Independent Filmmaker Christos Sourligas to mentor Smartphone Film Challenge

(Montreal, February 19, 2012) The AmrAsia Film Festival, presented by CinAsie, is launching the Smartphone Film Challenge this year, with mentorship by independent Canadian filmmaker Christos Sourligas. Amateur and professional filmmakers will be given 72 hours to produce and shoot the four-minute film, and the final cuts will be screened during the festival on March 9, 6:30 pm to midnight, at the Socit des arts technologiques (SAT). The winning filmmaker will receive a cash prize of $1,000, as well as nationwide exposure through AmrAsias media partner Vidographe. To kick off the inaugural competition, AmrAsia has invited filmmaker Christos Sourligas to offer mentorship to participants. Last year Sourligas, whose credits include the award-winning Elephant Shoes, shot controversial feature film Happy Slapping entirely on a smartphone, a breakthrough for the medium (funding was provided by Telefilm Canada). Participants can visit www.amerasiafestival.com to download the application form. The theme will be announced by Sourligas at the opening gala on March 1 at CinRobothque (NFB). As well as the finalists films, the evening will feature a screening of Arirang by renowned Korean auteur Kim Ki-duk. Kim produced the autobiographical film, a tale of personal crisis, alone using only digital technology. It won the Un Certain Regard category at the Cannes Film Festival in 2011. Quebec video artist Patrick Bergeron, renowned for his special effects artistry in The Lord of the Rings and The Matrix, will present a video installation for Loop Loop, a collage of photos he shot portraying life in Vietnam. The gala evening will end with the 4th National Video Portrait Competition, in partnership with Vidographe. The winner will receive a worldwide distribution deal and over $1,500 vouchers in production and post-production equipment hire. Participants are invited to explore the unique relationship between Canada and Asia by creating video portraits this years theme is family. Festival Director, and Cin-Asie founder, Mi Jeong Lee says, Chris Sourligas is the first person to make an award-winning feature-length film on a smartphone in

Canada, so he will be a great guide for all our participants. Alongside the work of Kim Ki-duk and homegrown talent Patrick Bergeron, AmrAsias mission is to give a voice to the best of Asian-Canadian art house films. Boris Chassagne, Director-Coordinator at Radio Canada International, said: Radio Canada International is proud to be involved in AmerAsia's first Smartphone Film Challenge by offering an international broadcasting platform to filmmakers. Now more than ever, Canadians of all backgrounds have access to digital production, and this Smartphone Film Challenge will demonstrate what technology and individual creativity can produce. The third edition of the AmrAsia Film Festival takes place March 1-4 and 9-11 over two weekends at the SAT, CinRobothque (NFB), the Cinma du Parc, Cinmathque qubcoise and Hotel Zero 1.

Note to Editors The AmrAsia Film Festival is organized by Cin-Asie, a non-profit organization based in Montreal which has worked for more than 16 years in the promotion and proliferation of Asian and Asian-Canadian cinema. The festival celebrates the diversity of Asian culture, and includes some of the most exciting productions that have come out of Asia and Canada. Cin-Asie is led by founder Mi Jeong Lee, who served for over 13 years as one of the Asian Programming Directors for the Fantasia International Film Festival. Please email cineasie@gmail.com for further information, interviews and press images, or visit www.amerasiafestival.com Socit des arts technologiques (SAT) 1201 St-Laurent Blvd. Montreal, QC, H2X 2S6 Source : IXION Communications 190A de lpe Outremont (Quebec) H2V 3T2 Telephone : (514) 495-8176 Fax : (514) 495-1009