Queens Gazette

Flushing Town Hall Announces Winning Lineup of Animated Shorts that Streamed Before Live Comedy Event Celebrating APA Heritage Month



Flushing Town Hall closed its celebration of Asian Pacific American Heritage Month on Saturday May 30 with its presentation of Crazy Talented Asians & Friends, an evening of live comedy and animated shorts that streamed to the organization’s Facebook page.

The event began at 6:00 PM with an hour of animated short films and a live panel discussion. The selected shorts represent the top four percent of the hundreds of submissions received from around the world. Many of the participating artists are graduates of New York-based, college animation programs like Pratt Institute and the School of Visual Arts (SVA) or hail from other renowned programs at CalArts, Savana Arts Institute, and the University of Southern California. The artists’ films were chosen for their superb art direction, storytelling, animation, production, and sound design.

Ms. Hsiang Chin Moe, SVA’s BFA Animation Chair, served as the Lead Advisor for this event and was joined on the selection jury by seasoned professionals Dominick Bedasse, Eric Kvatek, Melody Shih, and Wendy Cong Zhao.

“It is my extreme honor to celebrate APA Heritage Month with an amazing selection of animated films. Special thanks to all the filmmakers for sharing their stories with our audience and inviting us on a journey of imagination. Their talent is a true representation of how unique and creative Asian-American filmmakers are, and the celebration is expanded to all the Asian creators in the world,” said Hsiang Chin Moe.

In addition to their creative visuals and soundtracks, these films present a wide range of stories and experiences, as diverse as the APA community itself. These include, among others:

Melt Down, a surreal and humorous story about a child who does not want to go outside in a world where people melt from stress, by Amy Jingyi Xu;

Boxed, about the birth of ideas and the secret of inventions, by Rasita Kartarahardja;

Latteship, the story of two otters working in a cramped coffee truck, by Daishi Takishima and Flora Tsai; and

Lionverse, about a generational spirit that is being forgotten, by Hayden Mok.

“Flushing Town Hall is very proud to be sharing with the world these creative stories from young, talented animators,” said Ya Yun Teng, Flushing Town Hall’s Director of Chinese Initiatives. Our mission of supporting the global arts community is more critical than ever in this unprecedented global pandemic. I want to thank our dedicated staff and all the artists and esteemed jury for making this event possible during these very challenging times.”

An hour of live, stand-up and sketch comedy followed at 8:30 PM with some of New York City’s premier Asian-American talent. Hosted by Otter Lee, the comedy presentation featured hilarious New York City-based comedians and ensembles, including Michael Cruz Kayne, Dylan Adler, Nadia Iqbal, Srilatha Rajamani, Angel Yau and Overstep Comedy comedians Aarushi Agni, Jatin Chhugani, Jonathan Lu, Christian Luu, Andy Shartzer, Helen Shih, Migina Tsai, and Rachel Yong.

Otter Lee is an actor, playwright, comedian, and voiceover artist born and raised in New York City. He produced and co-organized New York City’s First Asian Comedy Festival at the PIT in January 2020. His sketch, standup, and improv have appeared at such venues as the Upright Citizens Brigade, Face-Off Unlimited, Caveat, Union Hall, The Magnet, The Asian American Writer’s Workshop, and Buzzfeed. He co-founded Overstep Comedy which has performed sketch to sold-out venues in Manhattan. Their live performances cover a broad array of relatable Asian American experiences.

In partnership with the non-profit Charles B. Wang Community Health Center, which has provided comprehensive primary medical care since 1971 with over 300,000 annual service visits, Overstep Comedy performed a sketch on mental health to help de-stigmatize this important topic in Asian American communities, an even more pressing issue amidst the COVID-19 pandemic.

Michael Cruz Kayne performs, writes, directs, and produces at the Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre (UCB) and recently made a televised appearance on Late Night with Seth Meyers. Michael has also appeared in What I Did For Love, Baby Wants Candy, Improv Everywhere, Funny Or Die, and College Humor. He has written for Nickelodeon, Netflix, the Inner Circle event for Mayor de Blasio, Ben Stiller, Anthony Atamaniuk, Denis O’Hare, and others.

Dylan Adler is a comedian, actor, and musician based in New York City. He has performed musical comedy at the New York Comedy Festival and hosts musical comedy show “Baby Grand” at The Stand. He performs sketch on Maude Night at UCB on his team “Young Douglas” and co-hosts variety show Woke AF at UCB Subculture. He co-hosts Just Come every Tuesday at the Graham and performs musical improv on People’s Improv Theatre house team “Punch Funk” every Monday. He also cohosts queer mic “Snowflake Mic” at Club Cumming.

“This show highlights a bunch of super funny and super talented Asian-American comedians while celebrating Asian Pacific American Heritage Month and highlighting the importance of mental health. A two-for-one! Come see for yourself just how many talented and diverse voices are out there,” invites Andy Shartzer, a member of the Overstep Comedy Group.

“Flushing Town Hall has been a strong advocate of arts equity since 1979. We support local, immigrant, national, and international artists, developing partnerships and collaborations that enhance our efforts in supporting the global arts community,” says Ellen Kodadek, Flushing Town Hall’s Executive & Artistic Director. “It is even more critical in this unprecedented global pandemic for the community to come together. I want to thank our dedicated staff for making this event possible through live streaming.”

 

Animation Shorts screened on May 30 

“Balance,” Raymond Limantara

“Boxed,” Rasita Kartarahardja

“Do-ji-le,” Tzu-Hsin (Cindy) Yang

“Fish Fish Bish,” Christine Yan and Katherine Li

“Go! Go!,” Patradol “Dodo” Kitcharoen

“Godspeed,” Sunny Wai Yan Chan

“Latteship,” Daishi Takishima and Flora Tsai

“Lionverse,” Hayden Mok

“Melt Down,” Amy Jingyi Xu

“Moist” Chao Ming Lee

“Push,” Trilina Mai

“Sweet Dreams,” Chloe Tu and Tina Yuan Ting Chao

Comedians:

Otter Lee, Michael Cruz Kayne, Dylan Adler, Nadia Iqbal, Srilatha Rajamani, Angel Yau and Overstep Comedy comedians Aarushi Agni, Jatin Chhugani, Jonathan Lu, Christian Luu, Andy Shartzer, Helen Shih,Migina Tsai, and Rachel Yong.

Additional Selected Animation Shorts to be screened at a later date:

“Another You,” Yira Qiao

“Candy,” Yin Xun

“Devil Fish,” Xintong Wang

“Filla’ Void,” Xinhui Ma

“Mt. Sundae,” Katharine Kow

“Murk,” Xuchen Wang

“Olive,” Doudou Liu

“Piece Forever,” Yi-Ting Chen

“Psyche,” Akimi Miyamoto

“Puppy Love,” I-Wen Chen

“Stand by You,” Hsiao Chien Hsu

“The Crane Lover,” Jinrou Zhang

“The Last Day of Summer,” Hsin Hsuan Yeh

“The Other Side,” Ching Chen

While all of Flushing Town Hall’s virtual programs are presented to audiences free of charge during the COVID-19 pandemic, viewers are invited to make a tax-deductible donation to the nonprofit, cultural institution’s Step Up for Flushing Town Hall campaign, which will help supplant the loss of earned revenue from ticket sales.

Flushing Town Hall greatly appreciates the supporters of our current campaign, Step Up for Flushing Town Hall, in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Special thanks to our Step Up Campaign donors with gifts of $100 and above: Henry Assael, Larue Brathwaite, Claire Bullard, Jenna Capeci, Raymond Jasen, Bob Kodadek, Anne Lewent, Martha Ma, TeHsing Niu, Jessica Peña, Richard Quatrano, Dominique Sellers, Thomas Simmons, Mike Sperendi & Jan Schneider, Daryl Ware, Lucy Wong

Crazy Talented Asians & Friends: An Evening of Live Comedy and Animation Shorts is sponsored by a generous anonymous donor. Flushing Town Hall thanks Charles B. Wang Community Health Center at Flushing New York for their support.

Flushing Council on Culture and the Arts dba Flushing Town Hall is a not for profit organization which receives major support from the National Endowment for the Arts; New York State Council on the Arts with the support of Governor Andrew Cuomo and the New York State Legislature; New York State Assembly Member Ron Kim; New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, Mayor Bill de Blasio; Queens Borough President Melinda Katz; Council Members Adrienne Adams, Costa Constantinides, Daniel Dromm, Barry Grodenchik, Peter Koo, Karen Koslowitz, Francisco Moya, and Paul A. Vallone; and the Howard Gilman Foundation, the Fan Fox and Leslie R. Samuels Foundation, and the Booth Ferris Foundation.

Support for our programs is also provided by Acrobuffos/Seth Bloom & Christina Gelsone, Angela An, Robin Bell-Stevens, Viviana M. Benitez, Dongjiang Bi, Cathay Bank, Douglass Chan, Amy Mak Chan, Calvin W. Chan, Sharon Chen, Ginger Chinn, Dr. Hsing-Lih Chou/New York Institute of Culture and the Arts, Con Edison, Crossings TV, Exploring the Metropolis, Kuang-Yu Fong/Chinese Theatre Works, Barbara Garii, Matthew Goldner, Howard Graf & Kathy Donovan, Guru Krupa Foundation, Lily Han, Heather Harrison, Belinda Pilin Hsu, Alice & Steve Huang, Hung Pin Hung, Investors Foundation, Raymond D. Jasen, the Jim Henson Foundation, Ellen Kodadek, the Laura B. Vogler Foundation, Nelson Lee/Flushing Bank, Janet T. Leow, Anne Lewent, James S. Liao, Emily Lin/Lin & Loveall Foundation, Louis Armstrong Educational Foundation, Frank Macchio, Materials for the Arts, William McClure/Queens College, Mets Foundation, Mid Atlantic Arts Foundation, Jassy Z. Min, New York Chinese Chorus,  TeHsing Niu, Northwell Health, Carlos Ortiz, Queens Art Education Center/Arthur Liu, Richard Quantaro, Queens Courier, Resorts World, Camillo Reyes, RuDance/Asian American Dance Sport Corp., Dominique Sellers, Helen Shieh, Richard Siu, Curtis Smith, Mike Sperendi & Jan Schneider, Taipei Cultural Center in New York, Michael Tang, Veronica Tsang, Tai & Tony Wang/Glow Foundation, Jay Wegman, Constance Wingate, Lucy Wong, Anna Wu, Minwen Yang, Hank Yeh, Sandy Yeh, Shane Yeh, and Angela Qi Zhang.

Special thanks to Calvin W. Chan, Raymond D. Jasen, Ellen Kodadek, Anne Lewent, William McClure, and TeHsing Niu for underwriting a portion of FTH at Home: Global Arts for Global Kids.

Although we cannot list every donor, Flushing Town Hall is grateful for all gifts received and wishes to thank everyone for their ongoing generosity.

About Flushing Town Hall

Flushing Town Hall (FTH), a Smithsonian affiliate, presents multi-disciplinary global arts that engage and educate the global communities of Queens and New York City, in order to foster mutual appreciation.  As advocates of arts equity since 1979, we support local, immigrant, national, and international artists, developing partnerships and collaborations that enhance our efforts.  As a member of New York City’s Cultural Institutions Group (CIG), we serve to restore, manage and program the historic 1862 landmark on behalf of the City of New York. FTH celebrates the history of Queens as the home of Jazz, by presenting the finest in Jazz performance.  We are committed to arts education and hands-on learning, for the arts-curious, arts enthusiasts, and professional artists.  We serve one of the most diverse communities in the world and strive to uphold the legacy of inclusiveness that has defined our community since the Flushing Remonstrance of 1657.

Flushing Town Hall’s facilities are temporarily closed to the public in accordance with COVID-19 safety regulations. The latest information on Flushing Town Hall  pertaining to COVID-19 can be found here.

For more information, please the website at www.flushingtownhall.org, or call (718) 463-7700 x222

Flushing Town Hall is located in the heart of Queens, New York at 137-35 Northern Blvd. Flushing, NY 11354

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