Film Screening and Discussion Events – Sigur Center for Asian Studies

poster for cocktail part movie screening

10/24/2019: “Cocktail Party” Film Screening and Director’s Talk

October 14, 2019May 19, 2021Archives & RecordingsLeave a Comment

Thursday, October 24, 2019

6:00 PM – 8:45 PM

B12

Elliott School of International Affairs

1957 E Street NW, Washington, DC 20052

Join us for a free movie screening of “Cocktail Party” and a discussion with the film’s director, Theodore Regge Life, and moderated by Dr. Steve Rabson, Professor Emeritus of East Asian Studies at Brown University.

Movie: When the daughter of a Japanese businessman in Okinawa charges that a U.S. serviceman assaulted her, the serviceman claims the encounter was entirely consensual. The ensuing civil and military investigations bring to light persistent resentment going back many years on both sides about the human toil of accommodating long term military occupation.

This event is free and open to the public.

colorful collage of headshots of activists and figureheads on the Korean comfort women issue; text: Welcome to the Battleground of the Comfort Women Issue

9/27/2019 Film Screening, “Shusenjo: The Main Battleground of the Comfort Women Issue”

September 20, 2019September 23, 2021Archives & RecordingsLeave a Comment

Friday, September 27, 2019
4:00 pm – 7:00 pm
Room 602, Lindner Family Commons
Elliott School of International Affairs
1957 E Street, NW, Washington, DC 20052

poster for shusenjo film screening event

Synopsis

The “comfort women” issue is perhaps Japan’s most contentious present-day diplomatic quandary. Inside Japan, the issue is dividing the country across clear ideological lines. Supporters and detractors of “comfort women” are caught in a relentless battle over empirical evidence, the validity of oral testimony, the number of victims, the meaning of sexual slavery, and the definition of coercive recruitment. Credibility, legitimacy and influence serve as the rallying cry for all those involved in the battle. In addition, this largely domestic battleground has been shifted to the international arena, commanding the participation of various state and non-state actors and institutions from all over the world. This film delves deep into the most contentious debates and uncovers the hidden intentions of the supporters and detractors of comfort women. Most importantly it finds answers to some of the biggest questions for Japanese and Koreans: Were comfort women prostitutes or sex slaves? Were they coercively recruited? And, does Japan have a legal responsibility to apologize to the former comfort women?

This event is on the record, and open to the public.

Photo credit to No Man Productions, LLC.

Director

Miki Dezaki is a recent graduate of the Graduate Program in Global Studies at Sophia University in Tokyo. He worked for the Japan Exchange Teaching Program for five years in Yamanashi and Okinawa before becoming a Buddhist monk in Thailand for one year. He is also known as “Medamasensei” on Youtube, where he has made comedy videos and videos on social issues in Japan. His most notable video is “Racism in Japan,” which led to numerous online attacks by Japanese neo-nationalists who attempted to deny the existence of racism and discrimination against Zainichi Koreans (Koreans with permanent residency in Japan) and Burakumin (historical outcasts still discriminated today). “Shusenjo” is his directorial debut.

10/16/2019: Taiwan Spotlight: Sex Work, Media Networks, and Affective Labor in “The Fourth Portrait”

September 20, 2019May 12, 2021Archives & RecordingsLeave a Comment

poster for Taiwan Spotlight: Sex Work, Media Networks, and Affective Labor in “The Fourth Portrait” event

poster for Taiwan Spotlight: Early Cinema in Colonial Taiwan event

10/25/2019: Taiwan Spotlight: Early Cinema in Colonial Taiwan

September 20, 2019May 12, 2021Archives & RecordingsLeave a Comment

Sultan Agung movie poster with painting of a Sultan in the background

12/2/2018: LA Indonesian Film Festival (LAIFF): Sultan Agung Movie Screening

November 15, 2018May 18, 2021Archives & RecordingsLeave a Comment

Sunday, December 2, 2018 1:00 PM – 5:00 PM

Harry Harding Auditorium
The Elliott School of International Affairs
1957 E Street, NW
Washington, DC 20052

poster for movie called Sultan Agung

About the Event:

The Sigur Center for Asian Studies, the Organization of Asian Studies, Permias DC, the Embassy of Indonesia, and the LA Indonesian Film Festival will conduct a “Sultan Agung” movie screening and discussion with Hanung Bramantyo (the producer) and Marthino Lio (the actor). This movie is nominated as the best movie in the Festival Film Indonesia (FFI) 2018.

Schedule of the Event:

12:15 PM – 1:00 PM: Doors Open & Registration

1:00 PM – 1:10 PM: Welcoming Remarks

1:15 PM – 3:45 PM: Feature Film Presentation

3:45 PM – 4:00 PM: Program Break

4:00 PM – 4:45 PM: Q&A Discussion with Film Director and Actor

4:45PM – 5:15 PM: Program Conclusion

11/11/2018: Film Screening: The Tale of Samurai Cooking – A True Love Story

November 6, 2018May 18, 2021Archives & RecordingsLeave a Comment

Sunday, November 11, 2018 3:00pm – 5:10pm

Amphitheater, Marvin Center
800 21st Street NW
Washington, DC 20052

japanese katana sword below a set of japanese food

The Sigur Center for Asian Studies and GW’s Japanese Program cordially invite you to a film screening of The Tale of Samurai Cooking – A True Love Story.

This event is public and open to the media.

About the Event:

This event is part of the community outreach project of J.LIVE Talk 2018 presentation competition at the George Washington University. Doors will open at 2:50pm and close promptly at 3pm.

poster for film screening; text: Lesbian Factory and Rainbow Popcorn Film Screening & Discussions with Directors

11/19/18 Film Screening & Discussion: Lesbian Factory and Rainbow Popcorn

October 18, 2018July 13, 2021Archives & RecordingsLeave a Comment

Monday, November 19, 2018 6:00 PM – 8:40 PM

Lindner Family Commons Suite 602
The Elliott School of International Affairs
1957 E Street, NW Washington, DC 20052

flyer for Lesbian Factory and Rainbow Popcorn event

The American University School of Communications Departments of Literature, of Anthropology, and of Sociology, the George Washington University Sigur Center for Asian Studies, and the Departments of East Asian Languages and Literatures, and Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies cordially invite you to a film screening and discussion of Lesbian Factory and Rainbow Popcorn, with featuring panelists Jingru Wu and Teri Silvio who worked on the production of the film as well as Assistant Professors Li (Lily) Wong of American University and Assistant Professor Liana Chen of the George Washington University.

This event is free and open to the public.

About the Event:

The documentary couplet Lesbian Factory and Rainbow Popcorn shot by migrant worker activists in Taiwan, follows a group of Filipina migrant worker organizers and their tumultuous same-sex love relationships. The films bring together migrant labor activism with queer love to unpack the multi-layered texture of our globalized moment.

The screening will be followed by a panel discussion featuring the directors of the movie, Jingru Wu and Teri Silvio.

About the Speakers:

Jingru Wu is a long-time labor activist and a researcher at the Taiwan International Workers’ Association. Together with Susan Chen she has shot the two documentaries.

Teri Silvio is an Associate Research Fellow at the Institute of Ethnology, Academia Sinica, Taiwan. She has served as interviewer, translator, and member of the production team for the documentary films, Lesbian Factory and Rainbow Popcorn.

black and white photo of Lily Wong

Li (Lily) Wong received her PhD in Comparative Literature at University of California, Santa Barbara. Her research focuses on the politics of affect/emotion, gender/sexuality, comparative race, as well as media formations of transpacific Chinese, Sinophone, and Asian American communities. Her work can be found in journals including American Quarterly, Journal of Chinese Cinemas, Asian Cinema, Asian American Literary Review, Pacific Affairs and China Review International, among others. She has published book chapters in World Cinema and the Visual Arts (Anthem Press, 2012), Queer Sinophone Cultures (Routledge, 2013), and Divided Lenses: War and Film Memory in Asia (University of Hawai’i Press, 2016). She is the author of the book “Transpacific Attachments: Sex Work, Media Networks, and Affective Histories of Chineseness” (Columbia University Press, 2018).

headshot of Liana Chen with a flower

Liana Chen is an assistant professor in the Department of East Asian Languages and Literatures and director of the Chinese Program at George Washington University in Washington, D.C., where she is affiliated with the Sigur Center for Asian Studies and teaches courses on traditional and modern Chinese fiction and drama, film, and women writers.

poster for Mother, Daughter, Sister movie screening

10/25/18 Film Screening & Discussion: Mother, Daughter, Sister

October 4, 2018May 18, 2021Archives & RecordingsLeave a Comment

Thursday, October 25, 2018 5:00 PM – 6:30 PM

Lindner Family Commons Suite 602
The Elliott School of International Affairs
1957 E Street, NW Washington, DC 20052

promotional image of movie called mother daughter sister

The Elliott School Gender Equality Initiative, Sigur Center for Asian Studies, International Development Studies and Kirana Productions cordially invite you to a film screening and discussion of Amae, Thamee, Ama (Mother, Daughter, Sister). Providing opening remarks will be the film’s director, Jeanne Marie Hallacy.

About the Film:

Mother, Daughter, Sister exposes the Burmese military’s practice of using rape as a weapon of war and gives voice to Kachin and Rohingya women activists calling for justice for these crimes. The film revolves around the stories of four women: Shamima, a volunteer counselor working with survivors of military rape in the Rohingya refugee camp in Bangladesh, Dil Kayas, a teenage survivor and San Lung and Lu Ra, the sister and mother of two Kachin school teachers brutally raped and killed in 2015, allegedly by the Burmese military. Powerful testimonies from survivors, witnesses and activists explore the far-reaching impact of sexual violence upon women and communities, woven with stories of courageous women calling for justice and a unified stand for an end to impunity.

About the Speakers:

Myo Win, Director of Smile Education and Development Foundation

Seng Raw, Deputy General Security of the Kachin Alliance

Jeanne Marie Hallacy’s films are used for human rights education and advocacy. Hallacy develops relationships with her subjects to open their worlds through her lens; she can interview government ministers and slum dwellers and get a story. Her cross-cultural communications skills are an asset to covering issues from refugees to labor rights to people living with HIV. Based in Southeast Asia for decades, she worked with AsiaWorks Television, a regional production company to produce feature news for global broadcasters and advocacy videos for United Nations agencies and international NGOs. She is based in San Francisco and Bangkok and is available to travel worldwide.

headshot of Christina Fink with blue balckground

Dr. Christna Fink joined the Elliott School in 2011. She is a cultural anthropologist who has combined teaching, research, and development work throughout her career. Her areas of expertise include Burma/Myanmar in particular and Southeast Asia more broadly, equitable development, gender and development, and civil society in ethnically diverse states.

Kano film promotional picture with group of baseball players and their coach

9/24/18: GTI Taiwan Cinema Night: “Kano”

September 18, 2018July 14, 2021Archives & RecordingsLeave a Comment

Logos of the Global Taiwan Institute, Sigur Center, and the Organization of Asian Studies

The Global Taiwan Institute, the Organization of Asian Studies, and the Sigur Center for Asian Studies at George Washington University are pleased to present the film “Kano” in GTI’s ongoing series of social and cultural programs in Washington, DC.

Monday, September 24, 2018

Doors Open at 5pm; Film Starts at 5:30pm
Lindner Family Commons – Room 602
Elliott School of International Affairs
1957 E Street, NW, Washington, DC 20052

promotional photo of movie called Kano

THE FILM

We will be showing the film “Kano”, directed by Taiwanese director Umin Boya (馬志翔). “Kano” tells the true story of a multicultural high school baseball team from southern Taiwan as it competed for the prestigious Japanese High School Baseball Championship in 1931. This ragtag band of Taiwanese indigenous, Han Chinese, and Japanese teammates must overcome language and cultural barriers to not only survive, but to succeed. The film examines Taiwan’s long colonial past, as well as explores themes of personal and national identity through the lens of baseball, Taiwan’s national sport.

GUEST SPEAKER

Photo of Wei Te-Sheng with green background We will be joined by guest speaker director Wei Te-Sheng (魏德聖), who is also the producer of “Kano.” Born in Tainan, director Wei graduated with a degree in electrical engineering, and only started his entertainment career after he completed the mandatory military service in Taiwan. His first directed movie “Cape No. 7” not only was a hit, but successfully brought life back to the Taiwan film industry. Director Wei will join us at the event and answer questions in the Q&A session after the film.

group of Burmese children looking forlornly at the camera

03/27/18: Film Screening and Discussion of Left for Dead: Myanmar’s Muslim Minority

March 21, 2018July 21, 2021Archives & RecordingsLeave a Comment

Audio Recording Part 1

Audio Recording Part 2

Audio Recording Part 3

Tuesday, March 27, 2018
2:00 PM – 4:00 PM

The George Washington University
Elliott School of International Affairs
1957 E Street NW
Lindner Family Commons, Room 602
Washington, DC 20052

Gallery 102 is proud to present “As The World Watches.” This exhibition presents a select collection of responses to the humanitarian crisis affecting communities in Myanmar (formerly Burma). Like many other countries in our modern era, Myanmar is experiencing an increasingly fractured society and a growing radical movement within their politics. In keeping with some of history’s worst examples of conflict, the rapidly escalating violence in Myanmar is centered around religious and ethnic divisions. Recent riots have caused massive upheaval in the country, bringing long past due attention to the host of human rights issues affecting the Rohingya people. In the wake of this flood, the world has begun to turn its focus on the true cost and scope of a modern genocide. The aim of As The World Watches is to raise awareness of Myanmar’s long history of displaced peoples, and examine how the concept of “Other” has led to the systematic and ongoing annihilation of entire communities. Change can only begin with knowledge.

As part of this series, Gallery 102 and the Sigur Center for Asian Studies will present a film screening of “Left for Dead: Myanmar’s Muslim Minority.” The film shows what VICE News uncovered about its investigation into the violence and discrimination faced by the country’s Muslim minority. Following the screening will be a panel discussion on the film and the broader social, political, and historical context of the situation.

Discussants:

Layla Saad, Gallery 102 Curator & Co-Chair
Dr. Christina Fink, Professor of Practice of International Affairs, GW
Matthew Wells, Senior Crisis Advisor, Amnesty International
Robert Marro, Burma Task Force

About the film:
In recent years, democratic reforms have swept through Myanmar, a country that for decades was ruled by a military junta. As the reforms took hold, however, things were growing progressively worse for the Rohingya, a heavily persecuted ethnic Muslim minority concentrated in the country’s western state of Rakhine.

The 2012 gang rape and murder of a Buddhist woman by three Muslim men ignited violent riots in which hundreds were killed as Rakhine Buddhists and Rohingya attacked each other. In the following months, tens of thousands of Rohingya were rounded up and forced to live in squalid camps; Human Rights Watch deemed the attacks crimes against humanity that amounted to ethnic cleansing of the Rohingya. Thousands of Rohingya have since attempted to leave the country, fueling the region’s intricate and brutal human trafficking network.