Coming off of last weekend’s Korean-American Film Festival New York, it’s the west coast’s turn as KOFFLA (Korean Film Festival in LA) kicks off this weekend. There’s a lot going on but if you like film, is there any place better than Hollywood? Check out KOFFLA this weekend.

The Korean Film Festival in Los Angeles (KOFFLA), which will begin from March 4 to 7 at venues across Los Angeles, held its first official press conference on Monday, February 22 at the Korean Cultural Center. Introducing the festival was executive director Chang-Wha Chung (director of martial arts classic Five Fingers of Death), festival spokesperson actor John Cho (Star Trek, ABC’s Flash Forward, Harold & Kumar Go to the White Castle) and festival partner Jeff Black, VP and General Manager of Back Stage. Each expressed their excitement and support for the upcoming festival, which will be first major Korean film festival in Los Angeles.

With a vision for bringing the best in Korean cinema to the American filmgoers, KOFFLA will feature over 60 features and shorts from established and emerging Korean filmmakers from around the world, including special sections for Korean horror, outstanding directorial debuts, Korean-American cinema, and a retrospective of action director Ryoo Seung-Wan (The Crying Fist, City of Violence). Notable special events include a Master Class with cinematographer Kim Hyung-ku (Memories of Murder, The Host) and Actorfest KOFFLA, a one-day event for actors and aspiring actors to participate in panels, workshops, and meet & greet sessions with Hollywood and Korean talent agents, actors, and casting directors.

The red carpet Opening Ceremony will take place at 6 PM on March 4 at the Egyptian Theatre with a screening of Le Grand Chef II (starring Kim Jung-Eun and Jin-Gu). The closing award ceremony will be held at the Laemmle Music Hall followed by the closing film, Hur Jin Ho’s A Good Rain Knows, starring Jung Woo-Sung and Gao Yuan Yuan.

The latest information on KOFFLA is available on their website, www.koffla.org.

Kollaboration 10 is finally here and it takes the big stage and I mean really big stage with the event being held at the Shrine auditorium in Los Angeles, and that includes a red carpet entrance.  PK and Roy have taken this little love child of an event to something bigger than they could’ve dreamt.   If you’re in LA, check out Kollaboration and meet the next new big Asian-American stars.

When Kollaboration first started in 2000, some people said it was just a little show that would never last. Fast Fwd: 11 years later… soon to be 10 cities, 31 shows, tens of thousands of attendees, and MILLIONS of online viewers later… Kollaboration 10 has ARRIVED! Join us Saturday, March 6, 2010 @ the SHRINE Auditorium as Kollaboration Los Angeles presents the BIGGEST Asian talent show in American history to date!

Date: Saturday, March 6, 2010
Time: 7PM (Doors open at 6PM)
Venue: Shrine Auditorium
665 W Jefferson Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90007-3626

~6,300 SEATS ~ PERFORMERS COMPETING FOR CASH PRIZES~
CASH PRIZES for Freestyle Dance & Freestyle Vocal Competition!!

LIMITED DISCOUNTED TICKETS AVAILABLE AT: http://www.kollaboration.org/Tickets/Los-Angeles/Kollaboration-10-Tickets.html

Special Guest Performers:
Rex Navarrete – Comedian
Tony Rock – Comedian
We are Heroes
Prepix – Dance group from Korea
Pigeon John – Rapper
Vudoo Soul – Singer
Just Kidding Films – Guest Appearance
Korean Union Dancerz – Hip Hop Dance Group
Anbu Black Ops – Dance Group

Competitors:
Jason Yang
Clara
Paul Jisung Kim
Sam Hart
Mike Isberto & Alfa
Will Volume
Bhangra Empire

Guest Judges:
Kev Jumba – Youtube Comedian
Joseph Kahn – Director
Rex Lee – Actor, HBO’s Entourage
Lisa Ling – Journalist
Michelle Phan – Youtube Beauty Guru
Nita Song – President IW Group
Patty Yoon – CEO Garco Enterprise

NOTE:
“One of the biggest knocks on Asian Americans is that we don’t support each other in the entertainment industry. We harshly judge our own entertainers for either being too white, too black, and if you can believe it, too Asian. Kollaboration is a platform where young Asian Americans can perform in front of a live crowd. This show will open the minds of those who don’t give Asian Americans a chance when it comes to expressing themselves creatively. And hopefully, through it, we can witness a new type of Asian American artform we can claim as our own.”

Check out our interview with PK as he speaks about Kollaboration.

This year’s East Coast Asian American Student Union Conference is taking place at University of Pennsylvania.   It will be taking place this weekend from March 4-6, 2010.  For more information check out www.ecaasu2010.org.

This year’s theme is “Behind These Eyes: Impression . Introspection . Innovation”.  The focus of this theme is to encourage a deeper exploration of the origins behind the elements that compose the Asian American identity, both in a collective and an individual setting. The primary goals and components to the implementation of this theme are to engender the growth of a stronger Asian American community through education, awareness, and the provision of an open forum for the sharing of related ideas and experiences.

There will be a lot of Korean American represented at the event including: Comedian Danny Cho, an hip hop / alternative rock band from San Diego as well as other prominent Korean American figures throughout the United States.   See the full list at: http://www.ecaasu2010.org/speakers.html

And if you can’t make it to Philly, you can see a great show in New York City on March 6 featuring:

Magnetic North+Taiyo Na
afterschoolspecial
Cynthia Lin Band

Parkside Lounge
317 East Houston Street
New York, NY 10002-1103

Saturday, March 6
Doors at 8:30pm
$5 Cover

KAFFNY, the Korean American Film Festival New York, is playing this weekend at  the SVA Theatre on 23rd St in New York.  You’ll get to see a broad range of film talent from award-winning directors to up and coming directors.  Come meet up with us this weekend and check out the films that will be reviewed at KAFFNY.

KAFFNY is the first film festival created in New York City dedicated to presenting the work of filmmakers and mediamakers of Korean descent. Founded in 2007, KAFFNY aims to build a unique platform to feature and support filmmakers of all backgrounds to bring forth new opportunities which promote the growth of a Korean American filmmaking community here and Korean filmmakers abroad. Our past programming has included films selected to the most elite international festivals, Student Academy Award winners, and box office successes. Since its inception, KAFFNY has continued to nurture new talent and broaden the scope of its programming to serve larger audiences.

Each year, the festival attracts a diverse audience of 500+ from industry executives to professionals in law, fi nance, arts, technology and marketing.

KAFFNY 2010

KAFFNY 2010 will screen original feature films, short films, documentaries, and other works by artists from throughout the world. Due to the significant successes of each previous festival, KAFFNY will expand to a two-day festival to include narrative and documentary feature films as well as short films and animation. The program will be followed by a Q&A session and awards announcement.

Date: Saturday, February 27, 2010 – Sunday, February 28, 2010
Location: SVA Theatre, 333 West 23rd Street, New York, NY 10011

KAFFNY is pleased to announce this year’s program (pending confirmation by the filmmakers). This year’s festival will take place at SVA Theatre on Saturday Feb. 27th and Sunday Feb. 28th.

SHORTS COMPETITION

The Last Mermaids
Directed by Liz Chae

A Green Mountain in the Drawer
Directed by Hwa Jun Lee

His Name Is Trevor
Directed by Kim Seuk Hwan

A Cup of Coffee
Directed by Lee Young Woo

Maley from India
Directed by Jang Jaehyun

Hide and Seek
Directed by Chih-Wei Chang

My Four Inch Precious
Directed by Sou Yun Sim

Crippled
Directed by Ien Chi

SHORTS

L’Asilo di Brea
Directed by Dae Hoon Kim

Une Vie Merveilleuse a Paris
Directed by Sungmi Park

The 8th Samurai
Directed by Justin Ambrosino

Duelers
Directed by Min Oh

A School Rep
Directed by Park Sang-Joon

One Night in LA
Directed by Jon Maxwell

Deli
Directed by Hosik Kim

The Tin Soldier
Directed by Jennifer Cho Suhr

Familyship
Directed by Yoon Hye-Ryeom

Meet Parents
Directed by Yang Jun-ho

Our Knight
Directed by Eugene Yi

FEATURES

Make Yourself at Home
Directed by Soopum Sohn

Munyurangbo
Directed by Lee Isaac Chung

Thirst
Directed by Chan Wook Park

Going Home
Directed by Jason Hoffman

Check out last year’s festival.

Kick off the month of December with merriment and philanthropy.  Join us as KALCA’s Steering Committee hosts its first winter benefit event at Club Circle New York on Wednesday, December 9 from 7:00 pm to 11:00 pm.  For the first hour, all drinks will be 2 for 1. All proceeds will go toward our college internship program and public interest career exploration series. Your support will enable KALCA to continue investing in the future generation of Asian American public service leaders through our internship program and leadership development programming.

Tickets are $26 online, $21 per person for groups of ten or more, and $31 at the door.  The $400 VIP Sponsorship Package includes a bottle of premium liquor and four (4) tickets to the winter benefit.

Cocktail attire is strongly encouraged.  To reserve your spot, please purchase your tickets today at www.kalca.org.

KALCA Steering Committee

Join the Beautiful Foundation for their first meet and greet happy hour at the famous Korean-American watering hole in New York City, the Third Floor Cafe.  The happy hour will be on Thursday night, Dec 3rd starting at 6pm.  For every drink purchased at the bar, Third Floor Café will be matching a donation towards BFUSA!

Third Floor Cafe (315 5th Ave)
Thurs. 12/3 @ 6-9P

For more info on the BFUSA:

Website – http://www.beautifulfund.org/eng/
Blog – http://beautifulfoundationusa.blogspot.com/
Facebook Causes – http://www.causes.com/BFUSA

ABOUT BFUSA
The Beautiful Foundation USA was established in 2006 as a community foundation serving the Korean-American community and beyond in the New York and New Jersey metro area across 5 core areas: senior citizens, women, youth, immigrants and people with disabilities.

Under the motto “Beyond Charity, Toward Change,” the Foundation believes that raising and disbursing funds to support neighbors in need will transform and invigorate the community for future generations.

1% Sharing is the principal program of the Foundation. The goal of this program is to make people realize that sharing does not necessarily require a large sum of money. 1% represents the smallest amount that we can share.

ABOUT BOARD OF AMBASSADORS (BOA)
At the end of 2008, the Board of Directors unanimously approved a resolution to establish a Board of Ambassadors (BOA). The BOA is designed to fortify the foundation’s governance infrastructure and is to be represented by a body of young professionals in the NY/NJ metro area who are willing to commit to the vision of the BFUSA and prepared to invest in its continued success.

With 11 BOA leaders on staff, our goal for 2009-2010 is to provide fundraising and programming support aimed at increasing awareness of the foundation and expanding the donor base.

——–

뉴욕 아름다운재단의 BOA(Board of Ambassadors)가 첫번째 Fundraising 이벤트를 엽니다!

오 는 12월 3일, “Meet & Greet”을 주제로 맨해튼 Third Floor Cafe에서 6시부터 9시까지열리는 이번 이벤트를 통해 참가자들은 뉴욕 아름다운재단과 1% Giving에 대해서 보다 친밀하게 알 수 있는 시간이 될 예정입니다. 행사 파트너인 Third Floor Caf는 6시부터 9시 사이에 판매된 음료에 대해 각각 1달러를 매치하여 재단에 기부할 예정입니다.

뉴욕 아름다운재단의 BOA는 재단의 미션에 깊이 공감하고 “나눔, 자선을 넘어 변화로”에 앞장서기 위해, 커뮤니티 이슈에 관심이 많은 Young professional 한인들로 구성되었습니다. BOA의 모든 멤버들은 자신의 전문지식과 젊은 열정을 가지고 뉴욕 아름다운재단이 커뮤니티의 필요와 이의 충족을 위해 존재하는 커뮤니티 재단이 될 수 있도록 최선을 다합니다.

관심있는 모든 분들의 많은 참여를 부탁드립니다.

The Victoria’s Secret show is one of the hardest tickets to get.  It’s easier to get into the Super Bowl than this lingerie spectacle because it’s strictly invite only and you will never find these tickets on StubHub or eBay.  Well one of our KB folks found himself dazing at the 6 foot tall ladies in lingerie on the evening of November 19th at the Armory in New York City.  The show was on CBS on December 1st and you probably saw Chanel Iman marching down the V-shaped runway.  If you don’t know, Chanel is partially Korean and one of two people of Asian descent to be in the super bowl of fashion, the Victoria’s Secret show.  The blackberry picture above is the only proof that our man was there.  He was also lucky to get entrance into the after party where he met the models and Kings of Leon.  Apparently the ladies were all gaga over the band.  However, even with all the models walking around at the after party, it was Jay Z in tuxedo that had everyone’s eyes.  So the real celebrity of the after party that had the models gazing was the king of hip hop, Mr. Jay Z.

What an interesting week with our face to face interview with Asian sensation RAIN and a week of Korean women triumphing and being dismissed.  The most exciting hour was Friday evening with RAIN and James McTeigue, the director of Ninja Assassin.  We were one of the very first people to speak with RAIN on his press tour to promote the upcoming release of Ninja Assassin.  He was very nice and genuinely happy to see us when we first entered the room.  We didn’t know what to expect because you read so much about how huge he is in Asia and you wonder what he’s like.  He was actually very social, talkative and very comfortable in his own skin.  He clearly does not lack confidence, even with the difficult task of having to speak English for a long line of interviews.  What was most interesting was that he followed us out to the waiting room and essentially chilled with us while we packed up our gear.  It seemed like he wanted to chat more and it wouldn’t be a surprise because he was probably exhausted from speaking English during the interviews.  He just wanted to hang with his Korean-American homeys.

What a week of Korean women!

So which Koreans were on TV this week? There were four Korean women to one Korean man. Anthony Kim was seen on NBC this weekend, winning the Kiwi Challenge down in New Zealand. It was actually a tape delay from the previous week. But this was the week of Korean women with two Korean athletes winning their respective competitions. Kim Yu Na won the Skate America championship in Lake Placid, which may presage a gold medal at the upcoming Olympics in Vancouver. Michelle Wie won her very first LPGA tournament down in Mexico against stiff competition at the Lorena Ochoa Invitational in Guadalajara, Mexico. However, for Korean beauties, it wasn’t such a great week with two ladies competing in separate model competitions losing out before the end. Catharina Lee was a finalist for the Victoria Secret runway model competition before going home when they whittled it down to the final five. And Jennifer An almost made it to the very end on America’s Next Top Model but was sent home as well. It’s pretty cool that we’ve Korean women are beautiful, athletic and ambitious. You go girl!

Euna Lee and Laura Ling were honored this week at New York’s Carnegie Hall as one of Glamour Magazine’s Women of the Year.  They were among elite company with other honorees Rihanna and Maya Angelou.   The evening was filled with high-profile personalities and Hollywood big weights at the awards ceremony, which included former president Bill Clinton, news anchor Katie Couric, and actor Michael Douglas.   Euna Lee and Laura Ling made headlines this past summer when they accidentally crossed into North Korean territory along the Chinese border while trying to investigate human trafficking.   They were detained in North Korea for 140 days until former president Bill Clinton went to North Korea to help negotiate their release.

“They are Women of the Year because: “They are extraordinary women who were brave and resourceful, reporting a story that no one else was. They showed remarkable courage and initiative during their ordeal.” —Former Vice President Al Gore, chairman of Current TV

For more on Euna Lee and Laura Ling, go to Glamour.com.

The man of the fall, RAIN, is bringing his show and entourage to Las Vegas for shows during the Christmas holiday.  Rain will be performing at the Caesars Palace in Las Vegas on Christmas Eve and on Christmas.  What does that mean?  It seems to suggest that Koreans would rather be in Vegas gambling and listening to Rain on Christmas.  Not really but it’s a good location since it’s 4.5 hours away from Los Angeles, which has has the largest population of Koreans.

“Rain is preparing to perform at the Caesars Palace Hotel, which is famous as a concert venue for top pop artists such as Celine Dion and Elton John”, said J-Tune Entertainment.