you haven’t yet seen it, now is the time. While the film’s subject matter – a Korean-American family moves to Arkansas to start a farm – might sound small, MINARI is a sweeping emotional tale about a family trying to find success, which means something different to each family member. The film, I should mention, is also hilarious–the younger son (Alan Kim, awards season superstar) and his grandmother (Yuh-Jung Youn) square off in a number of laugh-out-loud moments. I don’t think it’s streaming for free anywhere just yet but I encourage you to splurge on the rental—I promise it's worth it!
—Julia Hammer, Creative Executive
At a time when solid romantic comedies are hard to come by, if you somehow missed Netflix’s ALWAYS BE MY MAYBE (trailer here) stop what you’re doing immediately—unless you’re in the middle of watching MINARI, of course—and treat yourself to this delightful exploration of lifelong friendship-turned-romance between Ali Wong and Randall Park. In addition to co-writing the screenplay, the talented duo exudes an irresistible on-screen chemistry reminiscent of the performance style pioneered by rom com OGs Doris Day and Rock Hudson. And, if that’s not enough, the Nahnatchka Khan-directed film offers a lengthy celebrity cameo that’s nothing short of magnificent!
—Kauveh Khozein Carrera, Creative Executive
Do you remember the last time you watched a soul-rocking film, just sitting there with chills? THE WHITE TIGER (trailer here) is the last film that left me feeling that way. Based on the 2008 Booker Prize-winning novel of the same name, THE WHITE TIGER is a gritty drama that subverts the normal “rags to riches'' tale with a darkly comedic tone and a textured satirical commentary. The story follows Balram Halwai as he narrates his life coming from the rural town of Laxmangarh and from a low-caste lineage, to becoming a successful entrepreneur. I thought director Ramin Bahrani (CHOP SHOP) did an incredible job exploring the deep divide between the haves and have-nots, and the complexity of the human experience set against a system of corruption and generational injustice — all with such a darkly humorous tone that he manages to sidestep the pitfalls of exploiting trauma and tragedy. The film also features a powerful performance from Adarsh Gourav, who blew me away with his range and versatility.
—Mimi Li, Development Assistant
THEATER
The National Asian American Theater Company, or NAATCO, was founded in 1989 with a focus on presenting both “classic” European and American plays and newer work, all with entirely Asian American casts. It also works with Asian American theater artists to develop and workshop new material. This month, it’s holding a benefit reading of OUR TOWN to raise money for the organization. It’s taking place for one night only on May 19—get your tickets and support this inspiring group!
—Julia Hammer, Creative Executive
BOOK
I was so excited to see this week’s news that Greta Lee will be adapting Cathy Park Hong’s book MINOR FEELINGS, which was one of the standout nonfiction books of last year. The winner of a National Book Critics Circle Award, MINOR FEELINGS is a collection of essays in which Hong primarily grapples with her racial identity, but discusses everything from her complicated feelings about her upper-middle-class upbringing to her life-changing discovery of Richard Pryor’s work. Today, Hong’s work feels even more like necessary reading than it did a year ago, but that means now is your perfect chance to check it out.
—Julia Hammer, Creative Executive
MUSIC
This week I want to enthusiastically recommend the budding talent of singer-songwriter Joyce Wrice, who just released her debut album, OVERGROWN. I absolutely adore the album and her whole presence. Born to a Japanese mother and an African American father, she’s a California native raised in Chula Vista, just south of San Diego. Joyce grew up singing and was inspired to write the album by a mixture of her feelings and experiences from 2018 to 2019.
The album is giving real Y2K energy. Her singing reminds me a lot of an early Aaliyah, Amerie, or Mya—just really soulful, sultry and moody R&B. I think she really stands out from the kind of R&B artists we're seeing today who tend to lean a little more alternative, Joyce gives us authentic soul. My stand-out tracks from the project: On One (feat. Freddie Gibbs), Must be Nice (feat. Masego), and So So Sick.
—Eden Bekele, Digital Associate
When I first came to the U.S. as a high schooler, I wanted to be a singer-songwriter. Growing up in China, I started listening to English songs as a way to learn the language, but eventually fell in love with the art and craft of it, and started writing my own songs. But within a year, I had the realization that I probably would never make it as a singer-songwriter here in America—the biggest reason being that I simply did not see or know of any Asian artists who had made it big here. That was back in 2011.
Anyway, the whole point of me telling this personal story that no one asked for is this: It is now 2021 and a lot has changed. In the past years, more and more talented AAPI musicians have made a splash. In celebration of AAPI Heritage Month, I asked some friends to help me start building out a playlist on Spotify to highlight musicians in our community, and I want to share it with you all.
Here it is, in all its diverse and interesting glory. Some of my personal favorite artists on this list include Audrey Luna, Yaeji, Peggy Gou, Raveena… but listen all the way through, because there’s something for everyone here.
And side note: The playlist is open for collab ;)
—Mimi Li, Development Assistant
FILMMAKERS
When I watched LINGUA FRANCA (trailer here), I was instantly mesmerized by Isabel Sandoval’s powerful storytelling. The film was released at Venice Days last year and thrust Isabel into the international spotlight. The film, acquired by Ava DuVernay’s Array, can be found on Netflix. It’s a delicate portrayal of Olivia, an undocumented Filipino trans woman who works as a live-in caregiver to the elderly Olga in Brooklyn. When Olivia falls for Olga’s hotheaded grandson Alex, she teeters between pursuing her heart and using him as a pathway to documented immigration status.
Off the recognition from LINGUA FRANCA, Isabel is developing her fourth feature, a 16th century drama with surreal elements, as well as developing an original pilot at FX. You can also watch her breathtaking poetic short film, “SHANGRI-LA” which was commissioned by Miu Miu Women’s Tales as part of their series exploring femininity in the 21st century.
—Shuyu Cao, Executive Assistant
I recently read a mind-blowing profile (which you can check out here if you happen to be fluent in Chinese) on Esther Eng 伍锦霞, an early LGBTQ+ icon, and Hollywood’s first Chinese-American female filmmaker who challenged the boundaries of race, language, culture and gender. Born in San Francisco in 1919, Esther directed her first feature at the age of 22. Throughout the years, she directed five films in Hong Kong and four films in the U.S., including IT’S A WOMEN’S WORLD in 1939, an ambitious project that follows 36 female characters, "all of whom occupy different social positions to highlight the harsh reality of living as a woman in modern society.” In 1941, Esther released GOLDEN STATE GIRLS, an immigrant saga following a fraught father-daughter relationship through the years. (Fun fact: Bruce Lee had his screen debut playing an infant girl in this title!) After WWII, Esther established her own Chinese-language filmmaking company, Silver Light, and produced two major motion pictures, including BACK STREET (1948), an adaptation of Fannie Hurst’s 1931 title but reset in a Chinese-American community, and MAD LOVE MAD FIRE (1949), which explored an interracial relationship. As an openly lesbian director/writer/producer, Esther was noted by press as having a striking gender presentation—she dressed in men’s attire and was open about her relationships with women. A trailblazer in all ways, Esther left the film industry in the ‘50s and ended up owning five Chinese restaurants in New York, which were a roaring success for 20 years.
With the exception of two films, most of Esther’s film reels have been lost to history—and the lack of mainstream exposure has largely left her legacy obscured. In the words of veteran film critic Law Kar, “If Eng had worked in the film industry today, she could have easily been seen as a champion of transnational filmmaking, feminist filmmaking, or antiwar filmmaking.” I’m disappointed I had never heard about Esther before, but I’m happy to be able to share her legacy with you now. I’ll just leave you with one, iconic quote from Esther: When asked about why she ventured into an industry she knew almost nothing about, she answered: "It just came to me, I don’t know why. I just went ahead and I wasn’t afraid of anything.”
—Mimi Li, Development Assistant