"Asian American shorts," part of SCREENSHOT:ASIA film festival, October 10 in Aspinwall.

The University of Pittsburgh's Asian Studies Center and SCREENSHOT:ASIA will present a collection of Asian American short films on the 10th as part of October's inaugural SCREENSHOT:ASIA film festival.

The first annual SCREENSHOT: ASIA Film Festival will take place October 6-10, 2021. In its inaugural year, the Festival will screen features from all over Asia as well as highlight some lesser-known Asian filmmakers through a shorts program.

This screening is a variety of shorts from the Asian diaspora. In Koreatown Ghost Story, a young woman gets more than she bargained for at the acupuncturist. Hawaiian Soul tells a fictionalized account of 1970s native activist George Helm. In Tammy, a skater learns what it's like to be upstaged by another Asian American girl. These and more in our shorts program!

For more information about the film festival, click here.

The event starts at 2:00 pm at the Outdoor Pavillion at Aspinwall's RiverTrail Park (map), accessible by city buses 1, 75, and 91. Registration is required and can be completed online.

"Not Safe For Life" 1999 Takashi Miike film Audition (オーディション) at Row House Cinema, October 29.

The 1999 Takashi Miike film Audition (オーディション) will play at Row House Cinema on October 29.

In this Japanese thriller, a widower schemes to find love but finds his dream woman to be a hellish nightmare. Director Takashi Miike’s film starts off feeling like a heartwarming romantic comedy before descending into grisly and terrifying chaos.

Screening of Vincent Who? and Q & A with producer, September 27 at Pitt.

The University of Pittsburgh's Asian Studies Center and OCA Pittsburgh will present a screening of the documentary Vincent Who? on September 27. From the film's official site:

In 1982, at the height of anti-Japanese sentiments arising from massive layoffs in the auto industry, a Chinese-American named Vincent Chin was murdered in Detroit by two white autoworkers. Chin's killers, however, got off with a $3,000 fine and 3 years probation, but no jail time. Outraged by this injustice, Asian Americans around the country united for the first time across ethnic and socioeconomic lines to form a pan-Asian identity and civil rights movement.

Among its significant outcomes, the movement led to the historic broadening of federal civil rights protection to include all people in America regardless of immigrant status or ethnicity.

VINCENT WHO? explores this important legacy through interviews with the key players at the time as well as a whole new generation of activists whose lives were impacted by Vincent Chin. It also looks at the case in relation to the larger narrative of Asian American history, in such events as Chinese Exclusion, Japanese American Internment in WWII, the 1992 L.A. Riots, anti-Asian hate crimes, and post-9/11 racial profiling.

Ultimately, VINCENT WHO? asks how far Asian Americans have come since the case and how far they have yet to go.

It will be followed by a Q-and-A session with the film's producer. The event will be held from 7:00 pm in the William Pitt Union (map) Dining Room A, safety permitting, or online via Zoom; it's free and open to the public, though registration is required.

Asian grocery chain still in the mix for former Hill District Shop n' Save location.

Fresh International Market is still among the tenants being considered for occupants of the former Shop n' Save Hill District location reports Public Source. It was first reported in June that the chain, which was started in Michigan in 2012 by Bowen Kou, was considering a location here. The store, writes Public Source,

would be the seventh in the small Midwestern chain, and would feature an affordable mix of produce, fresh and live seafood and dry goods. It would also include a juice bar and a bakery — but would not have expensive offerings like $6 organic avocados, said Bowen Kou, president of the company.

Hill District residents have until the end of the month to vote on their preference of tenant. The others in contention are Pierre Development, Family Tree Food Market, and Salem's Market and Grill.

While the city could certainly use a large, destination Asian grocery, the Fresh International Market proposal is admittedly the weakest of the four, is competing with merchants with longer histories in the area, and was reportedly submitted after the deadline.

"Protest as a Human Right in Hong Kong: A view from history," September 30 at Pitt.

via Jonathan van Smit

The University of Pittsburgh's Global Studies Center will host Dr. Gina Anne Tam and "Protest as a Human Right in Hong Kong: A view from history" on September 30.

In the summer of 2019, Hong Kong-- former British colony, current special administrative region of the People's Republic of China-- was swept up by a large, sustained protest movement. The spark that lit this "revolution of our time" as protestors have deemed it was an extradition treaty with China, but quickly evolved into a broader movement for a more democratically representative government and autonomy from the People's Republic of China. In a stunning backlash against the movement, the PRC government announced they would unilaterally enact a sweeping national security law, quickly marking much of the previous year's protest movement illegal. In the past year, activists, lawyers, elected officials have been arrested and NGOs and media outlets shuttered at a dizzying pace, fundamentally altering the civic, legal, and cultural landscape of the city. Drawing upon Hong Kong's long history of grassroots activism-- and backlash against it-- from the early twentieth century through the present, this talk will offer a historical view of how protest became a cherished human right and a locus of popular power in Hong Kong, using this history to discuss the implications of the national security law on human rights in the city today.

The event runs from 4:30 to 5:45 pm, and will be held online.

2021 movie Gintama: The Very Final (銀魂 THE FINAL) in Pittsburgh, November 21 and 22.

The 2021 movie Gintama: The Very Final (銀魂 THE FINAL) will play in Pittsburgh on November 21 and 22. From the distributor:

This is the actual ending.

The countdown to destruction has begun! All will join to reclaim an Edo in grave peril! Earth is facing its darkest days, and the members of the Odd Jobs must come together to save it from an otherworldly menace.

Old allies Gintoki, Takasugi, and Katsura strive their hardest for their own ideals, but standing in their way is someone with whom they share a sad history: Utsuro, an alternate personality of their former teacher and mentor, Shoyu. Having been spawned by Altana, the energy that fuels all planets, this immortal fiend has regenerated multiple times until finally becoming Utsuro, the ultimate enemy... And he intends to take down the entire world in order to end his own life.

Gintoki and the others set out to fulfill the wishes of their teacher Shoyo and thwart Utsuro's plans. Shinpachi, Kagura, the Shinsengumi, members of the Kabuki District, and even former enemies will join their fight.

As Utsuro's power grows, Takasugi fights for his very life. Will Gintoki be able to put
an end to all this?!

Tickets are available for shows at the AMC Loews Waterfront---note that some shows are dubbed in English while others are in Japanese with English subtitles---though more theaters may be announced one tickets officially go on sale next month.

Asia Now Fall Lecture Series: The Fragmented Spectacle of Chinese Soft Power in Africa, September 27 at Pitt.

via Georgetown University.

The University of Pittsburgh's Asian Studies Center will host Dr. Maria Repnikova and her talk "The Fragmented Spectacle of Chinese Soft Power in Africa" on September 27 as part of the Asia Now Fall Lecture Series.

This lecture by Dr. Maria Repnikova, Georgia State University, presents the multifaceted story of China’s soft power campaigns in Africa, with a special focus on Ethiopia—one of China’s closest economic and political partners on the continent. Countering the claims of China’s authoritarian export, the analysis of China’s engagement with Ethiopian elites, youth and media audiences, showcases what I describe as a “fragmented spectacle” — a grand, but disjointed display of China’s prowess. In particular, China’s soft power appeal is rooted in generosity of scale or the large-scale access to its initiatives. And yet, when it comes to building relationships, it produces fragmented or contested Sino-African solidarities. The lecture will specifically highlight how performative, material and discursive solidarity works and the tensions that override these different Sino-African encounters. This talk, which draws on a larger book project, demonstrates that the idea of a moral competition is largely a product of the US insecurity about losing out to China, in what many US officials see as the last frontier, rather than an accurate depiction of Chinese activities in Africa.

The event runs from 4:30 to 5:45 at 211 Lawrence Hall (map) on the 27th. It is open to members of the university community who are following Pitt's COVID-19 safety guidelines. Registration is required.

Spirited Away (千と千尋の神隠し) in Pittsburgh, October 3, 4, and 6.

The 2001 Japanese film Spirited Away (千と千尋の神隠し) will play in Pittsburgh on October 3, 4, and 6 as part of this year's Studio Ghibli Fest 2021. From the distributor:

Winner of the Academy Award® for Best Animated Feature, Hayao Miyazaki's wondrous fantasy adventure is a dazzling masterpiece from one of the most celebrated filmmakers in the history of animation.

Chihiro's family is moving to a new house, but when they stop on the way to explore an abandoned village, her parents undergo a mysterious transformation and Chihiro is whisked into a world of fantastic spirits ruled over by the sorceress Yubaba. Put to work in a magical bathhouse for spirits and demons, Chihiro must use all her wits to survive in this strange new place, find a way to free her parents and return to the normal world. Overflowing with imaginative creatures and thrilling storytelling, Spirited Away became a worldwide smash hit, and is one of the most critically-acclaimed films of all time.

It plays locally at the AMC Loews Waterfront and the Cinemark theaters in Monroeville, North Hills, and Robinson, and tickets are available online. The October 3 and 6 shows are dubbed in English while the October 4 show is in Japanese with English subtitles.

2021 Korean film Made On The Rooftop (메이드 인 루프탑) at ReelQ Film Festival, October 14.

The 2021 Korean film Made On The Rooftop (메이드 인 루프탑) will play at Pittsburgh's 36th annual ReelQ Film Festival on October 14.

This quirky romantic comedy starts with a heartbreak, as Ha-neul must leave his uptight and closeted boyfriend and seek comfort and shelter from his BFF, where he gets sympathy and fashion advice along with a place to crash. Directed by Kim Jho Gwang-soo. In Korean with English subtitles.

It will be available to watch online on the 14th from 7:00 pm, and pre-order is available now.

Mid-Autumn Festival Celebration at Pitt, September 21.

The University of Pittsburgh's Asian Studies Cener and Global Hub will host a Mid-Autumn Festival Celebration on September 21 from 11:00 am to 1:00 pm.

Join the Asian Studies Center and Global Hub in celebrating Mid-Autumn Festival! Take some refreshments to-go, make a paper lantern, and enter for a chance to win tickets to the Asian Lantern Festival at the Pittsburgh Zoo or some Screenshot:Asia swag.

It will be held at the Global Hub, located on the 1st floor of Posvar Hall (map). It is open to members of the Pitt community who are following COVID safety protocols; university buildings are currently not open to the public.