Upcoming: May 10-19, 2013 Pittsburgh's Silk Screen Asian American Film Festival!

May 10-19 Pittsburgh's Silk Screen Asian American Film Festival!

I am so excited that I finally get to attend! Two years ago I'd only heard of what is now called the Silk Screen Asian Arts & Culture Organization, and for the past year I served as a  kind of part-time office volunteer. I have thoroughly admired the mission of this organization and all it has done for Pittsburgh and beyond.

This year's film festival features screenings of 30 foreign films over these 10 days, including an Opening Night Gala and Closing Ceremony. This year there are films from: Afghanistan, Cambodia, China, Egypt, Georgia, India, Iran, Israel, Japan, Kyrgyzstan, Nepal, Philippines, South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand, Turkey, Vietnam and Uzbekistan.

I'm especially excited to see some of these movies with international friends, and to learn and enjoy more about their countries and cultures though cinema.

I encourage everyone to attend: http://www.silkscreenfestival.org/202/festival-guide-2013

The following is something I'd written when I was supposed to write about Silk Screen for Wikipedia. Unfortunately, I didn't know if my draft was ever sufficient. So, I still haven't gone through the process of trying to publish it, or whether I had permission. However, this is my best attempt to write about the organization I respect and admire so much. And I wish to give this event and organization more publicity in the best way that I can.

About the Silk Screen Asian Arts & Culture Organization

Silk Screen was founded as a 501 (c) 3 nonprofit media arts organization in 2005 by Harish Saluja, an artist, filmmaker, and entrepreneur, who recognized a need to promote cross-cultural understanding among Asians and non-Asians in the United States. This led to his idea of a cultural arts organization representing the various Asian communities in Pittsburgh and the tri-state area through cultural events. A filmmaker himself, Saluja first created the annual Silk Screen Asian American Film Festival in May 2006. Silk Screen has since evolved to centrally coordinate other Asian cultural events within Pittsburgh including festival screenings of international films, academic screenings of documentaries, events featuring ethnic music and dance performances, and events celebrating of Asian holidays and traditions ("The Heinz Endowments"). And, just this year, an Asian American Jazz Fusion orchestra organized by Saluja and other musicians will be performing.

Mission

 "Silk Screen's goals include educating communities about Asian and Asian American history, culture, experiences and issues; fostering understanding across lines of race, ethnicity, religion, age, and region; and sustaining growth and encouraging excellence in Asian American culture and cinema ("Our Story"). 

These aims are achieved through year-round programming of film festivals, outreach performances of music, dance, and theater, educational presentations of Asian traditions for primary and secondary schools as well as colleges and universities, and other innovative events. Silk Screen events continue to grow in reputation and attendance among all age groups. People have even come from surrounding states and foreign countries to attend Silk Screen events and film festivals.

Silk Screen’s long-term goals are to foster cross-cultural understanding, to encourage filmmaking in Pittsburgh, and ultimately to establish Pittsburgh as a center of cultural exchange that welcomes Asian immigrants and Asian Americans and celebrates their diverse cultures – thus inspiring a dynamic multicultural community and vibrant economy (McElhinney). Ultimately, year-round programming is projected to lead into weeks or months of events celebrating diversity in Asian and Asian American heritage across the Commonwealth, and fostering American appreciation of global community (FilmFestivals.com). 

I have been especially drawn to the vision of Harish Saluja in his creation of the organization:

"We believe that if you want to grow as a city, you need to welcome people of different colors, races, countries, and languages; and you need to be proactive about it. In this region, the new immigrants aren't coming from Italy or Ireland anymore. They're coming from Asia, and one of the things that we need to do as a city - and I feel strongly about this - is to be culturally welcoming.. I decided that we would form this organization and have Asian cultural events where people of different colors could come together under one tent. And it turns out that only 20 percent of people who attend our events are Asian. 80 percent are non-Asians, which is how I want it to be because Asians don't need me to tell them about Asian culture. It's non-Asians who can feel safe and comfortable coming to these events and learning about other countries. 

We also firmly believe that there are problems in this world. There is hatred, prejudice, ignorance and sadness; there are tears in this world. Now we can't solve all the problems, but we think we should do something, however small it is, to ameliorate these difficulties. And we feel that a performance by a musician, a show by an artist, a dance performance, a movie being seen and bread being broken together are positive things that compensate to some extent for all the negativity that goes on. If everybody felt that way, you would see a change in the world, and that's what we're trying to do."

("The Heinz Endowments") 

Activities

Film Festivals and Film Series

Silk Screen Asian American Film Festival

Silk Screen’s premier event is an annual 10-day film festival that takes place every May (recognized as Asian American Heritage Month) featuring screenings of over 20 contemporary films representing ethnic origins of Central, South, and East Asian countries and their people’s histories, cultures, experiences, and issues. The festival is preceded by an Opening Night Gala event featuring ethnic Asian music and dance performances, catering by ethnic restaurants, and its attendants are invited to dress in cultural attire. Over the following days and nights, the films are screened in three-to-five different locations. Whenever possible, each film is concluded with Question & Answer sessions with its international filmmakers and/or performers, even people from as far as Indonesia. (Baron). Featured films include those by award-winning directors, and winners of national and international film festivals such as Sundance, Toronto, Cannes, and the New York Asian Film Festival, among others.("Our Story") Films have represented origins from countries including Burma (through a 2012 showing of The Lady (2011), Afghanistan, China, India, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Japan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Korea, The Philippines, Turkey, Thailand,Vietnam, and Uzbekistan (Baron).

Silk Scream: Asian Horror Film Festival

Silk Screen annually presents a pair of internationally recognized and limited release Asian horror films in the final week of October, during the Halloween holiday season in an event called Silk Scream. Pittsburgh has been historically significant location in the horror film industry (recall the film "The Silence of the Lambs"), and Silk Screen became the first to bring a festival screening of Asian horror films.  

Film Series

Silk Screen also annually presents three academic film series for local college and university instruction, and to foster discourse on difficult social issues, controversies, and stereotypes within Asian countries and the United States, including women’s rights, gender issues, historical struggles, and prejudices. Film screenings and subsequent discussion are intended to increase awareness and to dispel cross-cultural ignorance and prejudices among academic audiences. Currently, Silk Screen organizes three distinct film series for three different academic institutions:

Asia Unreeled is presented annually at Winchester Thurston School through spring months, with four thought-provoking films (dramas and/or documentaries) which are meant to show diverse cultures, histories of Asian countries as they relate to present realities. These films are open to the public and are each followed with time for reflection and discussion, and occasionally by cultural activities. Asia Unreeled is presented also in partnership with Confucius Institute, the University of Pittsburgh Asian Studies Center and Winchester Thurston School.

Japanese Film Series is presented annually in partnership primarily with the University of Pittsburgh Asian Studies Center, among other nonprofit and academic organizations. This series features modern or classical Japanese films of any genre to give the public an opportunity to experience Japanese cinema.

Sewickley Film Series is an annual set of three films shown in January that is presented in partnership with the Sewickley Academy. Each series has an overarching theme (previous themes include “challenging stereotypes” and “women in Asian cultures”) and each film is followed with moderated discussion.

Other Programs

Silk Screen collaboratively develops year-round programming of media arts performances and other cultural events such as outreach concerts of Asian and Asian American music, dance and theater; and school presentations and parades celebrating Asian traditions and holidays such as Chinese New Year, Dragon Boat Festival, India Independence Day. These events are often in collaboration with schools, colleges, museums, and directly with musicians, artists, and performers ("Education Outreach Programs").

Radio Program

Silk Screen also produces the weekly broadcast “Music from India" through Pittsburgh’s Essential Public Radio at 90.5 FM. It is the longest running radio program of Indian music in the United States, beginning 1972 by Harish Saluja and Dr. Vijay Bahl, its current hosts. It broadcasts on Sundays from 8pm-10pm. 

Sponsors

Silk Screen has partnered with foundations, schools, universities, museums, over 30 arts and culture organizations, and several local Asian family-owned businesses.
http://silkscreenfestival.org/45/sponsors

References

http://www.silkscreenfestival.org

Baron, Jennifer. "Get reel at the Silk Screen Asian American Film Festival." Pop City. 09 May 2012: n. page. Web. 30 Apr. 2013. <http://www.popcitymedia.com/features/sscreenasia050912.aspx>

"East Meets Pittsburgh." Silk Screen Asian Arts & Culture Organization. Silk Screen Asian Arts & Culture Organization. Web. 30 Apr 2013. <http://www.silkscreenfestival.org/63/east-meets-pgh>

Educational Outreach Programs." Silk Screen Asian Arts & Culture Organization. Silk Screen Asian Arts & Culture Organization. Web. 30 Apr 2013. <http://www.silkscreenfestival.org/86/education-outreach-programs>

"Film Series." Silk Screen Asian Arts & Culture Organization. Silk Screen Asian Arts & Culture Organization. Web. 30 Apr 2013. <http://www.silkscreenfestival.org/34/film-series>

McElhinney, Kelli. "Cultural Awareness: An Important Story." Pop City. 10 May 2006: n. page. Web. 30 Apr 2013. <http://www.popcitymedia.com/features/saluja.aspx>

Interview by Carmen J. Lee. "Q&A with Harish Saluja." The Heinz Endowments. The Heinz Endowments, Pittsburgh. 05 April 2012. Web. 30 Apr 2013. <http://www.heinz.org/grants_spotlight_entry.aspx?entry=912>

"Our Story." Silk Screen Asian Arts & Culture Organization. Silk Screen Asian Arts & Culture Organization. Web. 30 Apr 2013. <http://www.silkscreenfestival.org/2/our-story>

"Silk Screen Asian American Film Festival" FilmFestivals.com. FilmFestivals.com, n.d. Web. 30 April 2013. <http://www.filmfestivals.com/en/festival/silk_screen_asian_american_film_festival_0>

Social Media Links
http://www.facebook.com/SilkScreen

http://www.facebook.com/SilkScreenPittsburgh?ref=ts

http://twitter.com/SilkScreenPgh