The Asian American Film Lab to Host Heather Greer & Larry Lee for Art & Advocacy Screening/Q&A

NEW YORK - Aug. 20, 2013 - PRLog -- The Asian American Film Lab (Film Lab) is pleased to announce that video artist Heather Greer and Executive Director of the New York Asian Women’s Center (“NYAWC”) Larry Lee will discuss their collaboration with artist Liubo Borissov, composer Woody Pak and NYAWC on combining art and advocacy.  The discussion will include a screening of the results of their collaboration, including “Workplace” and “Living Portrait.”  This event is not only for those concerned about abuse and domestic violence issues, but also for would-be and even experienced filmmakers who would like to know how to use the medium of film and video in an effort to advocate for a social cause.  Pamela Hernandez will moderate the discussion.

The Industry Spotlight, “Art and Advocacy,” will take place in Manhattan on Thursday, September 19^th, 2013, 6-8pm. The event will be free and open to the public although RSVPs to Daniel Finley at IndustrySpotlight@film-lab.org are required.

About Larry Lee

Larry Lee has served as NYAWC’s Executive Director since September 2007.  Previously, as Chief Program Officer of The Educational Alliance, Larry was responsible for 85 social service and educational programs.  Earlier, Larry ran the largest subsidized childcare system in the nation, as Associate Commissioner of NYC’s Administration for Children’s Services’ Division of Child Care and Head Start.  Prior to ACS, Larry was deputy executive director at SCAN New York, a community based children and family services agency.  For eleven years Larry directed the Family, Clinical and Community Services division at Victim Services’. Now named Safe Horizon, it is the largest agency in the nation serving domestic violence survivors and crime victims.  A leader of the Asian American community, Larry is the founder and chair of the Shuang Wen Academy, the first Mandarin/English dual language and dual culture public school in the nation. Since its inception, the school has been ranked in the top ten of all NYC public schools. He is also a founder of the Chinatown Voter Education Alliance as well as the Chinese Community Social Service and Health Council. Mr. Lee has held leadership positions at the Coalition for Asian American Children and Families, the New York City Chapter of the National Association of Social Workers, the Gouverneur Hospital Community Advisory Board, City Volunteer Corps Board, and the Hunter College School of Social Work Alumni Association.  Larry has been honored by Mayor Michael Bloomberg and profiled by WCBS-TV for his extraordinary civic contributions.  Born in Brooklyn, Larry has been a Manhattan Lower East Side resident for many years. Larry is a widower and has a son.  He received an MSW and an MA in psychology from Hunter College. 

About Heather Greer
Heather Greer is an award-winning documentarian and video artist based in New York City. She has also been an adjunct professor at the Interactive Telecommunications Programs at NYU's Tisch School of the Arts for the past ten years. She has conceived and executed installations as well as other works in documentary and feature film, mixed media, animation and theater. Her documentary, "The Gentleman from Shanghai," won a Gold Cindy Award in 2000 and is currently distributed with its Academy-Award winning parent film, "From Mao to Mozart: Isaac Stern in China." She was cinematographer for “The F Word”, a high definition feature length film on freedom of speech that was an official selection at the Tribeca Film Festival and aired in 2006 and 2008 nationally and internationally on the Independent Film Channel (IFC). Most recently she co-directed and produced "Esas Voces Que Curan", a documentary on the life of Herlinda Augustín, a renowned shaman and medicine woman from the Shipibo culture of Peru. The film has screened as official selections at leading festivals around the world and is now in distribution through Galloping Films in Sydney, Australia. On a humanitarian and media education level, Heather has worked in several countries including Rwanda, Malawi, Mali and Bangladesh.  Ms. Greer holds a masters in Interactive Telecommunications from NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts and a Bachelor of Arts from Georgetown University.

About Pamela Hernandez
Pamela is a passionate of the the contemporary arts. In the past, she has worked at MoMA PS1, The Solomon R. Guggenheim, Creative Time, Issue Project Room, among other non-profit arts organizations and currently is working at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in NYC. In 2012, she coedited a book gathering more than 50 philanthropists, 18 contemporary Mexican artists and a group of artisans of Chiapas, Mexico. Today, she is interested in exploring the challenges and opportunities presented by an increasing global art market and digital communications. She holds a Bachelor’s degree in Media and Communications from the Universidad Iberoamericana and a Master’s degree in Arts and Cultural Management from Pratt Institute. Born and raised in Mexico City. Lives in NYC.

About Asian American Film Lab and Industry Spotlight
The Asian American Film Lab (Film Lab), a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit corporation,  comprises professionals, artists and other talented individuals who all share the common goal of creating great film and promoting gender and ethnic diversity in film and television, with a focus on Asian American filmmakers and the visibility of their stories and characters in film and television.  The Film Lab’s programming includes filmmaking workshops with industry professionals, screenwriting contests, and film competitions including the annual 72 Hour Film Shootout. This annual competition has inspired hundreds of filmmakers by helping nascent talent take brave steps towards a filmmaking career.  The Film Lab's Industry Spotlight program features industry professionals who wish to promote and encourage diversity in film and television and includes filmmaking how-to seminars on everything from cinematography to sound, casting workshops, film screenings, and more.

The Film Lab is run under the direction of President Jennifer Betit Yen. Board members include screenwriter and director, Aaron Woolfolk, actor James Kyson, actress and director Bea Soong, producer Erik Lu, attorney Peyton Worley, and advisors cinematographer, Eric Lin, and Director of Asian CineVision, John Woo.  Industry professionals interested in providing a seminar, class, screening, or other.  Industry Spotlight should contact Daniel Finley at IndustrySpotlight@film-lab.org.

www.asianamericanfilmlab.org and info@film-lab.org.