Third Annual Asian World Film Festival Set for Oct 25 - Nov 2, 2017 in Culver City

News provided by

May 04, 2017, 07:51 ET

LOS ANGELES, May 4, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- The third Annual Asian World Film Festival (AWFF) will once again be held in Culver City, with opening night scheduled for Wednesday, October 25, 2017 and closing night Thursday, November 2, it was announced today by the festival's Executive Director, Georges N. Chamchoum. This year's theme is "Building A Diverse Community Through Arts and Culture."

Third Annual Asian World Film Festival Set for Oct 25 - Nov 2, 2017 in Culver City

Considered the window to Asian world cinema, the festival champions films from 53 countries across Asia, spanning from the eastern shores of the Mediterranean to Japan, and from Russia to China & India. AWFF draws greater recognition to the region's wealth of filmmakers while strengthening ties between the Asian and Hollywood film industries.

All films selected by their countries as Oscar® or Golden Globes® contenders are automatically invited to participate. The Hollywood Foreign Press Association recognizes these showings as the required official screenings for their members who vote on the Golden Globes.

All films that participate in the Festival will have a unique chance to be guided through the challenging awards season, showcasing their foreign films to the Academy, the Hollywood Foreign Press Association and all Guilds for enhanced exposure, media attention and awards consideration. At last year's inaugural event some 30 films from 27 countries participated.

The film festival will include several special programs this year including the successful Korean Film Days. New to the AWFF will be the début of China Film Days and Turkic Film Days, as well as a spotlight on movies from little known countries including Yakutsk, Buryatia and Bashkortostan. In addition, AWFF will premiere a film from North Korea, the first time a movie from that country will be screened in the Western United States.

Chamchoum said, "It has been an amazing three years since the Asian World Film Festival began. We are growing incrementally, attracting major motion pictures from across the Asian continent and audiences from around the world. We are proud to honor filmmakers for their cinematic portrayals giving us unique windows into their worlds. We look forward to another successful milestone year!"

The festival will begin on Wednesday, October 25 with an Opening Night reception and dinner at The Culver Hotel. The festival's closing night will take place on Thursday, November 2 with a centerpiece screening and event on Saturday October 28.

Several special awards will be handed out during the festival, including the Cinematic Achievement Award, the Lifetime Achievement Award and a Rising Star Award, in addition to a selection of jury awards.

The films will be screened at the Arclight Cinema in Downtown Culver City. Sponsors include the Arclight Theatres and The Culver Hotel, as well as the city of Culver City, the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, Variety, Lighthouse Worldwide Solutions and Emporium Thai Restaurant.

The Festival's Advisory and Honorary Boards consist of industry leaders and cultural representatives from around the world, including Bobby Moresco, Oscar-winning writer, producer and director; Roy Conli, Oscar-winning producer; Gil Netter, Oscar-winning producer; David Seidler, Oscar-winning screenwriter; Heather Rae, Oscar-nominated producer/actress; Lauren Tom, Obie –winning actress; Andre Morgan, producer; Mario Kassar, producer; Teddy Zee, producer; Jean-Marc Vallee, award-winning director; Jeremy Kagan, Emmy®-winning director; Imran Khan, Indian actor; Amin Maalouf, author; David Henry Hwang, Tony®-winner and Pulitzer® Prize finalist; Kevin James, director and chief film liaison, Mayor's Office, City of Los Angeles; and Antonio Villaraigosa, former Mayor of Los Angeles.