Vampire Action with a Multicultural Twist in Vampariah – Kollaboration @ LAAPFF 2016

This is the second to last of our interviews at the 2016 Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival (LAAPFF) organized by Visual Communications. This time we talk with the Matthew Abaya, the director of the supernatural action thriller, Vampariah, his star Kelly Lou Dennis, and his editor Lawrence Iriarte. We talk about the multi-cultural inspirations behind the vampiric creatures of the film, Matthew’s journey from directing shorts to features, and advice for up and coming filmmakers.

ABOUT THE FILM:

MAHAL (KELLY LOU DENNIS), AN ELITE MONSTER HUNTER, patrols the sinister streets of San Francisco as members of the undead lurk in every dark corner of The City, preying on unsuspecting humans with their bloodlust. Bampinay (Aureen Almario), an aswang (a supernatural, vampire-like creature from Filipino folklore), embarks on a serial killing rampage on men who sexually objectify and use women. 

Learn more about the film at vampariah.com

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The Making of Comfort Started With a Producers’ Love Triangle – Kollaboration @ LAAPFF

We chat with director William Lu and the stars of his debut feature Chris Dinh and Julie Zhan at the 2016 Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival (LAAPFF) organized by Visual Communications. Chris describes the “love triangle” that he had to navigate to get Will to do this film with him, Will’s background with VC’s “Armed With a Camera Program”, and the trials and tribulations of night shoots during pilot season.

ABOUT THE FILM:

Lonely, mild-mannered Cameron (Christopher Dinh) is content racing around the dark streets of Los Angeles as a late-night courier for his slick boss, Eddie (Billy Sly Williams). Then one fateful night, an important client, Martin (Kelvin Han Yee), asks Cameron to pick up something very special at the airport – his daughter Jasmine (Julie Zhan), who is flying in from overseas. Cameron accepts the job, but isn’t prepared for the sparks that fly between him and the fiery beauty. While Martin’s thriving hot sauce business keeps him occupied at the office, Cameron and Jasmine find comfort in each other’s company as they wander about the city enjoying some of Cameron’s favorite dining spots. He shares his love of cooking with her and his dream of someday leaving Eddie to start his own food truck. However, he soon discovers that Jasmine is harboring a secret that may destroy her father’s trust. Unfortunately, Cameron also holds a secret of his own that threatens to derail his budding romance with her before it ever fully blossoms.

Learn more about the film at www.comfortmovie.com

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What’s Up with Jae Jin’s New Hairdo? – Coffee Break w/ Minji Chang

In part 2 of our interview with Atlanta based singer-songwriter Jae Jin, we ask him about the real issues, like his new hairdo, his reflections on the creative life, and telling his parents about his career as a musician.

Credits:
Producers: Minji Chang & Marvin Yueh
Director: John Enriquez
Assistant Directors: Eva Hsia & Brianna Kim
Camera Operator: Derek Miranda & Jimmy Hang
Editor: Brianna Kim

Chatting with the Tiger Hunters – Kollaboration @ LAAPFF 2016

Our next interview from the 2016 Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival (LAAPFF) organized by Visual Communications is a fun discussion with director Lena Khan, and actors Danny Pudi, Karen David, and Jon Heder of the Grand Jury Award Winning narrative film, The Tiger Hunter. The crew talks about what it took to get the film made, what drew each of them to the story, and give their advice for up and coming actors and directors. In addition to best narrative feature, the film also took home honors for “best ensemble cast” and “best director.”

ABOUT THE FILM:

THE TIGER HUNTER is the story of Sami Malik, a young South Asian who travels to 1970s America to become an engineer in order to impress his childhood crush and live up to the legacy of his father–a legendary tiger hunter back home. When Sami’s job unexpectedly falls through and he ends up living in a tiny co-op with two oddball roommates, he must resort to constructing an elaborate charade with the misfit accomplices in hopes of convincing his sweetheart that he’s far more successful than he truly is…or perhaps ever could be. 

THE TIGER HUNTER is an offbeat comedy-drama about Sami and his band of polar opposite roommates. As Sami tries to pull off the farce of a lifetime, what ensues is a series of adventures involving outlandish schemes, an arch-nemesis in an absurd office environment, and a somewhat functional Dodge Charger with a character of its own. Together, although their plans may contradict each other with terrible consequences, Sami and his rag-tag group must work together while meeting the usual host of obstacles-—the “usual,” that is, if back-alley brawls, trips to prison, or catastrophic LSD-related misunderstandings are just your usual, everyday fare. 

Learn more about the film at www.thetigerhunter.com

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Track IX – The Green Room

On this session of the Green Room we bring you Kollaboration Los Angeles Alum Track IX, a seasoned beatboxer who’s been featured in Pitch Perfect 2 as well as one 2-time top 16 beatboxer for the US Beatbox Championships. Let us know what you think about her mad skills in the comments!

Hear more from Track IX on her YouTube channel

A Chat With the Director and Cast of The Unbidden – Kollaboration @ LAAPFF 2016

We interview the cast and crew of the new supernatural thriller feature film The Unbidden which premiered at the 2016 Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival (LAAPFF) organized by Visual Communications. We chat with director Quentin Lee and cast members Amy Hill, Akemi Look, and Hayden Szeto about making the film, advice for rising filmmakers, and what’s next for The Unbidden.

ABOUT THE FILM:

LAUREN (TAMLYN TOMITA), A MYSTERY NOVELIST, LIVES ALONE IN A CREEPY OLD HOUSE on a quiet, unassuming suburban street. Lately, she experiences restless sleep due to a progression of unexplained nightmares involving a bloodied and tortured man (Jason Yee). Their severity pushes her into a near catatonic state. As a reprieve and possible cure, she enlists her lifelong besties Kat (Julia Nickson), Anna (Elizabeth Sung), and Rachel (Amy Hill) for a Halloween séance. As horror film buffs know full well, women in the genre often don’t fare well. They are either killer bait or the big bad behind the supernatural shenanigans. In indie cinema filmmaker and Festival veteran Quentin Lee’s THE UNBIDDEN, the machinations of women drive forward a narrative in which an either/or back story rarely defines any woman’s character.

Learn more about the film at unbidden.com

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Rebelling for a Cause, a Chat With Director Janice Tanaka About Preserving Our Fading Histories – Kollaboration @ LAAPFF2016

We continue our interviews at the 2016 Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival (LAAPFF) organized by Visual Communications with a chat with Janice D. Tanaka, documentary filmaker and the director for Rebel With a Cause: The Life of Aiko Herzig Yoshinaga. Janice talks about discovering the amazing and badass life of Aiko, who was her mother’s best friend, and the drive to document her role in the redress movement for the unlawful internment of Japanese Americans in WW2.

ABOUT THE FILM:

VISUAL COMMUNICATIONS ALUMNUS JANICE D. TANAKA has been active in the film and media industry for over 30 years. Aside from working as a producer and educator, Tanaka has also served as the Manager for Diversity Development at Fox, where she worked on initiatives to employ professionals of color. Her works WHEN YOU’RE SMILING: THE DEADLY LEGACY OF INTERNMENT (1999) and RIGHT OF PASSAGE (2014) have anchored key moments in Japanese American history. Tanaka’s latest documentary feature, REBEL WITH A CAUSE: THE LIFE OF AIKO HERZIG YOSHINAGA, is an endearing and essential portrait of a woman whose discovery of premeditated governmental misconduct during the WWII was crucial — not only to the landmark 1987 coram nobis cases of Gordon Hirabayashi, Fred Koramatsu and Minoru Yasui, but also the National Council for Japanese Americans Redress (NCJAR) lawsuit of 1983. 

Learn more about the film on its Facebook page

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Why Jae Jin Chooses the Creative Life – Coffee Break with Minji Chang

Kollaboration Executive Director Minji Chang chats with singer-songwriter Jae Jin who talks about his personal musical journey from Baltimore to NYC and now Atlanta. Jae shares about the personal moments that lead him to take up life as an artist and living life on his own terms.

Credits:
Producers: Minji Chang & Marvin Yueh
Director: John Enriquez
Assistant Directors: Eva Hsia & Brianna Kim
Camera Operator: Derek Miranda & Jimmy Hang
Editor: Brianna Kim

Documenting a Campaign Like No Other with the Director of Out Run – Kollaboration @ LAAPFF 2016

We’re back with another interview from Kollaboration’s coverage of the 2016 Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival (LAAPFF) organized by Visual Communications. For this segment we chat with documentary filmmaker Leo Chiang, who’s film Out Run is currently in the midst of it’s festival circuit run. We talk about his experience covering this unique and important story as well as his advice to young documentarians.

ABOUT THE FILM:
As leader of the world’s only LGBT political party, Bemz Benedito dreams of being the first transgender woman in the Philippine Congress. But in a predominantly Catholic nation, rallying for LGBT representation in the halls of Congress is not an easy feat. Bemz and her eclectic team of queer political warriors must rethink traditional campaign strategies to amass support from unlikely places. Taking their equality campaign to small-town hair salons and regional beauty pageants, the activists mobilize working-class trans hairdressers and beauty queens to join the fight against their main political opponent, a homophobic evangelical preacher, and prove to the Filipino electorate that it’s time to take the rights of LGBT people seriously. But as outsiders trying to get inside the system, will they have to compromise their political ideals in order to win? Culminating on election day, OUT RUN provides a unique look into the challenges LGBT people face as they transition into the mainstream and fight for dignity, legitimacy, and acceptance across the globe.

Learn more about the film at http://outrunmovie.com

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AC Lorenzo – The Green Room (SF Session)

This week we bring you another session of the Green Room we recorded in the Bay Area, this time featuring AC Lorenzo, formerly of the seminal Asian American R&B group Kai. AC sings a few covers of his old and new favorites and treats us to an acoustic version of an unreleased Kai song.

Hear more from AC Lorenzo on his YouTube channel

Setlist:
“Only You” – Yaz Cover
“Nothing Really Matters”
“Love yourself” – Justin Bieber Cover