Sisterly Ties “Five Women Filmmakers’ Eyes on Women”
October 15, 22, 29, November 12, 2009 at 7 pm
Sisterly Ties
“Five Women Filmmakers’ Eyes on Women”
October 15, 22, 29, November 12, 7 pm
ImagineAsian Theatre (239 East 59th St., NYC, Tel:212-371-6682)
Free Admission: RSVP at (212) 759-9550
Treeless Mountain
Screening with Director Q & A
Thursday, October 15
Directed by KIM So-yong
Total Running Time: 89min
When their mother needs to leave in order to find their estranged father, seven year-old Jin and her younger sister, Bin, are left to live with their Big Aunt for the summer. With only a small piggy bank and their mother’s promise to return when it is full, the two young girls are forced to acclimate to changes in their family life. Counting the days, and the coins, the two bright-eyed young girls eagerly anticipate their mother’s homecoming. But when the bank fills up, and with their mother still not back, Big Aunt decides that she can no longer tend to the children. Taken to live on their grandparents’ farm, it is here that Jin comes to learn the importance of family bonds.
Program I
Becoming an Actress in New York
Screening with Director Q & A
Thursday, October 22
Directed by Yunah Hong
Total Running Time: 32 min
We are given glimpses into their daily rituals and share many candid and revealing moments that further underline the drive and determination of these strong independent women. All three come from prestige drama schools and have agents. All three are Korean American, which further complicates their quest for parts. There is no Cinderella ending, which make their energy, professionalism and persistence that much more impressive.
Program II
Turtle Sisters
Thursday, October 22
Directed by Feminist Video Activism WOM
Total Running Time: 45 min
World Premiere
Young-hee, Young-ran, and Soon-cheon call themselves ‘the turtle sisters.’ All of them are first-degree handicapped women, yet they have devoted their lives to improve the rights of handicapped women challenging the discrimination they receive from society. Furthermore, they agreed to expose their private lives to change the misleading conceptions towards handicapped women. The film deals with the everyday lives of the three women who have been living together for five years. Their lives are not so different from other people. The film carefully attempts to challenge the prejudice against impediments and handicapped people and shows how handicapped women strive to lead independent lives.
Sisters on the Road
Thursday, October 29
Directed by BOO Ji-young
Total Running Time: 96 min
New York Premiere
The sudden death of her mother brings Myeong-eun back home to Jeju island. She meets her sister Myeong-ju and her daughter Seung-a, they are still living at their old home, and Hyeon-a who has lived with them for over 20 years like a relative. With the absence of her father, and her complex about being an illegitimate child, Myeong-eun tells Hyeon-a she will start looking for her father after the funeral. Myeong-ju accompanies her sister because of Hyeon-a’s persuasion and her sense of duty as an older sibling.
The Grace Lee Project
Screening with Director Q & A
Thursday, November 12
Directed by Grace Lee
Total Running Time: 68 min
When Korean American filmmaker Grace Lee was growing up in Missouri, she was the only Grace Lee she knew. Once she left the Midwest however, everyone she met seemed to know “another Grace Lee.” But why did they assume that every Grace Lee was reserved, dutiful, piano-playing overachievers? The filmmaker plunges into a funny, highly unscientific investigation into all those named Grace Lee who break the mold -- from a fiery social activist to a rebel who tried to burn down her high school. With wit and charm, The Grace Lee Project puts a hilarious spin on the eternal question, “What’s in a name?”