JOANNE PANG WRITES – COVID-19 continues to spread amongst communities, and Hong Kong’s zero-case streak has been reset now to over 100 cases daily. The government urges citizens to stay at home unless necessary; but for the gamers out there who want to play with their friends, what can be…
Full Article CORONAVIRUS CHRONICLES: #PLAYAPARTTOGETHER
JOSEPH LITTAUA WRITES — Most popular songs have a lot of things in common. For example, whether it’s a soloist or band song, most songs will have a short, catchy melody that gets stuck in your head, like Gotye’s “Somebody That I Used to Know,” or One Direction’s “What Makes…
Full Article SOUTH KOREA: FORGET ABOUT SILENCING THAT ANNOYING BABYSHARK TUNE
ASSOCIATE EDITOR ZHI JIAO DANIELLE GOH WRITES—These days, it’s not hard to hear “You’re canceled.” But do people understand what this is really about? Cancel culture refers to the popular practice of withdrawing support for (canceling) public figures and companies after they have done or said something considered seriously offensive.…
Full Article CULTURE: CANCELING FROM THE WEST TO THE EAST
CHARLOTTE TRUONG, WHO HAILS FROM VIETNAM, WRITES — Recently, Netflix has stepped into the Asian movie market through collaborative works such as Kingdom of Korea and The Victim’s Game of Taiwan. Among them, Da 5 Bloods (Vietnamese title: 5 Chien Huu) is a film directed by Spike Lee, filmed in…
Full Article VIETNAM: SPIKE LEE’S MOVIE ‘DA 5 BLOODS’ IS OUT OF SYNC WITH THE COUNTRY IT PORTRAYS
ANDREA PLATE WRITES — (This is the third in an original series about new wave feminist writers in Korea.) Why, for the past fifteen years, has literary icon Bae Suah — author of at least twelve sensationally popular surrealist novels, several short story collections, winner of two Korean literary prizes…
Full Article SOUTH KOREA: IS WORLD-FAMOUS AUTHOR BAE SUAH “UN-KOREAN?”
LILLY WEBER WRITES — With highly influential individuals like President Donald Trump referring to the coronavirus using the phrase the “Chinese Virus”, it’s not entirely surprising that Asian Americans are being negatively affected by such rhetoric. While the entirety of the restaurant industry has been hit hard by the shelter-in-orders…
Full Article CORONAVIRUS COLLATERAL DAMAGE: THE LONELY CHINESE RESTAURANT
LILLY WEBBER WRITES – After sweeping the Oscars and finishing the night with four different awards, including Best Picture, the South Korean dark comedy thriller film Parasite by director Bong Joon-ho has surprised international audiences and film connoisseurs alike with its success. Parasite’s victory is unprecedented in the Oscars’ history…
Full Article SOUTH KOREAN CINEMA: ‘PARASITE’ THRIVES IN AMERICA DESPITE XENOPHOBIA
ANNALISA DEL VECCHIO, ASIAN ART EDITOR, WRITES – Chong-II Woo – Women of the Joseon Dynasty Nude Woo, also known for his work as a photographer for Vogue and Harper’s Bazaar magazine, gives his interpretation of Korea’s modern history through this beautiful pigment print on Hanji paper. Sogen Chiba –…
Full Article 25TH ANNUAL LA ART SHOW: HIGHLIGHTING THE BEST ASIAN ART
NATHAN RIVAS WRITES – During this year’s Academy Award ceremony at Hollywood’s Dolby Theater, Taika Waititi became the first person of Maori descent to win an Oscar (for “Jojo Rabbit”), which he dedicated to all of the indigenous children of the world “who want to do art and dance and write…
Full Article NEW ZEALAND AT OSCARS 2020: TAIKA WAITITI PUTS THE SPOTLIGHT ON INDIGENOUS PEOPLES
THE ASSOCIATION OF ASIAN STUDIES WRITES — The AAS is pleased to announce the winners of this year’s prize competitions and offer congratulations to all honorees. We encourage everyone to attend the Awards Ceremony at the upcoming AAS annual conference in Boston, MA on Friday, March 20, where the award winners will…
Full Article ANN ARBOR: ASSOCIATION OF ASIAN STUDIES ANNUAL BOOK AWARDS
ANDREA PLATE WRITES – It was Christmas Eve, the final performance of a three-week “Nutcracker Ballet” series at the University of California, Irvine’s Barclay Theater. “Are there, like, a ton of Asians around, or is it my imagination?” someone in the crowd mumbled to his friend. But of course! How…
Full Article Orange County: A DAZZLING ASIAN SPIN ON THAT SWEET OLD NUTCRACKER MASTERPIECE
NILE BROWN WRITES — Broad shoulders, billowy trousers and bold neon colors permeate AMBUSH’s recently released Spring/Summer 2020 lookbook. At first look, it may appear that the Tokyo based fashion label has recontextualized styling techniques popularized in the 80s, but head designers Verbal and Yoon Ahn take it a bit…
Full Article AMBUSH IN TOKYO: FASHION GETS CORNERED BY CULTURE … BUT BY HAPPY DESIGN
MATHEW ANDROVETT WRITES–Shang -Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, slated for release in February of 2021, will be the first Marvel feature film to center around an Asian protagonist— Shang-Chi, played by actor Simu Liu, a Marvel character known for his mastery of Kung-fu. In essence, it will…
Full Article ASIAN ARTS: HOW MARVELOUS THE WANING OF STEREOTYPES LIKE FU MANCHU
WEI WU WRITES — It has been three years since Ang Lee’s last movie “Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk”; his latest movie “Gemini Man” was released last month. Audiences were looking forward to seeing how an Eastern director would break down this odd Western science fiction story, but it turns…
Full Article MOVIE REVIEW: GEMINI MAN – WHEN TWO WILLS ARE BETTER THAN ONE
NATHAN RIVAS WRITES – As we approach the release date for “Jojo Rabbit” by Taika Waititi, the acclaimed indigenous director from New Zealand, it has become apparent that indigenous creators there as well as in Australia are in increasing demand in Hollywood. For example, top Down Under actors such as Jemaine…
Full Article Netflix: This ‘Down Under’ Town, With Its Racism, Corruption and Sex Trafficking, Ain’t Big Enough for Both of Them