Saturday, April 2 & Sunday, 3
at VIZ Cinema

Watch all 3 episodes as a pre-celebration to the new Blu-ray release of episode 3.

U.C. (Universal Century) 0001…
A young man named Syam, who joined the terrorists because of poverty, is caught in the explosion of Laplace and discovers something amid the wreckage. This is the forbidden box that will later be known as Laplace’s Box. Laplace’s Box is never to be opened. There are few who even know what it is. The secret of the box continues to sleep with Syam… What is Laplace’s Box. What secret does it contain? The hundred-year curse of the Universal Century is about to be resolved.

**Advance copies of Mobile Suit Gundam UC (Unicorn) on Blu-ray, distributed by Bandai Entertainment, Inc., will also be on sale in the NEW PEOPLE the Store – ahead of the series’ April 7th general release.

**GET A FREE POSTER!
Show up with a $26 COMBO ticket on the first day of the marathon and get a limited poster! First come first serve!

READ MORE ABOUT THE EVENT >>>

SAKURA SAKURA is the story of a love between two people that bridged Japan and the US. This is a story about the father of modern biotechnology, Jokichi Takamine, and his American wife Carolyn. Over a century ago, an international marriage was far from being easy and they faced many trials and tribulations. But the two of them over came many obstacles and made miracles happen. Jokichi succeeded in the crystallization of adrenaline and also discovered the digestive enzyme taka-amylase, both being vital discoveries that still remain relevant in today’s medical field.

SHOWTIMES:
4/8 (Fri) @ 4:30pm, 7:15pm
4/9 (Sat) @ 10:45am, 1:15pm. 3:45pm, 6:15pm
4/10 (Sun) @ 10:45am, 1:15pm. 3:45pm, 6:15pm
4/11 (Mon) – 4/14 (Thu) @ 4:30pm, 7:15pm

$10 general

Presented and Sponsored by:
Northern California Cherry Blossom Festival Executive Committee, The Hokkoku Shimbun, The Toyama Shimbun, Ishikawa Art and Culture Association

After a realization at a family reunion, half Japanese-Canadian filmmaker, Jeff Chiba Stearns, embarks on a journey of self-discovery to find out why everyone in his Japanese-Canadian family married inter-racially after his grandparents’ generation. This feature live action and animated documentary explores why almost 100% of all Japanese-Canadians are marrying inter-racially, the highest out of any other ethnicity in Canada, and how their mixed children perceive their unique multiracial identities. One Big Hapa Family challenges our perceptions of purity and makes us question if mixing is the end of multiculturalism as we know it.
- Jeff Chiba Stearns

**The screening of ONE BIG HAPA FAMILY is part of the HAFU PROJECT launch event accompanied by the HAFU PHOTO EXHIBITION opening at the SUPERFROG Gallery.
MORE DETAILS ABOUT THE EVENT >>

Events:
7pm – 10pm Hafu Photo Exhibit Opening
8:35pm – 10pm: Screening of “One Big Hapa Family” (85 mins.)
10pm – 10:15pm: Q/A with Filmmaker Jeff Chiba Stearns

SOLD OUT! THANK YOU!
Please email the Center for Japanese Studies for more information.

Written by Sugako Hashida, a well-known writer in Japan, 99 Years of Love: Japanese Americans tells the story of the struggles that Japanese Americans faced in a time of prejudice and racism, when Japanese Americans were torn between their country and their ancestor’s homeland. The epic tale spans a period of 99 years through the eyes of one family, beginning with the immigration of an Issei (first generation) father to America through his Nisei (second generation) son joining the 442nd infantry Regiment during WWII. The drama depicts the Issei and Nisei generations’ spirit, strength and love. Starring Kenichi Matsuyama and Tsuyoshi Kusanagi from SMAP.

*This film was produced in commemoration of the 60th anniversary of TBS (Tokyo Broadcasting System) and aired in Japan for 5 nights in fall 2010. It was viewed by millions in Japan.

Consists of 5 episodes: Show times 10:30AM-12:30PM each day
4/16 (Sat) : Episode 1 “America” (cherry blossom festival weekend)
4/17 (Sun): Episode 2 “Generations” (last day of cherry blossom festival)
4/18 (Mon): Episode 3 “Concentration Camp”
4/19 (Tue): Episode 4 “The Japanese American Regiment”
4/20 (Wed): Episode 5 “Reunited”

Admission: Free, Suggested Donation $5 or more

Presented and Sponsored by:
Presented by The Japanese Cultural and Community Center of Northern California (JCCCNC)

NEW PEOPLE is holding a second fundraising film event. This time the chosen film is THE TASTE OF TEA, an opening film for the 2003 Cannes Film Festival that is based in a little town surrounded by the natural beauty of Tochigi, Japan, which is also an area vastly damaged by the recent earthquake and is striving to recover as we speak. A huge thanks to the supporters who attended the Hula Girls film event that raised $5,024 towards the relief efforts for Japan!

100% of proceeds will be donated to NORTHERN JAPAN EARTHQUAKE RELIEF FUNDS by Japantown’s JCCCNC
Find out more about donating for Japan’s relief >>>

The admission is free with suggested donations from $10 that could be donated at VIZ Cinema or through our online box office ( **For online purchases, online service fee will be charged. ) More donation could be made at VIZ Cinema on the day of show. Thank you!

Written, directed and edited by Katsuhito ISHII , The Taste of Tea is a unique and gentle family portrait tackling the universal themes of time, people and their lives. As 8-year old Sachiko (Maya Banno) tries to get rid of a giant version of herself who seems to pop up everywhere, her older brother Hajime (Takahiro Sato), privately wrestles with his love-struck heart. Meanwhile, their mother Yoshiko (Satomi Tezuka) is working hard, coming out of retirement as an animator, as her husband and professional hypnotist Nobuo (Tomokazu Miura) watches on with slight apprehension. Even Nobuo’ s brother and successful manga artist Todoroki has his problems. And lastly there’ s Grandpa, the most bizarre and perhaps the most perceptive of all, who continues to search for a better way to live life to the full.

For more information about the movie, visit Taste of Tea’s official site.

Watch the trailer:

“ …its avoidance of easy categorization only makes it more of a must-see.” – Time Out New York

The 54th San Francisco International Film Festival returns April 21-May 5 for two weeks of cinematic excellence, combining more than 100 unique programs of the finest independent, documentary and international film with a range of marquee premieres, spectacular live events and tributes to world-renowned talent.

FILMS and SHOWTIMES >>> sffs.org.

Saturday, 4/23 and Thursday, 4/28

HOSPITALITé
Home invasion was never so droll as in this black comedy from writer/director Koji Fukada, which pokes a stick in the eye of xenophobia. Into the lives of a too-mild-mannered Tokyo printer, his very young wife and their family comes a man with a story—actually a couple of stories, take your pick. With one foot in the door, the stranger is hired on as a live-in printer. The ancestral family home is tiny and crowded, tucked away behind the printing machines, so when this man of admittedly bizarre affect moves in with his Brazilian wife, the strain is on. A fine ensemble cast plays brilliantly to an everyday tension in Japanese life, between a culture of hospitality and the fear of intruders.

Get showtimes and tickets from SFIFF site:

© 2011 San Francisco Film Society