Category Archives: San Francisco Bay Area

Exploitasian: The Story of Chinese Workers in Gold-Rush America

Posted on June 25, 2024 by Edwin Bai

China’s rise to economic dominance in the late 1900s largely came from its massive population and the cheap labor that it provided to foreign corporations, with “companies like Nike, Apple and Walmart relying on Chinese workers to manufacture their products”. … Continue reading →

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Calls for Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao to Resign After Mass shooting and FBI Raid

Posted on June 24, 2024 by Jeff

I recently went to a funeral and met someone with a bandage on his forehead.  When we asked what happened, he said he was taking a nap in his car in Oakland when someone broken in, pistol-whipped him, and then … Continue reading →

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CAAMFest 2024: And So It Begins – Review and Q&A with Maria Ressa and Filmmakers

Posted on May 30, 2024 by John

If you’ve been following me on 8Asians, you will know that I follow politics worldwide and not just in the United States. So when I came across this CAAMFest closing night film, the documentary And So It Begins, I had … Continue reading →

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CAAMFest 2024: The Lyricist Wannabe – Mini-Review & Post-screening Q&A

Posted on May 24, 2024 by John

Earlier this year, I attended a Hong Kong Economic & Trade Office – San Francisco (HKETO-SF) event in Silicon Valley and had met the director Norris Wong. I subsequently got invited to CAAMFest supported Hong Kong films, including The Lyricist … Continue reading →

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CAAMFest 2024: A Great Divide – Post Screening Q & A

Posted on May 22, 2024 by John

I had seen A Great Divide last fall at the Silicon Valley Asian Pacific FilmFest (SVAPFF). I enjoyed the film and would at least see it again at CAAMFest if only to see director Jean Shim to say hi. As … Continue reading →

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CAAMFest 2024: Light of the Setting Sun

Posted on May 21, 2024 by John

Going into this film, I didn’t know much about Light of the Setting Sun except from the CAAMFest program description: “Candid conversations meet photographic scenes, as the details of violence begin to take shape, and we witness how deep the … Continue reading →

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Kanaye Nagasawa and the other Asian Americans who built California Wine Country

Posted on May 20, 2024 by Jeff

Asian Americans are generally not associated with California Wine Country, but they were key players in getting it established.  Chinese laborers built and worked in Sonoma’s oldest winery, Buena Vista Winery, as well as planting millions of grapevines between 1856 … Continue reading →

Posted in Business, Discrimination, History, Labor, Local, San Francisco Bay Area | Tagged , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

CAAMFest 2024: “Home Court” – The Basketball Journey of Ashley Chea

Posted on May 17, 2024 by John

Director Erica Tanamachi, Producer Jenn Lee Smith, Executive Producer Diane Quon, and Writer/Editor Jean Kawahara Home Court was one of the CAAMFest 2024 films I was most excited to screen: “Ashley Chea is a Cambodian American basketball phenom. Home Court, … Continue reading →

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CAAMFest 2024: Opening Night and Gala with ‘Admissions Granted’

Posted on May 16, 2024 by John

This year’s opening night film was the documentary Admissions Granted: “In the run-up to the landmark Supreme Court case pitting Asian American plaintiffs against Harvard University, controversial legal strategist Edward Blum took direct aim at dismantling affirmative action, energizing activists … Continue reading →

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DÌDI (弟弟) Official Trailer Released

Posted on May 14, 2024 by Jeff

It seemed funny that we talked about Sean Wang and his movie DÌDI (弟弟) but we never included a trailer.  We can remedy that as the official trailer from Focus Features has just come out.  Like the main character in … Continue reading →

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SF Film Festival Talk: Filmmaking Bay Area and “Dìdi (弟弟)” – with Sean Wang

Posted on May 11, 2024 by John

One of the things I love about film festivals is that you can learn more about the film or filmmaker, usually during a post-screening Q&A. With the SF Film Festival, they also had talks with the filmmaker separate from the … Continue reading →

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SF Film Festival Opening Night: Sean Wang’s ‘Dìdi (弟弟)’

Posted on May 10, 2024 by John

I had the great honor of meeting filmmaker Sean Wang back in December 2023 screening his documentary short Nai Nai and Wài Pó and again in February 2024 after the short was nominated for an Oscar.  Because of that experience, … Continue reading →

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