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6:30 PM
EuroAsia Shorts – Short Films from Germany & China
Film and Discussion|What Is Home?
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Confucius Institute US Center, Washington, DC
- Price No charge
Two films each from Germany and China mark the beginning of the 11th EuroAsia Shorts film showcase. Using the theme What is Home?, the films address the individual’s perception of belonging somewhere. During a time in which more and more people are moving, fleeing or migrating instead of staying in one place their whole lives, individual conceptions of “being home” are often uniquely defined. Brief discussions following each evening’s screenings will compare and contrast the films and the topics with several panelists.
Iron (Eisen)
Germany, 2015, 19 min.
Director: Benjamin Kahlmeyer
Misty landscape with new buildings in Eisenhüttenstadt on the German-Polish border: Iron (Eisen) is the name that this place is called. Portraits of asylum seekers from around the world in their dreary everyday life are presented in a very structured way. They tell of the hope of a better life here in Germany.
Fellow Passenger (Mitfahrer)
Germany, 2015, 8 min.
Directors: Andreas Kessler, Daniela Schramm Moura, Stephan Kämpf
Tom and Janine are ready to smuggle a refugee across the border. But what if they will be liable for prosecution? An absurd argument flares up between them. It’s only the young man from Gambia who doesn't understand anything.
Farewell My Friend
China, 2015, 15 min.
Director: Fan Weiqiang
The little boy Niu Dan and his friend Da Shan are children of two mine worker families. Niu Dan’s father died in a mine accident. His mother blames Da Shan’s father for the tragedy, and decides to take Niu Dan back to her hometown. But the entanglement between their parents doesn’t put an end to the two kids’ friendship. Niu Dan feels the mine is his home, and struggles with the departure. Dan Shan prepared a farewell party, and hopes they will be reunited in the future.
Father
China, 2014, 23 min.
Director: Na Riya
Temule, a wrestler, met Lina, a seven-year-old girl, the day before his final competition. Always away from his home in Mongolia, he is moved by the love between Lina and her dad Oqir. When he competes against Oqir in the competition, Temule deliberately lets him win. Though he gave up the award, Ogir gave him” Zodog,” a traditional Mongolian wrestling vest, which represents a wrestler’s spirit.
Panelists
Gizem Arslan is Visiting Assistant Professor of German at the Catholic University of America. Among her teaching and research interests are literatures and cultures of migration, translation studies, theories of language, and literary multilingualism. She is working on a book project on translation, typography and calligraphy in German after the Second World War. She has article projects (published and in progress) on translation in works by the Turkish-German author Emine Sevgi Ozdamar and the Japanese-German author Yoko Tawada.
Yi Chen is an award winning filmmaker and adjunct professor at George Mason University’s Film and Video Studies program. Her documentary film Chinatown has aired on PBS station WHUT-TV and screened at film festivals in the U.S., Canada and China. DC Office of Motion Picture and Television Development named her Filmmaker of the Month in April 2013. She received the Artist Fellowship from DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities in 2014. Chen has spoken at national and international conferences on race, immigration, urban development and gentrification issues. As a first-generation immigrant, she is also a passionate advocate for AAPI communities.
No charge; reservations requested. Seating is limited. More information at the website in the right-hand column.
EuroAsia Shorts is to enhance mutual understanding and familiarity among different cultures. Following each evening’s screening, a discussion with several panelists looks at how the topic has been addressed in the films.
EuroAsia Shorts Partners: Alliance Française, Asian American Pacific Film Festival, the Confucius Institute US Center, Goethe-Institut Washington, Istituto Italiano di Cultura, Japan Information and Culture Center, the Korean Embassy’s KORUS House, the Embassy of the Philippines, Reel Plan and the Embassy of Spain.
Iron (Eisen)
Germany, 2015, 19 min.
Director: Benjamin Kahlmeyer
Misty landscape with new buildings in Eisenhüttenstadt on the German-Polish border: Iron (Eisen) is the name that this place is called. Portraits of asylum seekers from around the world in their dreary everyday life are presented in a very structured way. They tell of the hope of a better life here in Germany.
Fellow Passenger (Mitfahrer)
Germany, 2015, 8 min.
Directors: Andreas Kessler, Daniela Schramm Moura, Stephan Kämpf
Tom and Janine are ready to smuggle a refugee across the border. But what if they will be liable for prosecution? An absurd argument flares up between them. It’s only the young man from Gambia who doesn't understand anything.
Farewell My Friend
China, 2015, 15 min.
Director: Fan Weiqiang
The little boy Niu Dan and his friend Da Shan are children of two mine worker families. Niu Dan’s father died in a mine accident. His mother blames Da Shan’s father for the tragedy, and decides to take Niu Dan back to her hometown. But the entanglement between their parents doesn’t put an end to the two kids’ friendship. Niu Dan feels the mine is his home, and struggles with the departure. Dan Shan prepared a farewell party, and hopes they will be reunited in the future.
Father
China, 2014, 23 min.
Director: Na Riya
Temule, a wrestler, met Lina, a seven-year-old girl, the day before his final competition. Always away from his home in Mongolia, he is moved by the love between Lina and her dad Oqir. When he competes against Oqir in the competition, Temule deliberately lets him win. Though he gave up the award, Ogir gave him” Zodog,” a traditional Mongolian wrestling vest, which represents a wrestler’s spirit.
Panelists
Gizem Arslan is Visiting Assistant Professor of German at the Catholic University of America. Among her teaching and research interests are literatures and cultures of migration, translation studies, theories of language, and literary multilingualism. She is working on a book project on translation, typography and calligraphy in German after the Second World War. She has article projects (published and in progress) on translation in works by the Turkish-German author Emine Sevgi Ozdamar and the Japanese-German author Yoko Tawada.
Yi Chen is an award winning filmmaker and adjunct professor at George Mason University’s Film and Video Studies program. Her documentary film Chinatown has aired on PBS station WHUT-TV and screened at film festivals in the U.S., Canada and China. DC Office of Motion Picture and Television Development named her Filmmaker of the Month in April 2013. She received the Artist Fellowship from DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities in 2014. Chen has spoken at national and international conferences on race, immigration, urban development and gentrification issues. As a first-generation immigrant, she is also a passionate advocate for AAPI communities.
No charge; reservations requested. Seating is limited. More information at the website in the right-hand column.
EuroAsia Shorts is to enhance mutual understanding and familiarity among different cultures. Following each evening’s screening, a discussion with several panelists looks at how the topic has been addressed in the films.
EuroAsia Shorts Partners: Alliance Française, Asian American Pacific Film Festival, the Confucius Institute US Center, Goethe-Institut Washington, Istituto Italiano di Cultura, Japan Information and Culture Center, the Korean Embassy’s KORUS House, the Embassy of the Philippines, Reel Plan and the Embassy of Spain.
Location
Confucius Institute US Center
1776 Massachusetts Avenue NW
Washington, DC
USA
1776 Massachusetts Avenue NW
Washington, DC
USA