VCFILMFEST 2007

May 3 - May 7, 2007
Directors Guild of America
7920 Sunset Blvd., West Hollywood
&
Laemmle's Sunset 5
8000 Sunset Blvd., West Hollywood
http://www.vconline.org

Southern California's largest and most prestigious film festival of its kind launches the celebration of Asian Pacific Heritage Month at the Directors Guild of America. From comedy and drama to documentaries and shorts, the 23rd edition of this week long festival shares the stories of Asian Pacifics in America and abroad.

ONE-WAY STREET ON A TURNTABLE 

MAY 04 - 07:15 PM   |  Directors Guild of America, Theater 3

(HONG KONG, 2006) Dir./Wtr.: Anson Hoi Shan Mak

GRAND JURY AWARD NOMINEE

******************

LOVE... AND OTHER PAINS

SAT, MAY 05 - 12:00 PM    |  Directors Guild of America, Theater 2

The first of our special film shorts programs cast a wary eye on the ambiguities and pitfalls of romance, infatuation, and true love. With a worldwide perspective, these stellar works will certainly be intense and enlightening in equal doses.

Also on that program:

MACAU TWILIGHT
(HONG KONG, 2007) Dir.: Tony Shyu; Scr.: Tony Shyu, James Kenny
35mm, 21 mins, Color, Short Film, ENGLISH

A prostitute helps a man regain his lost memory but the tragic moment he suppresses may be better left forgotten.

******************
FESTIVAL RETROSPECTIVE: HARD-BOILED

MAY 05 - 01:00 PM    |  Directors Guild of America, Theater 1

(HONG KONG, 1992) Dir.: John Woo; Scr. Gordon Chan, Barry Wong, John Woo

*******************

THE BLOOD OF YINGZHOU DISTRICT

MAY 05 - 01:00 PM    |  Directors Guild of America, Theater 3

(CHINA, 2006) Dir.: Ruby Yang

GOLDEN REEL AWARD NOMINEE

******************

PEOPLE TO LOVE, DECISIONS TO MAKE

SUN, MAY 06 - 02:15 PM    |  Directors Guild of America, Theater 2

The second of our showcase of new film works presents characters caught in the middle of situations that call for decisive action. Comfort a bereaved stranger? Mend fences with a sibling? Take a situation into one’s own hands? Or stand up for a fellow sibling or close friend? You’ll be surprised and delighted by the results.

****************

DO OVER

SUN, MAY 06 - 06:30 PM    |  Directors Guild of America, Theater 2

Endings and new beginnings dominate Cheng Yu-Chieh’s debut feature, set on the last day and night of the year and exploring the intersecting lives, dreams, drug fantasies and fears of five confused young people. Winner of the top prize at the Taiwan Film Festival. Mandarin with English subtitles.

******************

ETERNAL SUMMER

MON, MAY 07 - 07:30 PM    |  Laemmle's Sunset 5

Queer cinema with a coming-of-age twist? Or a coming-of-age film with the twist of queer cinema? With college looming ahead, relations between childhood friends Jonathan, Shane, and Carrie, undergo subtle changes. While Jonathan comes to realize his love for Shan… Mandarin with English subtitles.

******************

SUMMER PALACE
TUE, MAY 08 - 07:00 PM    |  Laemmle's Sunset 5

Lou Ye (DON’T BE YOUNG, Festival 1996; PURPLE BUTTERFLY, Festival 2004) paid a steep price for premiering his latest feature at the 2006 Cannes Film Festival without the approval of the Chinese censor: a five-year ban from making film in his home country. In this intense and romantic relationship drama, two young Chinese lovers meet, lose and rediscover each other, set against a background of 14 years of Chinese history. We wonder: was it the sex or Tiananmen Square that caught the eye of the Chinese censor? Mandarin and German with English subtitles.