This year’s Sundance Film Festival premiered an array of Asian American and Pacific Islander narratives, like coming-of-age films “Dìdi (弟弟)” and “Girls Will Be Girls,” the documentary “Agent of Happiness” and even the experimental romance “Love Me” featuring Steven Yeun and Kristen Stewart. Beyond the screenings, the two-week festival — which started on Jan. 18 — also featured plenty of events that celebrated and uplifted the works of API creatives both on and off screen!
There was no better place to watch this all happen than at the Sunrise House, the official API House of Sundance, hosted by Daniel Dae Kim’s production company, 3AD, Gold House and The Asian American Foundation (TAAF.) During Sundance’s opening weekend, there were three days of panels, roundtable discussions and interviews with the likes of API legends Lucy Liu and Mira Nair. For those who didn’t have a chance to go up to Park City, Utah, this year, here’s a rundown of some of the programming Character Media was able to attend.
Friday, Jan. 19
The festivities began with a Fireside Chat featuring director of “Mississippi Masala,” Mira Nair, and director of the documentary “All That Breathes,” Shaunak Sen. The two spoke in depth about their experiences with filmmaking, discussing where they get inspiration and how they navigate the entertainment world.
“My big criterion is if I can think of anybody else who can make that film, they should make it. Not me,” Nair said, explaining her choice to say no to specific projects throughout her career. “I’m a very peculiar sort, and I will make the film in a peculiar way.”
Soon after, Daniel Dae Kim,Bing Chen (Gold House) and Norman Chen (TAAF) officially opened up the event — with Norman shouting out Sundance Institute and Asian American foundation fellow Sean Wang, director of the…
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