Three Dots Short Film is underway

Gemma Jayde-Naidoo in Three Dots.

PAT has a short film brewing!

THREE DOTS, written and directed by Alyssa Medel and produced by Chye-Ling Huang with Proudly Asian Theatre is a short film and one of the Asia New Zealand Foundation’s IN TOUCH Arts Commissions for projects that reflect connections between NZ and Asia.

“Look again at that dot. That’s here. That’s home. That’s us. On it everyone you love, everyone you know, everyone you ever heard of, every human being who ever was, lived out their lives.” - Carl Sagan

Set on 9th August 2020, marking Singapore’s ‘National Day’ and 55th year of independence; a tropical storm brews in the Philippines, and New Zealand in stark contrast celebrates 100 days without a new Covid-19 case.

Featuring three women connected across three countries, this split-screen short delivers an emotional, energetic and ultimately hopeful portrait of our connectivity despite distance.

Stay tuned for more - release date in early May online!

Alyssa Medel directing Three Dots. Photo: Chye-Ling Huang

Playwriting initiative now open for applications!

PAT is proud to announce our new, Free initiative:

Playwriting Classes 

with Ahi Karunaharan

Proudly Asian Theatre and Agaram Productions are joining forces to provide two free writing courses for new and emerging Asian playwrights. 

We welcome NZ 2020’s Arts Laureate and Award Winning writer Ahi Karunaharan as our tutor for both courses.

Split into two strands, Grassroots and the Emerging, each course consists of 8 classes and will be held online for 3 hours once a week commencing week of May 17th  to week of June 14th this year. 

The Grassroots Writing Course is an introduction to playwriting which explores foundations and fundementals; how to write, where to start, what is a story. 

This course is open to people who are:

• Interested in working on an idea

• Interested in writing or story telling

• Curious about starting a writing career

• Segwaying from another creative strand 

The Intermediate Writing Course is a masterclass for playwrights who aims to improve their craft. Exploring topics like advanced narrative structure, developing a writer’s discipline, decolonising theatre practice as a playwright and the hustle. 

This course is open to people who: 

• Have an existing play or an idea they wish to develop

• Require support developing a current work

• Have been a part of our Fresh Off the Page programme as a writer

• Have previous writing experience

These courses are pathways to PAT’s Fresh Off the Page and Fresh Development programmes and will leave you with both skill sets and networks to further your career.  

APPLICATIONS ARE NOW OPEN!

Deadline:  April 23, 2021

To apply, go to the following link: https://forms.gle/pgrkppZcp21Ny3xm9

Fresh Crop acting course wrapped!

Photo: Ankita Singh

On Sunday, January 31st, Proudly Asian Theatre and Pan-Asian Screen Collective's Fresh Crop Acting Course wrapped!

12 new and emerging actors took on six intensive weekend acting workshops. We are immensely proud of their work, growth and dedication.

Congratulations to:

Headshots by Andi Crown.

David Correos, Keeha Oh, Anna Lee, Mustaq Missouri, Winstan Saw, Kelvin Ta, Jo Lo, Talia Pua, Aman Bajaj, Hae Yeon Angela Seol and Nelson Lee.

PAT’s inaugural acting course is hopefully one of many more!

Special thanks to TAPAC (The Auckland Performing Arts Centre) and to our final guests on the workshop: Jennifer Te Atamira Ward-Lealand, Kathryn Rawlings, Graham Dunster, Christiana Thomson and Colin Moy.

Photos: John Rata & Ankita Singh

Pork and Poll Taxes gains traction in funded development workshops

Pork and Poll Taxes, PAT and Hand Pulled Collective’s co-production in development helmed by creator/director Talia Pua, has kicked off with a series of workshops.

Pork and Poll taxes explores family sacrifice and displacement and the ties that hold Chinese immigrants together in 1800’s New Zealand. Focussing on movement and form, the first workshop at Kete Aronui looked at moments of heightened reality that can be explored with movement and chorus.

First time playwright Talia Pua reflected on the process so far; “These last few months being in script development has been such a crazy and amazing learning experience - something I never thought was possible when we started at the beginning of the year with Natalya (Hand Pulled Producer). I’m feeling amazed at what’s been accomplished, but also immensely grateful for everyone that’s come on board - PAT have been such great mentors for us and have really taken this project beyond anything we’ve imagined - and all of the support we’ve received from the community - which has been really surprising and heartwarming to know how much people support the project, from the participants in the workshops to creatives that have contributed all their mahi to this work.”

The next round of development is supported by Asian Ink, a play market development initiative. Looking to the next phase, Talia says:

“I’m excited to see how the project will grow, and to collaborate with a whole bunch of new creatives across design and cast - daunting but nonetheless exciting! Questions I have moving forward are around characters - how do I develop them to create a full picture, a multi-faceted picture of the experience of many Chinese immigrant families? What is the message I’m trying to say, and what do I want it to do to the audience - not just in terms of playwrighting, but asking the questions with my directors hat on as we move forward, looking at production in 2021.”

Thank you to the generous support of the Chinese Poll Tax Heritage Trust and Creative New Zealand for the first phase of writing and movement workshops.

Check out these gorgeous images by John Rata below!

Participants: Yin-Chi Lee, movement director, with movement artists Josh Tan, Deliliah Lin, Jess Hong, Deborah Fletcher and Joanne Chun.

Proudly Asian Theatre & Pan-Asian Screen Collective celebrates Mulan actors in Aotearoa

TWO ONLINE EVENTS MARK THE RELEASE OF
MULAN IN AOTEAROA

PASC and PAT celebrate the long-awaited release of the film Mulan in New Zealand, a live-action adaptation of the animated Disney movie, with two online events featuring members of the Mulan cast. 

Release Day Zoom Chat

On the release day, Friday 4 September at 6:00pm, PASC members, Yoson An who plays Mulan’s potential love-interest, Honghui, and Xana Tang, playing Mulan’s sister, Xiu, will take part in a special Release Day Zoom Chat. Hosted by kiwi actress Michelle Ang, this event will be streamed via Facebook Live as the actors talk about their journey to being cast as well as the experience and challenges of shooting a major motion picture for an international studio. During the Zoom chat, online audiences have the opportunity to have their questions answered by Yoson and Xana before the community at large views the film. 

Actor’s Panel: Reflections on Mulan and Asian Representation

The following week, on Saturday 12 September at 2:00pm, Yoson and Xana will be joined by fellow Mulan cast members for a panel discussion about their own experience being in and then viewing the Disney film, before covering the broader topics around the state of Asian representation on screen. This moderated discussion, streamed online, also anticipates covering topics such as career sustainability, the realities of working as an Asian actor in the current climate, and observations about the evolution of the industry and where the future might lead.

Event 1
What: Release Day Zoom Chat
When: Friday 4 September at 6:00pm

Event 2
What: Actor’s Panel: Reflections on Mulan and Asian Representation
When:  Saturday 12 September at 2:00pm,

Those interested in attending either event can register via the link below: 
https://forms.gle/xfeJfqdib1BCCErJ7

Helmed by kiwi director, Niki Caro, Mulan was shot in New Zealand and will be released on the streaming platform, Disney+. This follows the cancellation of cinema release dates around the world due to the COVID-19 crisis.  New Zealand is the first of a handful of countries in the world to stream the film. 

“While this wasn’t how we expected this film to find its way into the world, we’re thrilled to have the opportunity to share the moment and engage with our community at home,” says Xana. “It took a lot for us to see ourselves on the screen at this level,” added Yoson. “With effort and everyone’s support, it won’t be the last.” 

*notes from PASC and PAT on Mulan, the film:

“We deeply appreciate the reasons for which this particular project is complicated. Our keenness to learn and share these actors’ experiences, processes and perspectives in no way endorses the manner in which those with greater power and influence have conducted themselves. We unambiguously support the people who face oppression and struggles in China, including the Uighur peoples, and Hong Kong.

What brings us here together is the chance to honour the work of Asian actors with historied careers as they continue to forge pathways of opportunity for those of us who seek to represent ourselves on screen. By having this dialogue, we hope to gain insights and inspiration that will ultimately fuel our own creative projects based wholly on our own ideals.” -- PASC and PAT