Nanking-the movie---go check it out!!!!

I recently blogged about the upcoming soon to be in limited release the movie based on Iris Chang's "Rape of Nanking" movie called "Nanking".

This film will be in limited release starting next month in December. It premieres in the Boston area at the Landmark Kendall Theaters on January 25, 2008!

Here are some web links for more information:

http://www.nankingthefilm.com/press.aspx (this link will have many articles written up about the film)

http://www.nankingthefilm.com/ (the film's website) ****You can sign up to get updates when it comes to your a theater near you or when the DVD is out.

http://ted.aol.com/category.php?catID=359 Ted Leonsis the producer of the film found moi's blog entry and linked to it about the Boston Premiere event (last Friday) where Iris Chang's parents both attended on the third anniversary of her death.

Thanks Ted for producing this film!

Go out and tell your friends, family and support this film!

(*Please note that there are might be some material that will be unsuitable for young children.)

NANKING-the movie 11.9.2007

Friday, November 9, 2007

Spent a day at work and caught up with some data entry and learned how to update and install the new ACT for Financial Planners, convert all our data whilst at work.

Went to the post office and got my Zhang Hui Mei concert ticket (yeah!). I must admit it was misleading when I got it on line I had the pick it up at the offices option. So I chose it to save $5 shipping charge. But within three days, they mailed it and had to charge me the $5. I was a bit upset. I cannot easily go to Chinatown due to my schedule but I was planning to pick it up. They could NOT wait a week? Very frustrating! I am looking forward to the concert on Thanksgiving at Mohegan Sun. Granted I am clueless to her work for the last few words but she has a great voice and I believe that she is very talented.

My sis and I grabbed some food at Boca Grande. I had not gone there in a long time. The prices went up but it was not bad for a chorizo burrito grande with rice, beans, avocado, and hot sauce.
We went the special event premiere NANKING the movie at the John Hancock at the Back Bay Event Center in the old John Hancock Center building. For our $15 tickets we were in the front area but on the side of the center tickets. There was a special performance by the North American Chorus Association with Yang Yang on the piano and Wan Jun Qiao conducted with soloist Fennie Chen singing “God Bless America.” Then there were three songs sung in Mandarin Chinese –Ballad of the Yellow River and Defending the Yellow River.

Emcee Sarinna Chiang talked about the Asian American Cultural Foundation WWII Asian History Society and then introduced "Rape of Nanking" author Iris Chang’s parents Professor Ying Ying and Professor ShauJin Chang. There was moving commentary from her father and then her mother introduced a rare photo montage of Iris from childhood til adulthood. Then there was a special trailer premiere of a film on Iris Chang. Afterwards, there was a quick short film about the GA Study Tour to China in 2007 for US educators to learn about the Nanking Massacre on a paid tour to create and use their notes with lacking information within the US History books.

Then Ted Leonsis who is a top executive at AOL spoke of his experience about Iris Chang’s book and how he became inspired to produce her book to create “Nanking.” Then we saw a hour footage of the 90 minute film of “Nanking”. There was not a dry eye in the house. It was an interesting premise to use actors to read aloud the letters and dairies while there was real footage, photos and interviews with survivors pulled the film together. The emotional testimonies from the Chinese soldiers and survivors while contrasted with the non contrite Japanese soldiers’ testimonials collaborate with the Chinese survivors interviews.

War is never a good time. The world is not aware of what happened in Nanking in the English speaking world until Iris Chang wrote her book “The Rape of Nanking.” I recall my mom telling me of what the Japanese did to the Chinese during WWII and she showed me very disturbing photos and explained what had happened to the Chinese at that time. My mother always had the wish that I would write a book about this horrific historical event that the world is not common knowledge outside of Chinese language history books.

During WWII, it made sense after the Japanese took over Shanghai their next target would be the Chinese capital Nanking which was only 120 miles away. The Chinese who fled to Nanking told of horrific stories of looting, raping and killing that happened in Shanghai. Japanese were definitely planning to capture the capital in 1937. The Westerners living in Nanking at the time their personal writings-dairies and letters flushed out the actual footage and photos. The graphic photos, videos and interviews were heart breaking. Over 200,000 Chinese died and about 20,000 Chinese women were raped during this time as estimated by the Tokyo War Tribunal.
What is upsetting and disturbing is there are still Japanese who deny that this every happened. To the Chinese with my mother included, she calls it the untold Holocaust. It is important that the world knows about the Nanking Massacre. It is sad that Iris Chang is no longer with us, but her legacy lives on. Friday night marked the third anniversary of her death.

There was a brief Q and A after the movie was shown. We were informed that HBO bought the rights so it will be shown there and it will premiere in December and at the Landmark Kendall theaters in Cambridge on January 25, 2008.

For more pics:

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=20384&l=e48d1&id=575810425

Boston Premiere of "NANKING" 11/9/2007

(source info-Gail Wang)

This year is the 70th anniversary of Nanking massacre, one of the darkest events during WWII. Some say it is a forgotten holocaust. These two words should never be put together. 300,000 civilians (men, women, children) were slaughtered by Japanese army when it invaded Nanking (Nanjing) on December 13th, 1937. Nanking was China's capital city at the time.

It was only one of many massacres Japanese army committed toward Chinese people during its invasion and occupation of China from 1931 to 1945. China suffered over a thousand million civilian casualty. Yet they are forgotten by most of the world. Many sources (eg. Britannica) do not list this number, or list it as N/A!

Come attend an event to commemorate the victims of this terrible toll of the war. The documentary film "NANKING" will be presented at this event and the producer Ted Leonsis and the parents of Iris Chang, late author of "Nanking", will be the special guests. The event will be held on Nov. 9th at Back Bay Events Center, formally the John Hancock Hall.

For more detail, please see http://www.nanking1937.com, to print a flyer, please click http://nanking1937.com/doc/

Nanking should be forgotten no more. Please help us spread the word.

Some background about the film:
Ted Leonsis who is the former vice chairman of the AOL, inspired by the late Iris Chang and her book "Rape of Nanking", decided to finance and produce the Film NANKING after an initial intensive research on the topic.

NANKING, directed by the Academy Award®-winning team of Bill Guttentag and Dan Sturman ("Twin Towers"), is a powerful reminder of the heartbreaking toll of war. The film tells the story of the Japanese invasion of Nanking, China, in the early days of World War II and focuses on the efforts of a small group of unarmed Westerners who established a safety zone where more than 200,000 Chinese found refuge.


B O S T O N P R E V I E W

special guests
Ted Leonsis
the producer of Nanking
The parents of Iris Chang-the author of The Rape of Nanking
and The Yellow River Chorus


7:30 p.m. Friday November 9, 2007
(door opens at 7 p.m.)
Back Bay Events Center (John Hancock Hall)
200 Berkeley Street, Boston MA 02116
ticket@nanking1937.com
$50, $15, $10 advance purchase only
(A 10% discount for group of 10 is available for $15 zones.)

For other inquiries, please send email to
info@nanking1937.com

Unless we truly understand
how these atrocities can happen,
we can't be certain that
it won't happen again.
-Iris Chang

Best essays from Iris Chang
Memorial Essay Contest 2006
Available on November 9, 2007

To order this book
ticket@nanking1937.com

Limited quantity
$10 ea. advance purchase only
pick up at the movie Preview
7 p.m.
Back Bay Events Center(John Hancock Hall)

sponsored by
World War II Asian History Society
http://www.ww2ahs.org
Asian American Cultural Foundation in Boston
http://www.aacfb.org

We sponsor the 2008 Global Alliance Study Tour to China
for qualified high school teachers with full scholarship.
Details available at this Nanking preview event.

Scheduled U. S. Premiere December 12, 2007
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

A US documentary chronicling Japan's notorious 1937 invasion of the Chinese city Nanjing will open in Chinese cinemas on July 7the 70th anniversary of the War of Resistance against Japan. Director Bill Guttentag, Producer Ted Leonsis, Co-Director Dan Sturman, Producer Michael Jacobs, and Co-Producer Violet Du Feng came to Beijing Tuesday to attend the premiere of the film, then they left for Shanghai to promote the film.