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First annual Subtitle Film Festival comes to Los Angeles

By Brian Hu

Spring is festival season here in Los Angeles, especially for fans of Asian and Asian American cinema. But rare is the new festival that combines innovative programming with a love for contemporary world cinema.

The first-ever Subtitle Film Festival features a crop of films that LA cineasts have been long waiting for: Patrick Tam's After This Our Exile, Royston Tan's 4:30, Edmond Pang's Isabella, Songyos Sugmakana's Dorm, Andrew Lau and Alan Mak's Confessions of Pain, Toshiaki Toyoda's Hanging Garden, and more. The opening night gala reception for Memories of Tomorrow was remarkably well-attended, with a more urbane, after-work crowd than say the VC Film Fest, which attracts the more Asian American bohemian set. The lounge blasted Korean music videos while the main lobby was energized by Hite beer, Jinro soju, and sushi that tasted surprisingly homemade. All that gave the Subtitle kick-off a street saavy pizzazz with a homegrown flair.

Asia Pacific Arts interviewed Jiho Chong of Subtitle Media, the organization that put together the festival.

Asia Pacific Arts: There seem to be more and more festivals popping up in LA all the time.  Where do you feel the Subtitle Film Festival fits within it, and why should movie lovers choose it over others?

Jiho Chong: Movie lovers should never have to choose one festival over the other, they would only need to prioritize. Our films simply offer an alternative to what's out there now. We offer a unique view of Asian films that are of great caliber and artistic quality.

APA: What would you say differentiates your festival from other local "Asian" festivals like the LA Korean International Film Festival, VC Filmfest, the Chanoma Film Festival, or the Hollywood China Film Festival?

JC: The main point of difference is that the Subtitle Film Festival only showcases full-length feature films that originated from Asia. We handpick an intriguing selection of films that we feel offer a different perspective of Asians in cinema.

APA: The thing I found most impressive about your film lineup is that, even though you're a brand-new festival, you were able to secure a handful of high-caliber, big-name films, all of which could have easily played an established L.A. festival like AFI Fest or the Los Angeles Film Festival. How were you able to convince sales agents or distributors to have their films play here?  Were there certain films that were more difficult than others to obtain?

JC: Thank you, we are very proud of the line-up that we were able to secure. As a new film festival, we certainly had our challenges. However, as we are about showcasing a certain level of quality and style, we didn't rest until our objectives were met. We just had to show the distributors that we were really passionate about Asian films and that we had a certain level of taste in the list of films we were pursuing.

APA: How did Wells Fargo get involved?

JC: We were in talks with Wells Fargo from the early stages of the festival. They are huge supporters of the Asian arts community and the efforts of Subtitle, and it turned out to be a great partnership.

APA: One of the major problems with coordinating a festival in Los Angeles is the problem of access and location, especially with the lack of public transportation. How did you choose Koreatown as the location?

JC: As we are promoting the awareness of Asian and Asian American contributions in the arts, we thought it would be a great opportunity to showcase all that Koreatown has to offer. Koreatown is booming with their new restaurants, bars/clubs, and entertainment outlets. We thought it would be an organic fit, as well as an alternative from the Hollywood scene.

APA: Can you say something about the theater Mpark4, and why you decided to stage the festival there?

JC: I actually spotted it by accident. While driving on Wilshire, my curiosity was sparked when I spotted Korean movie posters outside the building. After some investigation, I was thrilled to find a Korean movie theatre that had recently launched, showcasing unreleased Korean films imported directly from the distributors in Korea. I think it's really exciting to see this type of development in the Asian community and felt that a partnership was only natural.

APA: What other activities has Subtitle Media been involved with?

JC: For those that aren't aware, the Subtitle Film Festival is produced by Subtitle Media, a non-profit organization dedicated to raising the awareness of Asian and Asian American achievements in the arts. We kicked off our launch by hosting a Special Advanced Screening of Park Chan-Wook's Lady Vengeance at the ArcLight Theatres in Hollywood, followed by an after party at the RokBar. Both events were a huge success, and most importantly, we got our first taste at sharing some great Asian artistic contributions with a captivated audience. It was a rewarding experience to see the excitement and varied reactions from the film.

APA: Your press releases and website states that Subtitle Media is involved with Asian American (as opposed to Asian) media issues. What kind of Asian American activities has Subtitle Media done, or are there any in the works?

JC: My partners and I are second generation Asian Americans. We are grounded in our Asian heritage, but we witness and experience the evolution of our culture in the states. With Subtitle, we want to expose not only the works directly from Asia, but capture and showcase the movement on a local level. We are in the development stages of a series, outside the film arena, that will incorporate the works of both Asians and Asian Americans. We should have some exciting news to share this summer.

APA: One of the most striking things about the Subtitle Film Festival is its publicity and design; unlike other festivals, you seem to be very directly targeting a younger, culturally-hip demographic.  Your film picks generally fit into that demographic too.  Can you say something about this strategy?

JC: Subtitle Media is out to break common misconceptions of Asians as well as Asians in arts and media.  In doing so, we want to showcase and feature the works of the culturally-hip, trendsetting, artistically innovative, forward thinking Asians -- that don't know martial arts. There is so much more that the Asian arts community has to offer; we at Subtitle want to expose these contributions.

The first annual Subtitle Film Festival runs from April 12-15, 2007 in Los Angeles' Koreatown. Asia Pacific Arts is co-presenting the screening of Toshiaki Toyoda's Hanging Garden at 8pm, Friday April 13.

For schedule and location, visit their website here.

Date Posted: 4/13/2007