News From Abroad

By Chau Nguyen

This year's Vancouver Asian Film Festival will take place from November 7th through the 10th at the Cinemark Tinseltown Theaters in Vancouver, Canada. The festival will be showcasing the films created by Asian Canadian and Asian American writers, producers, and directors. Each of the segments centers on the theme of "It's All About…" For example, "It's All About…FOOD" will include documentary shorts such as Samuel Lee's "How to Make Kimchi," a winner of the Best Short Documentary at the San Diego Asian Film Festival.

The films selected for this festival vary from life portrayals to fictional stories, depicting personal struggles and triumph. These films include Aki Kitamura's "Porno," Gary Chan's "In My Life," and Sung Kim's "Book of Rules," which was also a winner at the San Diego Asian Film Festival for Best Feature Film.

The Vancouver Asian Film Festival Society (VAFF) is a non-profit organization that provides a forum for independent North American Asian filmmakers to showcase their work for both Asian and non-Asian audiences. For more information about the festival, please visit www.vaff.org.

Joey Yung Performed Live at Show Up!

Cantonese pop-singer Joey Yung performed at the Hum Hom Coliseum in Hong Kong October 16th through the 20th, as part of her "Neway Joey Yung Live Show Up" tour. The four-day tour included five performances.

Joey Yung is an award-winning singer who first emerged on the Canto-pop music scene when she won a Hong Kong singing contest in 1995. Under the tutelage of veteran singer Roman Tam, Joey released her self-titled debut album in 1999, which went on to become a chart topper. Since 1999, she has released over 11 albums in Cantonese and Putonghua. She has also won numerous awards in Taiwan and Mainland China. Not only a singer, Joey Yung is also an actress, appearing in such films as "Demi-Haunted" and "Winner Takes All."

Cross-cultural Musical Fusion at the Hong Kong Harbour Fest
Legendary rockers The Rolling Stones, sensational pop act Westlife, and R&B innovator Craig David, along with Taiwanese superstars F4 and Jay Chou as well as Hong Kong pop diva Karen Mok were just a few of the numerous entertainers present at the Hong Kong Harbour Fest. Taking place over the course of four weekends, the event began on October 17 and will continue until November 9 at the Admiralty's Tamar site in Hong Kong.

This is the first festival of its kind to take place in Asia. It features a dazzling series of live shows catering to all tastes and ages including rock-n-roll, family entertainment, blues and jazz, classical, theatrical performances and a Vegas Night. The festival is still attracting more artists including K-pop diva Hyori Lee and rumba flamenco band Gipsy Kings.

The festival was organized by the American Chamber of Commerce (AmCham) and the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government (HKSARG). Over 200,000 tickets will be available for the entire event, with reserved seating for up to 13,000 people per show.
Tickets for the show, priced HK$158 to HK$588, are available through all Hong Kong Ticketing and Tom Lee outlets. Bookings can also be made through the ticket hotline on 31 288 288, or the website www.hkticketing.com. For information about the event, please visit www.hongkongharbourfest.com.

J-Pop Singer Sonim to Promote Castlevania's Release in Japan

Konami, a worldwide producer and publisher of arcade games, computer and video games, and gaming machines, recently signed J-Pop singer Sonim to promote the upcoming release of "Castlevania: Lament of Innocence." This video game will be the latest installment in the Castlevania series. It is expected to be released on November 27 for the PlayStation2 (PS2) in Japan.

In the game, the player takes on the role of Leon Belmont, the protagonist, who is on a quest to rescue his fiancée, Sara Trantoul, from the hands of Walter Bernhard, a vampire and lord of the Forest of Eternal Darkness. Armed with a whip, sub-weapons and madouki (mystical relics), the goal of the game is to defeat five distinct bosses and Bernhard.

To promote the game, Sonim will be appearing in a commercial dressed as Leon Belmont. This commercial is part of the "Ai no Muchi" or "Whip of Love" campaign, which is the name Konami has given to its promotional efforts. She will also be singing the theme song to the commercial.

Sonim was originally a member of EE Jump, a J-Pop duo that included male member, Yuuki Goto. The duo started out in November 2001 but after Goto was kicked out of the group, Sonim went solo. She released her first single "Curry Rice no Onna" in August 2002 and her first album "Miracle" in May 2003.

November Welcomes the Loy Krathong Festival in Thailand

The annual tradition of setting afloat candle-lit boats on rivers and lakes will take place on November 8 in Thailand. This festival, known as Loy Kathrong (Festival of Lights), is usually celebrated on the full moon night in November.

This festival is one of the oldest traditions in Thailand in which Thai Buddhists float the "krathong" to show gratitude toward the water spirits. The krathongs are usually made of banana leaves and flowers, and often take the shape of lotus, swans, stupas, and Mount Meru from Buddhist mythology. Besides floating krathongs, the people will often participate in the rite to worship King Ramkhamhaeng--the historic king of Siam.

Different regions throughout Thailand celebrate the festival differently. For example, in Tak, the local people thread together their krathongs, which are then launched simultaneously and appear as lighted necklaces on the Ping River. Some places renowned for their Loy Krathong festivals are Sukothai and Bangkok.

Celebrating 30 Years of Vietnam-Japan Relations

September 21st marked the 30-year anniversary of diplomatic relations between Vietnam and Japan. To commemorate this milestone, a series of events were organized in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City. The events began in September and will continue through November.

Past events included the exhibition of 25 Katazome paintings by Japanese artist Toba Mika at the Vietnam Art Museum on September 19 to the 29th. These paintings all depicted Vietnamese landscapes. There was also a joint Vietnam-Japan concert held at the Hanoi Opera House on October 15 and 16. Performers included famous Japanese violinist Urushihara Keiko and 98 artists representing the Tokyo City Philharmonic, Japan Philharmonic, New Japan Philharmonic and Sendai Philharmonic.

Upcoming events will include the photo exhibition of the works of Japanese artist Toyama Hitomi at Trang Tien Gallery from November 14 to the 20th. There will also be a series of cultural activities introduced in November like the Cherry Planting festival, a Japanese film festival, and a calligraphy exhibition of Mainichi Shodoten.

Feast of Heaven, Earth, Water, Fire and Water at the 10th annual Namdo Food Festival

Celebrating the excellence of Namdo cuisine, the 10th annual Namdo Food Festival (NFF) began October 22nd and will continue until October 26th. The festival features food exhibitions, cooking demonstrations, and culinary contests. Besides food-related activities, the festival also includes entertainment such as p'ansori, traditional Korean operas, and samulnori, an ensemble of four percussion instruments.

The NFF is the most famous food festival in Korea. Each year, it brings in the top exhibitors and chefs of the Namdo cuisine from across the province. Along with the festival, there will also be the Temple Food Exhibition, tea ceremony (dado) and the demonstrations of Balwoo-Gongjang, the unique dietary ritual in Buddhist temples.

The festival is hosted by JeollaNamdo, which is operated by 22 counties, and sponsored by the Ministry of Culture & Tourism (MCT), Ministry of Health & Welfare (MHW), Korean National Tourism Organization (KNTO), Korea Restaurants Association (KRA) & its JeollaNamdo Branch (JRA), JeollaNamdo Tourism Association (JTA), and Committee for the Conservation of Naganeupseong. Past festivals have attracted more than 50,000 visitors from all over the world. For information regarding the festival, please visit www.namdofood.or.kr.

Exploration of Ceramic Arts at the 2nd World Ceramic Biennale

Showcasing a variety of ceramic arts, the 2nd World Ceramic Biennale began in Incheon, Geyonggi Province in Korea on September 1ST and will continue until October 30th. The purpose of the festival is to educate the public about the trends of contemporary ceramic arts, to foster the development of ceramic culture in the 21st century, and to present the vision of the future of ceramic arts.

The festival will feature five segments-the International Competition, the Main Exhibition, the Special Exhibition, the International Ceramic Symposium, and the International Ceramic Workshop. The main exhibition, "Now and Now" will feature the ideas of ceramic artists, the creative elements they apply, and the evolving spirit they bring to contemporary ceramic art. The symposium will be a discussion and evaluation of ceramics and the new prospects towards a new identity of contemporary ceramics. The competition will feature two categories, "Ceramics for Use- Functional" and "Ceramics for Expression- Non-Functional" where artists will be competing in the realm of creativity. The workshop will feature a demonstration of techniques for firing traditional ceramics using wood-fired kilns.

The first World Ceramic Biennale was held during the World Ceramic Expo 2001 in Korea. This Expo attracted more than six million visitors from over 84 countries. The international competition alone had a total of 5,206 works by 2,019 artists from 69
countries. This year's expo is expected to bring in even more people and competitors. For more information about the festival, please visit wocef.com

Celebrating Korea's National Dish at the 2003 Kimchi Expo

Next month, from November 6th to the 10th, the Munhwa Ilbo will be hosting the second annual "Kimchi Expo" at the Yangjae Station Center in Korea. The expo is an international festival celebrating Korea's most popular traditional food. Consumers, experts, manufacturers and distributors from all over the world will be present to discuss topics such as the cultural value of Kimchi, its health benefits, industry potential, and methods for developing new marketing strategies.

One of the goals of the festival is to redefine the importance of Kimchi in the Korean diet and to examine its potential as a popular health food throughout the world. The expo also hopes to promote the expansion of the Kimchi market for approximately 400 Korean Kimchi producers and foreign buyers from over twenty countries.

The festival will include six segments from the special exhibitions providing information about all aspects of Kimchi, to the general exhibitions that will include presentations by 500 Kimchi producing companies and the International Kimchi awards which will be honoring the best in Kimchi production in three distinct categories. For more information, please visit www.kimchimunhwa.com.

October 24, 2003