Yang Jin and Mimi Jong performing as "String Bouquet" in Oakland, November 24.

Pipa performer Yang Jin and erhu performer Mimi Jong will perform as "String Bouquet" on November 24 at the Carnegie Library in Oakland, part of the World Kaleidoscope series.

As individual artists, Jin Yang and Mimi Jong have been dedicated to the study and performance of traditional Chinese music. Since meeting in 2015, they have embarked on a musical journey together. From concert halls to libraries, from universities to community centers, from museums to house concerts, String Bouquet is permeating the hearts of their audience. Their versatile styles include Chinese traditional, global, western classical, jazz, pop and modern music. Their multi-media projects include collaboration with dance and various performance arts. String Bouquet continues to explore and expand the possibilities of their creativity, bringing exciting music presentations to their audience.

The performance runs from 2:00 to 3:00 pm in the North Wing Music Room on the second floor. The library is located at 4400 Forbes Ave. in Oakland (map) and is accessible by buses 28X, 54, 61C, 61D, 67, 69, 71A, 71B, 71C, 71D, and 93.

Susan Lieu and "140 LBS: How Beauty Killed My Mother" at Pitt, November 12.

The University of Pittsburgh's Vietnamese Student Association will host playwright Susan Lieu and her "140 LBS: How Beauty Killed My Mother" on November 12.

The Vietnamese Student Association (VSA) at the University of Pittsburgh works to promote diversity, awareness, and visibility of Vietnamese culture to people of all backgrounds within the campus community. We believe that bringing Susan Lieu, a Vietnamese-American playwright, would be an amazing opportunity to provide both an educational and emotional experience regarding the Vietnamese refugee experience. Lieu sheds light on the unimaginable ideals of Vietnamese feminine beauty and addresses body insecurity, grief, and trauma through her solo theatrical performance “140LBS: HOW BEAUTY KILLED MY MOTHER," which achieved sold-out openings in Seattle and San Francisco. She now has a national tour with stops in New York, Los Angeles, and other cities. "140 LBS" is a true story of how Susan’s mother died from medical malpractice, her search for the man responsible, and the painful uncovering of her mother’s life. We are collaborating with the Office of Diversity and Inclusion, English Department, Gender, Sexuality, and Women’s Studies Department, Outside the Classroom Curriculum (OCC), and Department of Theatre Arts. The expression of advocacy through the storytelling form of a solo show should not be missed during the Year of Creativity here at the University of Pittsburgh. We hope to reach a wide range of people from the Asian-American community, Asian Studies Center, Office of Diversity and Inclusion, English Department, Gender, Sexuality, and Women’s Studies Department, Outside the Classroom Curriculum (OCC), and the Department of Theatre Arts through this event. We are both excited and grateful to collaborate with these university departments to bring Lieu to Pittsburgh as her performance resonates with our shared experiences growing up as Vietnamese-Americans.

Refreshments will be provided. This event is free to all Pitt students and faculty, $10 for Carnegie Mellon students, and $15 for the general public. Proceeds and donations will be donated to Asylum Access, an organization that aids refugees in human rights and advocates for policy reform.

It will be held from 7:00 pm at the Charity Randall Theatre at 4301 Forbes Ave. in Oakland (map).

Bong Joon-ho film Parasite (기생충) continues in Pittsburgh through (at least) November 13; opens at Waterworks and AMC in Mt. Lebanon November 7.

The acclaimed 2019 Bong Joon-ho film Parasite (기생충), which opened in Pittsburgh on November 1, will continue here through at least November 13.

Bong Joon Ho brings his singular mastery home to Korea in this pitch-black modern fairytale.

Meet the Park Family: the picture of aspirational wealth. And the Kim Family, rich in street smarts but not much else. Be it chance or fate, these two houses are brought together and the Kims sense a golden opportunity. Masterminded by college-aged Ki-woo, the Kim children expediently install themselves as tutor and art therapist, to the Parks. Soon, a symbiotic relationship forms between the two families. The Kims provide “indispensable” luxury services while the Parks obliviously bankroll their entire household. When a parasitic interloper threatens the Kims’ newfound comfort, a savage, underhanded battle for dominance breaks out, threatening to destroy the fragile ecosystem between the Kims and the Parks. By turns darkly hilarious and heart-wrenching, PARASITE showcases a modern master at the top of his game.

Parasite won the Palme d'Or at the 2019 Cannes Film Festival. It continues at the AMC Loews Waterfront and through (at least) November 13 and opens at the Waterworks Cinema and the AMC in Mt. Lebanon from November 7, and are available online.

2018 Korean film House of Hummingbird (벌새) at Three Rivers Film Festival, November 9 and 12.

The 2018 Korean film House of Hummingbird (벌새) will play in Pittsburgh on November 9 and 12 as part of the Three Rivers Film Festival on November 9 and 12. The Tribeca Film Festival writes:

Set in 1994 in Seoul, House Of Hummingbird is a touching coming-of-age drama centered around the quiet, unexceptional eighth-grader Eunhee (Ji-hu Park). Struggling to make passing grades and subject to non-stop screaming at home, she spends her time finding meaning in the love and friendships of her peers, in shoplifting, and in karaoke bars. It’s in her cram school professor (Sae-byeok Kim), however, that Eunheen finds the answers that she seeks, as the two form an unlikely friendship.

In her feature debut, Bora Kim puts Korean culture and mores on display, gently criticizing the reduced role where women are pressured to exist. The film’s measured pace allows it to examine the many moments between despair, contrasting the joy of adolescence with its miseries. Bora Kim presents an honest and poignant take on youth, filled with warm cinematography from Gook-hyun and introduces a powerhouse performance from the young Ji-hu Park. An assured debut, House of Hummingbird cements Kim’s place as an upcoming auteur to follow.

It will play at the Harris Theater in the downtown Cultural District (map) at 8:30 pm on November 9 and at 6:00 pm on the 12th and tickets are available online.

FORUM Accent and Dialect Discrimination: From Northern Japan to Western Pennsylvania, November 10 in Shadyside.

By Tokyo Times (Creative Commons)

The First Unitarian Church of Pittsburgh will host "FORUM Accent and Dialect Discrimination: From Northern Japan to Western Pennsylvania" on November 10. It runs from 9:00 to 10:30 am at 605 Morewood Ave. (map) in Shadyside and is free and open to the public.

More theaters announced for Pittsburgh-area screenings of 2019 Makoto Shinkai film Weathering With You (天気の子), January 15.

The 2019 Makoto Shinkai film Weathering With You (天気の子), already announced at the Southside Works Cinema, will also play locally at the Cinemark theaters in Monroeville, North Hills, and Pittsburgh Mills on January 15. From the distributor:

GKIDS proudly presents the highly-anticipated new film from director Makoto Shinkai and producer Genki Kawamura, the creative team behind the critically-acclaimed, global smash hit Your Name. The summer of his high school freshman year, Hodaka runs away from his remote island home to Tokyo, and quickly finds himself pushed to his financial and personal limits. The weather is unusually gloomy and rainy every day, as if to suggest his future. He lives his days in isolation, but finally finds work as a writer for a mysterious occult magazine. Then one day, Hodaka meets Hina on a busy street corner. This bright and strong-willed girl possesses a strange and wonderful ability: the power to stop the rain and clear the sky…

Shows at 7:00 pm on the 15th will be dubbed in English, while those at 8:00 pm are in Japanese with English subtitles; tickets are currently available online. Additional theaters will be announced on November 15.

New Chinese movie My Dear Liar (受益人) in Pittsburgh, from November 8.

The new Chinese movie My Dear Liar (受益人) will play in Pittsburgh from November 8.

Wuhai (Da Peng) is determined to rescue his six year old son who suffers from asthma. At the encouragement of one of his friends, Zhong Zhenjian (Zhang Zixian), Wuhai forms a relationship with a cam girl, Miaomiao (Liu Yan), in the hopes of trapping her in a marriage.

It will play at the AMC Loews Waterfront and tickets are available online. The theater is located at 300 West Waterfront Dr. in the Waterfront shopping complex in Homestead (map), across the Monongahela River from Greenfield, Squirrel Hill, and the rest of Pittsburgh.

Justin Chon film Ms. Purple in Pittsburgh, November 9 and 14.

The 2019 American film Ms. Purple will play in Pittsburgh on November 9 and 14 as part of the Three Rivers Film Festival. The Sundance Institute provides a summary:

In the dark karaoke rooms of Los Angeles’s Koreatown stripmalls, Kasie works as a doumi girl, a young hostess paid to cater to rich businessmen’s capricious whims. As she struggles to hide her sorrow through soju- and MDMA-fueled nights, her mind is focused on one thing: earning enough tips to continue providing for her bedridden father. When her father’s caretaker unexpectedly quits, Kasie seeks help from her estranged brother, and the siblings are forced to reconnect and reconcile the suppressed trauma that lead to their separation.

Writer/director Justin Chon returns to the Sundance Film Festival (after winning a 2017 NEXT Audience Award for Gook) with another emotionally powerful love letter to Los Angeles. With a lavish sense of atmosphere and authenticity, Ms. Purple charts the lives of internally writhing individuals trapped by the expectations of their own family. Tiffany Chu perfectly embodies Kasie’s distress and anxiety as she grapples with the self-imposed burden of honoring her immigrant father until the day he dies.

It will play at the Regent Square Theater from 4:00 pm on November 9th and at 7:00 pm on November 14, and tickets are now available online.

Chinese, Korean, Japanese films at 2019 Three Rivers Film Fest.

After a few down years the Three Rivers Film Fest returns in 2019 with five Asian films among its line-up: the Chinese documentary Our Time Machine (时光机) on November 11 and 16, the Chinese film An Elephant Sitting Still (大象席地而坐) on November 17, the Korean film House of Hummingbird (벌새) on November 9 and 12, the Korean-American film Ms. Purple on November 9 and 14, and Japanese film We are Little Zombies (ウィーアーリトルゾンビーズ) on November 13 and 17. Tickets are now available online.

Miyazaki Week at Row House Cinema, November 29 through December 5.

The Row House Cinema will present its annual Miyazaki Week this year from November 29 through December 5. Selections include Castle in the Sky (天空の城ラピュタ), Howl's Moving Castle (ハウルの動く城), Porco Rosso (紅の豚), and Spirited Away (千と千尋の神隠し). Tickets are not yet available, but the Row House notes "Many shows will sell out. We recommend buying tickets in advance." The single-screen theater is located at 4115 Butler Street in Lawrenceville (map).