AmrAsia unveils star-studded roster of special guests, including Sora Olah, Joon-Yang Kim, Marc Smolowitz, Nathaniel Warsh,

Mila Aung-Thwin, Samuel Dong, Christos Sourligas, Mingu Kim, and more (Montreal, February 21, 2012) The AmrAsia Film Festival is excited to confirm the presence of special guests Sora Olah, Joon-Yang Kim, Marc Smolowitz, Nathaniel Warsh, Chris Sourligas and EyeSteelFilms Daniel Cross and Mila Aung-Thwin for the third edition of Montreals premiere festival celebrating Asian and Asian-Canadian cinema, taking place March 1-4 and 9-11. Hosting both the Opening Gala (at Hotel Zero 1, March 1) and the Closing Gala (March 11 at NFBs CinRobothque) will be AmrAsia Master of Ceremonies Sora Olah. The Canadian-born Korean/Hungarian film, stage and television actor, TV host (Sun TVs popular Street Eats), writer and blogger (Foodquesttv.com) is renowned for her passion for film and food. Joining Olah at both galas will be EyeSteelFilm co-founders and award-winning documentary filmmakers Daniel Cross (president of EyeSteelFilm and Assistant Professor in Film Production at Concordia University) and Mila Aung-Thwin (vice-president, and whose documentary credits include Up the Yangtze and Taqwacore: The Birth of Punk Islam), presenting Vanishing Spring Light. EyeSteelFilm will be receiving the AmrAsia Golden Dragon Outstanding Contribution to AsianCanadian Cinema Award. The AmrAsia Film Festival is pleased to have Korean animation scholar, researcher and programmer Joon-Yang Kim on hand as curator of the Animation Spotlight series, including the special presentation of nine short films by Chinese animation artist Sun Xun. Kim will also moderate Artists Talk on Asian Diaspora in Animation on March 9. Kim is author of multi-award-winning Empire of Images: Animation on the Japanese Islands and programmer of animation at the Cinema Digital Seoul Film Festival. Academy Award-nominated producer Marc Smolowitz (The Weather Underground) will be on hand for the showing of Japan/U.S. co-production and Tokyo International Film Festival selection The Power of Two, his directorial debut. Nathaniel Warsh, president of Toronto-based 108 Media, will introduce the North American premiere of Korean box office hit Leafie, a Hen into the Wild. This is the final chance to see the original print version, which will be updated for a Canadian release later in the year. Korean-born, Toronto-based director Mingu Kim will present his doc A Drummers Passion, about 70year-old South Korean drumming legend Kwon Soon Keun, and Montreal director Eisha Marjara will present her outstanding short film House for Sale. The jury of the inaugural Smartphone Film Challenge is comprised of three very special guests. The first is Canadian independent filmmaker Christos Sourligas (whose credits include the award-winning Elephant Shoes). Sourligas producer of last years controversial Happy Slapping, the worlds first feature film shot entirely on a smartphone will also mentor Smartphone Film Challenge participants over the course of the festival.

Joining Sourligas on the jury is Home Technology Montreal blogger and former CTV commentator on new technologies Bob Benedetti, and Montreal-based Chinese filmmaker Zhi-Min Hu. Ms. Hu has written, directed and produced numerous experimental, documentary and fiction films. The National Video Portrait Competition, now in its fourth year reflecting on Asian culture, and in which participants are invited to explore the unique relationship between Canada and Asia by creating video portraits, will be shown at the SAT on March 9, and will invite four jurors: Montreal author (Le Placard), award-winning Fugues short story and screenplay writer Denis Vaillancourt will be representing Videographe, the main sponsor of the National Video Portrait Competition, with $1,500 in production and post-production for the winner; Acclaimed animator, documentary filmmaker and animation teacher Masoud Raouf, originally from Iran, whose NFB productions The Tree that Remembers and Blue Like a Gunshot have each been the recipient of several prestigious film and animation awards. Karen Cho, a Montreal filmmaker known for socially-conscious documentaries. Her films have been awarded several prizes (in the NFBs Reel Diversity Competition as well as a Golden Leaf Award for Best Multicultural Documentary), and her work includes the Gemini-nominated Seeking Refuge (Terre dasile) and upcoming NFB feature Status of Women; Peter Rist, Professor of Film Studies at the Mel Hoppenheim School of Cinema at Concordia University, a writer at online journal Offscreen.com, and contributor to books on African, South American, Hong Kong, Korean, Taiwanese and Chinese cinema; This year AmerAsia will also look toward Asian-Canadian style and music, with a fashion show on Saturday March 10 at La SAT featuring designs from internationally-renowned fashion icon Samuel Dong and Montral-based make-up and hair stylist Fang Fang. Korean KPop-inspired dancers Hallyuwood and Phoenix Art Chinese Dance Troupe (Huayun) will perform an Asian-infused dance show. All guests will be available for interview during the festival and in Q&A sessions following the presentation of their respective films. Please contact press@cine-asie.ca or call 514 799 6880 to reach the AmerAsia team. About the AmrAsia Film Festival The third edition of the AmrAsia Film Festival takes place March 1-4 and 9-11 over two weekends at the SAT, CinRobothque (NFB), the Cinma du Parc, Cinmathque qubcoise and Hotel Zero 1. The AmrAsia Film Festival is organized by Cin-Asie, a non-profit organization based in Montreal which has worked for more than 16 years in the promotion of Asian and Asian-Canadian culture and cinema. Cin-Asie is led by founder Mi Jeong Lee, who served for over 13 years as one of the Asian Programming Directors for the Fantasia International Film Festival. Please email cineasie@gmail.com for further information, interviews and press images. For all screening and special events information, please visit www.amerasiafestival.com.