Five Academy for Creative Media student films to screen at the Shanghai International Film Festival

Event marks ACM's inaugural participation in UH-Shanghai University film exchange

University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa
Contact:
Tom Brislin, (808) 956-3788
Academy for Creative Media
Arlene Abiang, (808) 956-5637
External Affairs & University Relations
Posted: Jun 6, 2006

HONOLULU — The Academy for Creative Media (ACM) at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa will screen five of its students' films at the 9th Shanghai International Film Festival (SIFF) on June 20, 2006 in Shanghai, China. The nine-day festival, held this year from June 17-25, is among the top ten of worldwide film festivals.

The five student films to screen at the SIFF include award-winning films "Plastic Leis" (Golden Honu Award, 2006 Big Island Film Festival) directed by Ty Sanga; "Steve Maʻiʻi" (Audience Favorite Award, 2004 Hawaii International Film Festival) directed by Kaliko Palmiera; "Tunnels" (Best Music in a Short Film, 2006 WorldFest-Houston International Film Festival) and "Still" directed by Jay Hubert; and "Elevation" ( Best Film Award, Hawaii Pacific University's 2006 Short on the Rocks Film Festival) directed by Seong Whang. The student filmmakers (except Palmiera) will travel to Shanghai to screen their films.

The films are part of the Student Media Art Exchange (SMART Xchange) program between the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa and Shanghai University, in conjunction with the SIFF and the Hawaiʻi International Film Festival (HIFF). ACM‘s participation in the SIFF marks the program‘s inaugural exchange. Shanghai University film students will have a similar opportunity to showcase select films at the HIFF in October.

"Our SMART Xchange illustrates the international reach of ACM and the solid storytelling talents of our student filmmakers across cultures," said ACM Director Chris Lee. "We're particularly proud of the Hawaiʻi-based themes of these films that offer a more accurate and reinvigorated image of local life and culture."

Lee added, "When added to the numerous national festivals that have screened our student films, and our partnership with the Korean Film Commission to develop Korean and Korean American filmmakers, ACM is taking Hawaiʻi to a global audience."

During the festival, ACM officials will work on strengthening the student film and filmmaker exchange program with Shanghai University, as well as forging another exchange agreement with the Shanghai Institute for Visual Arts.

The ACM student filmmakers will also take part in an SIFF film forum, "Future Tides: Sino-American Students‘ Short Programs Exchange," moderated by director Jia Zhangke (Shijie: The World). ACM Director Chris Lee will participate in a forum on the "Relationship Between Chinese and Hollywood Film" along with directors Ang Lee (Brokeback Mountain) and Feng Xiaogang (A World Without Thieves, Shou Ji).

About the Shanghai International Film Festival
First run in 1993, the Shanghai International Film Festival was accredited by the International Federation of Film Producers Association (FIAPF) as one of non-specialized competitive international film festivals in 1994. The festival is the only annual world film gathering in the Chinese market, the market that has not been completely open to the outside world, with total involvement of 959 official films selected out among 3823 submissions from over 60 countries and regions and the box office reaching 27.7 million RMB in the previous editions. Fascinated by filmgoers in Shanghai and its surrounding areas, the nine-day festival in June has become an important movie celebration event highlighting cultural life in Shanghai. For more information, visit http://9th.siff.com/index-e.php.

About the Academy for Creative Media
The Academy for Creative Media at the University of Hawaiʻi, founded just three years ago, emphasizes digital cinema, computer animation and videogame design, and critical studies. Its student films have been screened at major national and international festivals. It is developing a Center for Indigenous Filmmaking which will embrace story-tellers from Hawaii, the Pacific and Asia. For more information, visit http://acm.hawaii.edu/index2.shtml.