The 3rd annual Asian World Film Festival (AWFF) came to a close on Thursday, November 2, culminating the screening of 37 films from 25 participating countries including 22 Oscar® Foreign Language contenders and a number of Golden Globe submissions. George Takei’s Allegiance: The Broadway Musical on the Big Screen concluded the festival and was preceded by an awards ceremony hosted by actors Christopher Kriesa (Fresh Off the Boat, Cast Away), Alexandra Kahwagi and Korean actress Banyah Maria Choi presenting the awards to a sold-out audience. The AWFF took place from October 25 – November 2 at the ArcLight Culver City Theater.
George Takei was honored with the Snow Leopard Lifetime Achievement Award for his activism work within the LBGTQ community. Vietnamese actress, singer and philanthropist Ha Phuong presented the award.
Dr. Kim’s ‘He Can Do She Can Do’ Award, presented by Lighthouse Worldwide Solutions was awarded to A Taxi Driver (Dir: Jang Hoon, Republic of Korea). The $10,000 award was presented by Peter MaGuire, an executive at Lighthouse Solutions, and the film was chosen by a jury designated by the company.
The Snow Leopard Rising Star Award was presented to Sreymoch Sareum for her role in First They Killed My Father. The film’s director, producer and co-screenwriter Angelina Jolie and co-screenwriter and executive producer, Loung Ong, accepted the award on Sreymoch’s behalf at a special screening of the film earlier in the week (October 30). During the closing night ceremony, the award was re-presented by Jury president Lisa Lu to Olary Yim, Cambodian community leader. The award will be taken back to Cambodia and given to Sreymoch.
The Spirit Award for Dedication and Passion was given to Vietnamese actress Ha Phuong and presented by the Festival’s chairman and founder, Sadyk Sher-Niyaz.
The Murray Weissman Poster Art Award was given to Little Gandhi (Dir: Sam Kadi, Syria; designer: Brian A. Metcalf) and presented by Korean actress, Banyah Maria Choi. Little Gandhi is Syria’s 2017 Foreign Language Film Oscar contender.
From a total of 16 films in competition, The AWFF Jury Awards, presented by members of the Jury, were:
- Snow Leopard Best Picture: A Taxi Driver (Dir: Jang Joon, Republic of Korea) presented by Sergei Bodrov and accepted by Park Un-Kyoung.
- Snow Leopard Best Actor: Actor and director, Aktan Arym Kubat in Centaur, (Kyrgyzstan) presented by Nancy Wang Yuen.
- Snow Leopard Best Actress: Anoma Janadari in Burning Birds (Dir: Sanjeewa Pushpaumara, Sri Lanka) presented by Cade Carradine. A Special Mention was given to Kang-ho Song in A Taxi Driver by Banyah Maria Choi.
- Snow Leopard Special Jury Award: Mad World (Dir: Wong Chun, Hong Kong) presented by Tuba Büyüküstün.
- Snow Leopard Audience Award was given to Ayla: The Daughter of War (Dir: Can Ulkay, Turkey). The Award was presented by Nathan Wang and accepted by the film’s actor Cade Carradine.
- Snow Leopard Best New Director Award was awarded to two winners: Scary Mother Dir: Ana Urushadze (Georgia) presented by Thomas Lin and How Victor “The Garlic” Took Alexey “The Stud” To The Nursing Home Dir: Alexander Hant (Russia) presented by Igor Kokarev.
Guests in attendance from the closing night film included Allegiance star George Takei, who was joined by director Lorenzo Thione and co-stars Janelle Dote and Greg Watanabe.
Jury members in attendance included Lisa Lu (The Joy Luck Club); Oscar®-nominated director Sergei Bodrov; actress and international Emmy® nominee Tuba Büyüküstün; actor and director Thomas Lim (China/Singapore); singer and philanthropist Ha Phuong; US music composer, Nathan Wang; Caylee So Filmmaker and Director of Cambodia Town Film Festival; Cade Carradine US actor; and Nancy Wang Yeun, Ph.D. (US) documentary producer and author of “Reel Inequality: Hollywood Actors and Racism.”
Celebrity guests included Don “The Dragon” Wilson, Janet Yang (The Joy Luck Club Producer), Peter Kwong (Big Trouble In Little China), Bai Ling, Kieu Chinh (The Joy Luck Club) and producer Andre Morgan.
Twenty-five filmmakers from all over the world attended the festival including Sam Kadi (Syria), Phillippe Aractingi (Lebanon), Pierre Saraff, (Lebanon), Sanjeewa Pushpakumara (Sri Lanka), Deepak Rauniyar (Nepal), Bayram Najafov (Azerbaijan), Aktan Arym Kubat, Murat Aliyev (Kyrgystan) Najia Khaan (Afghanistan), Ha Phoung (Vietnam), Jarantai Altantsetseg, Ganjuur Tsogtgerel, Tsengel Davaasambuu (Mongolia), Xiao Dong Xie (China), Rekesh Salim Ismail (Iraq), Farhan Alam (Pakistan), Kurmashev Ernar (Kazakhstan) Gaukhar Gia Noortas (Kazakhstan) and Karinne Behr (France).
The festival also held five panels featuring industry leaders discussing such topics as producing, the filmmaking process, sales and distribution, social media and cross- cultural collaboration.
Mike Pierantozzi joins Movers+Shakers as exec creative director
Creative agency Movers+Shakers has appointed Mike Pierantozzi as executive creative director. In this new role, he will help guide the creative direction of Movers+Shakers’ socially-native campaigns. Pierantozzi will report to co-founder and chief creative officer Geoffrey Goldberg.
With nearly two decades of experience as a copywriter, creative director, and multi-platform storyteller, Pierantozzi brings a wealth of knowledge from his work with major brands including Kraft, Unilever, IBM, and Walmart. He has led the creation of award-winning campaigns for agencies like Red Tettemer, Ogilvy, The Brooklyn Brothers, TAXI, Saatchi & Saatchi, and most recently, Vayner, where he spearheaded culturally iconic work for Planters including “Death of Mr. Peanut.” He led the National Down Syndrome Society and Luvs account, whose “First Kid. Second Kid” campaign was awarded by the Effies, ADC, Clios and LIAs.
Outside of the office, Pierantozzi practices what he teaches brands. He’s gone viral multiple times on his own TikTok account, featuring comedic interactions with his son and a trombone. He’s accumulated 15K followers on TikTok.
“Mike brings a rare and awesome combination of deep social and platform experience, a keen eye for excellent storytelling, and a humble and kind approach to leadership,” said Goldberg. “Mike’s got a knack for turning brand stories into cultural movements, making him the perfect fit for Movers+Shakers. He’s got the kind of bold vision and attention to culture that fits perfectly with our mission to push creative boundaries and drive industry firsts. Plus, as a creator himself he has the innate ability to make people stop, laugh, and share--which is exactly what we’re about.”
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