Calling all actors for this Tuesday’s AAFL meeting.  We will be
reading the submissions for the Writer X Project that launched a month
ago.  Screenwriters were given one month to come up with a short
screenplay which will ultimately become an AAFL film production.  We
will also be featuring “Ana’s Time” a short film by Alice Cox.  Hope
to see you all there!


Script Reading Series:Writer “X” Project Submissions…
Featuring scripts by Son Tran and Myra Velasquez


Tuesday, March 13th @ 7:00 p.m.
19 West 26th Street, 5th Floor


RSVP to (JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) .


In *Subject* Heading include:
Script Reading RSVP (Actors interested in reading please type “ACTOR
for Script Reading”)


In *Body* of your email:
Your First and Last Name (No other text is necessary)


Title: Ana’s Time
Format: Super 16mm, 16mm, HDV
Screening format: miniDV or DVD
Running time: 15 min screening

Synopsis:
In Ana’s Time, a young Asian-American writer attempts to direct a
film based on a script her domineering, Caucasian step-father wrote, in
order to make sense of her abusive past in the isolated environs of rural
Texas. Thematic oppositions, based on the step-daughter/step-father
relationship, their racial differences, and the locales of Texas and
Boston provide the basis for Ana’s story as she struggles with
self-assimilation. Her relationships with various men also provides
the backdrop for her sense of closure as she begins constructing the film
after her step-father’s death.


**2007 Membership Drive:  Like to become an AAFL member?  Benefits
include FREE admission to our quarterly workshops, discounted tickets
at the Imaginasian Theater, $30 discount off of the 72 Hour Shootout
Entry Fee, and much more!  Membership dues are only $30 per year.  You
get a fun AAFL ID card designed by members Elliot Gerard and Nayon
Cho, as well as a hug from all of the AAFL management team.**


*Note hugs are limited to fully clothed double arm grab with
simultaneous pat on the back and not to exceed 5 seconds in duration.

We will kick of this meeting with film screenings…

“5; 55” and “Untitled” by Tony Chen and “Papa’s Branch” by Gregory Singer

Then, time permitting, we will have actor monologues performed by Actors Carl Ka-Ho Li, Sung Cho and Tana Sarnt

At our temporary home…

Maxim Lounge
Inside the Hotel Stanford in K-Town
43 West 32nd St.

This Tuesday, February 27th @ 7 pm

Please RSVP to (JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) with “Film Screening” in the Subject Heading and your First and Last name only in the Body of your email. No other text is necessary. This is a free event.


Announcement: We will begin the 2007 AAFL Membership Drive…become a full fledged member of the Asian American Film Lab! If you like what we do and want to support our programs by becoming a member, dues are a lowly $30 per year (12 months). Members will be able to attend workshops and meetings for free and also receive discounts with local vendors. Come to the meeting to find out more…

“5; 55”
Directed by Tony Chen
DV, Sony Handicam
Running Time: 5 min
Synopsis:
Office workers try to escape their overbearing boss.

“Untitled”
Directed by Tony Chen
Mini DV, Panasonic DVX
Running Time: 6 min
Synopsis:
A retired civil rights activist experiences racism in 2006.

“Papa’s Branch”
Directed by Gregory Singer
Video
Running Time: 22 min.
Synopsis:
Singer Marlon Saunders learns about his great great grandfather, a freed slave.

Asian American Film Lab eNewsletter Featured Articles: 1. This Tuesday's AAFL Meeting Details - Short Film Screening 2. Taaza: The High Rollers @ The ImaginAsian - Special Discount 3. Writer X Screenwriting Project Underway 4. Seeking Secretary and Treasurer for AAFL 1. Next Meeting: Tuesday, February 13th - Seeking Films for Screening 1. This Tuesday's AAFL Meeting Details - Short Film Screening Join us for our next meeting featuring the works of three of our members. We hope to get a good turnout to this next meeting, particularly filmmakers who have an opinion and aren't afraid to express it. Feedback is so important and I hope we can do that for these guys. Scroll down for more information about the featured films this week. Note our new meeting location which has food and booze! I'm very glad to see the same faces at our meetings, hopefully we will continue to see that. As always, if you would like to have a reading, screening, workshop your script or have an idea for a meeting, just send an email to (JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) AAFL Member Film Screening featuring... "Compulsory Exercise, No.1" by Matte Chi "Waqt"by Hyunsuk Kim "Within Limits" by Eubin Kim Maxim Lounge Inside the Hotel Stanford in K-Town 43 West 32nd St. This Tuesday, February 13th @ 7 pm Please RSVP to (JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) with "Film Screening" in the Subject Heading and your First and Last name only in the Body of your email. No other text is necessary. * This is a free event. Stay tuned for details regarding membership dues in the coming weeks. Compulsory Exercises, No. 1 [rough cut] Directed by Matte Chi Shot on PXL2000 transferred to minDV, Approx 3min Synopsis: New Years Eve. Participants are repeatedly asked two questions: "Do you have any regrets?" "How many times do you wash your hands?" Participants repeat the question and answer it. The results are assembled and set to music. "Waqt" Directed by Hyunsuk Kim Video, Approx 5 min. Synopsis: A story of a man defining his life metaphorically, struggling to exist, live and mean himself. "Within Limits" Directed by Eubin Kim Digital Video, 12:08 min. Synopsis: Steve is searching for a sense of belonging in the world. School wasn't for him, and corporate America made him feel like an underachiever. The only place where he feels a sense of inclusion is the underworld of Koreatown, where outsiders have a sense of camraderie. But loyalties run deep, and uncontrolled, leads to violence. One night after an altercation, Steve finds himself too deep in the scene. When Kyung Min unexpectedly shows up to "help" him out with his situation, the stakes are heightened and he must make a decision that will change his life. What's up NEXT: Tuesday, February 27th: Member Film Screening: Gregory Singer's "Papa's Branch" and Tony Chen "Untitled" Tuesday, March 13th: MOVIE NIGHT with the AAFL - "Taste of Tea" @ The Imaginasian Tuesday, March 27th: Member Film Screening: Mark Cheng's "Deployment Strategy" 2. TAZZA: THE HIGH ROLLERS @ The ImaginAsian Tazza: The High Rollers is playing at The ImaginAsian through February 15th. Print out a copy of this newsletter and present it at the box office for a $7 ticket and for $1 popcorn. Limit one per customer, valid through February 15, 2007. For show times, visit http://www.theimaginasian.com 3. Writer X Project Screenwriting Project Underway It's not too late to join in the fun. For more information about this competition, go to http://www.aafilmlab.com/index.php/weblog/writer_x_project_details_announced/ Winner of this competition gets their film produced with a minimum budget of $500! Scripts from all over the US accepted. 4. Seeking Secretary and Treasurer for AAFL As we grow we are in need of more humans. Please be that human. Seeking Secretary and Treasurer. Descriptions below. Secretary: Will assist in record keeping of all regular meetings and special events. Responsible for meeting minutes and follow up items for the group. Will own the AAFL eNewsletter which is released every two weeks. As part of the core group will be involved with steering committee for the AAFL and will have input into all AAFL decisions. Treasurer: Manage all monetary transactions for the group, including workshop fees, membership dues etc. Maintain files for tracking all income and expenditures. Help calculate costs for certain events including Event Fees, Membership Fees etc to make sure the AAFL is financially sound. Responsible for keeping track of tax related issues. As part of the core group will be involved with steering committee for the AAFL and will have input into all AAFL decisions.

Thanks to Linda, Natalie and John for sharing their scripts with us last Tuesday.  Hopefully will see them progress into films soon.  Now, on to our next meeting!  Remember, we meet every other Tuesday. 
One our our active members, Son Tran, recommended a Screening of our films.  A great idea and long overdue.  If you have a film you have completed or are working on, and want to test it with the group, please participate in this next meeting.  Rough cuts, trailers, commercial work, completed shorts etc. are all accepted.  The only requirement is that the film have been completed no more than one year ago.  An important aspect that we have neglected somehat is the ‘workshop’ aspect of our meetings, meaning constructive criticism for each other regarding the work.  This won’t be about seeing the film, we all clap, then on to the next.  This will be more about what we liked and what we thought needed help in all aspects including story, production, performances….
Anyone who wants to screen their film for the group, please email (JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) with “Film Screening” in the Subject line.  Include the Title, Type (short, feature etc.), Format (Film, DV), and Run Time.  Anyone interested WILL get screened, however depending on volume of submissions may have to spread over a few meetings.
Please email us ASAP to help us with planning the Feb. 13th meeting.  Being the eve of Valentines Day, I can’t promise that those films dealing with love, lust and heartache won’t get priority.  : )

The first running of the AAFL Writer X Project
commenced January 30, 2007 with the announcement of
Writer X story theme and constraints. AAFL member
Kaushik Shridharani is the Executive Producer of this
iteration.

Members submitting a script treatment or screenplay in
the story competition portion of the Writer X project
should:

1. Incorporate this theme: “Taking back what has
already been given,” or some close variant. The
interpretation is up to you! The less literal is
likely to be more interesting.

2. Include at least one female character, as lead or
co-lead.

3. Target a film length of 6-10 minutes.

Submissions are due on 27 February 2006.

FAQ:

Q: What is the cost?
There is no entry fee.

Q: Who decides the winner? What other factors are
involved in the selection?
A: The Executive Producer will make the ultimate
decision and may consult with non-participants. One
other significant factor in the selection process will
be its “producability” as a low-budget film. In other
words, smaller casts, fewer locations, fewer special
effects are all better.

Q: How “Asian-American” should the submission be?
The degree to which the story or characters are Asian
or Asian-American will NOT be a factor in this
iteration of the Writer X project.

Q: What form do I submit in? Does it need to be
properly formatted?
A: Submissions may be either the form of a script
treatment or screenplay. Keep in mind that the story
will proceed through a script development process.
What is most important is that the story should be
completely though.

Q: Who owns the story? Will the writer be compensated?
A: The writer retains ownership of his or her story or
screenplay. However, by submitting an entry, the
writer agrees to permit the production of a film based
on his or her story or screenplay without any
compensation beyond the appropriate credit.

Q: What if I have other questions:
A: Any other questions about the first running of the
Writer X projecct can be directed to Kaushik
Shridharani ((JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)). Please mention
“Writer X” in the subject header.

About the Writer X Project

The “Writer X Project” is a collaboration between AAFL
and a member who will be Executive Producer of a short
film project that seeks a writer. The Executive
Producer commits to the film’s prompt production. AAFL
hosts a competition among members for the winning
script treatment or screenplay as well as a workshop
during that script’s development. The winning writer
gets an opportunity to gain a writing credit as well
as experience the script development process.

The Executive Producer in this first run of Writer X
is member Kaushik Shridharani, who will also act as
the film’s Director and Producer.

Any member who wishes to make a commitment as the
Executive Producer in the next running of the Writer X
Project should send an email to (JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
with “Next Writer X Project” in the header.

AAFilmLab member, Carl Li will be in a reading/workshop/performance of a new play Ore, or Or!!

"A zen exploration of the gap between truth and convenient fictions that employs the known facts about General Tomoyuki Yamashita and his legendary gold to illuminate the tangled love lives of four disaffected New Yorkers- Calvin Kanayama, a Japanese-American man with a passion for Star Trek, his girlfriend Debbie Goldberg, a Jewish woman who loves to taunt her family by dating the goyim, her roommate Sean O'Connell, a homo who's trying not to date straight men anymore, and his fag hag Kathy Eaton, a WASP model who's sporadically studying astrology and Buddhism."

Directed by Laura O'Brien.
Starring: Emma Canalese, Danelle Eliav, Rebecca Hirota
Carl Ka-Ho Li, Shawn McLaughlin, and Enoch Wu
Movement consultant Sacha Iskra

Two performances:
Wednesday, 12/17 at 8:30pm.
Saturday 12/20 at 4:30pm.

To reserve a seat for any of the New Works Festival performances, (JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) with the title of the show (and, for the workshops, date and time of the performance you will attend) and with the number of seats you would like to reserve. There is a $5 suggsted donation, and a maximum of four seats per reservation.

For more info: http://www.duncanpflaster.com/ore.php

Film Title: LOADED
Status: Non-Union
Length: 30-minute short film
Format: Digital Video
Shooting: We shoot for two seperate weekends. One in mid-Feb and the 2nd on late April.
Location: Shooting takes place w/ in one hour on Manhattan.
Character Required: DADDY - Daddy is a 40-ish year old Asian male. Within the duration of the film, Daddy ages 13 years. Based on the actor hired for DADDY, dialogue between Daddy to CARY, his daughter, will take place in the Korean, Japanese or Chinese language. This particular language choice will depend on what makes sense. It is not necessary that the actor playing Daddy actually speaks this language, though it would be a plus. We can just translate several lines and we'll learn them in that language.

Synopsis: DADDY, a 40 yr old Asian male, is a recent widower (as the film opens) living in Arkansas with his daughter, CARY (Cary opens the film at 8 years of age). Daddy's non-sexual companion is BENNY, a 40 yr old native to Arkansas. Benny and Daddy are co-dependents in their relationship to one another. The 2 of them treat Cary 'nicely' but with tremendous neglect, Cary grows up treated as a 30 year old, not as a kid. In 2001, during a particular incident, the strained relationship between Daddy & Benny and Cary reaches its climax and
Cary (now 23) fleas the house, never to return.

If you are an exceptional female actor, please contact us for the role
of older Cary (23).

Contact:
Jon Stemmler
Madelyn Miss Productions
email: (JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
(M) 917-941-1555
Mention you heard of this casting from the Asian American Film Lab.

http://www.aafilmlab.org
Asian American Film Lab is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization.
Membership and all contributions are tax-deductible to the fullest
extent of the law.

The 1st Annual Philadelphia Asian American Film Festival Presented by HBO has invited KUNG FU GRANNY to be part of their FESTIVAL FAVORITES Screening!
The screening is Tuesday, December 9th and sponsored by The Greater Philadelphia Film Office at the Prince Music Theatre.
The film was written, directed and produced by Myra Sito Velasquez, a 2008 BlueCat Lab Finalist for the KUNG FU GRANNY short screenplay and 2008 BlueCat Competition Finalist for her feature screenplay DIANA. KUNG FU GRANNY is based on Myra’s feature screenplay of the same title. Other AAFilmLab Members credited for KUNG FU GRANNY include: Sunah Kim, David Hou and Peter Chin. For more info on the film, please visit: http://www.myravee.com
For More Info on the festival, please visit: http://www.phillyasian.bside.com/2008/films/kungfugranny_phillyasian2008