$10-$15
Join Still Here San Francisco for an intimate night with filmmaker James Q. Chan.
This special event will present the documentary work of James Q. Chan in conversation with Still Here S.F.’s co-founder, Natalia M. Vigil.
Hear firsthand from James what it’s like to be a filmmaker raised in San Francisco and his commitment to amplifying stories from his community.
About the night:
Opening reception
Screening of Forever, Chinatown
Q&A
Screening of excerpts from Sex Tape, Chinatown Rising, and more
Q&A
About the films:
Forever, Chinatown
This film takes the journey of one individual and maps it to a rapidly changing urban neighborhood from 1940s to present day. A meditation on memory, community, and preserving one’s own legacy, Frank‘s three-dimensional miniature dioramas become rare portals into a historic neighborhood and a window to the artist’s filtered and romanticized memories and emotional struggles. In his bargain with immortality, Frank announces plans to cremate his exquisite works with him upon his death in order to ‘live inside them forever’ in his afterlife. (Emmy® Award Nominee)
Additional screenings of James’s past and present works including a 15 min. preview from the forthcoming feature length documentary:
Chinatown Rising
This documentary film about the Asian-American movement from the perspective of the young residents on the front lines of their historic neighborhood in transition. Through publicly challenging the conservative views of their elders, their demonstrations and protests of the 1960s-1980s rattled the once quiet streets during the community’s shift in power. Forty-five years later, in intimate interviews these activists recall their roles and experiences in response to the need for social change.
Sex Tapes: Portraits of Our City 1986-1996
This experimental short documentary (co-directed w/ Tina Bartolome) weaves together the candid re-telling of intimate queer experiences in San Francisco from 1986 to 1996 with current images of the places these encounters occurred. The filmmaker’s set up a confidential voicemail to capture the poignant stories of queer people growing up in San Francisco and use them to create a powerful portrait of San Francisco.
About James Q. Chan:
James Q. Chan is an Emmy-nominated director and producer based in San Francisco. His film training/mentorship began alongside two-time Academy-Award winning filmmakers Rob Epstein and Jeffrey Friedman (THE TIMES OF HARVEY MILK, COMMON THREADS, THE CELLULOID CLOSET). Producing credits with Epstein & Friedman include History Channel’s 10 DAYS THAT UNEXPECTEDLY CHANGED AMERICA (Emmy® Award; Outstanding Non-Fiction Series), HOWL (Sundance Opening Night; National Board of Review Freedom of Expression Award). James’s producing credits include films about a self taught programming child prodigy :PUCK AND THE RIDDLE OF CODES (IDFA; Dutch Television VPRO); father & son reconciliation ISTINMA (Best Short, American Indian Film Festival; Smithsonian Native Showcase); U.S. immigration law impacts on bi-national same-sex couples ENTRY DENIED (Jury Award, Best Short, Provincetown); love and equality RIGHT DOWN THE LINE music video for Bonnie Raitt’s Grammy-winning album “Slipstream”. Prior to filmmaking, James worked as a SAG/AFTRA Talent Agent in San Francisco.
James received an Emmy® Award Nomination for his short documentary FOREVER, CHINATOWN a meditation on memory and community seen through the lens of an aging artist’s miniature dioramas of his childhood Chinatown. The film received multiple festival audience and jury awards including Best Cinematography (Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival), a national public television broadcast on PBS/World Channel and was selected for the American Film Showcase, the premier film diplomacy program between US State Department and USC School of Cinematic Arts where James served as an envoy to Turkmenistan in 2018. James is the founder of Good Medicine Picture Company and is a recipient of a Certificate of Honor from the San Francisco Board of Supervisors for his work in amplifying stories from the APA community, immigrant voices, and tenant struggles. His refugee and working class background, love for nature shows, memories of his mother’s cooking shape his sensibilities throughout all of his stories. He is a member of the Directors Guild of America.
About Still Here San Francisco:
Still Here San Francisco is a performance and cultural preservation project amplifying the voices and experiences of LGBTQIA2S+ people raised in San Francisco.
