First meeting of Pitt's Go club, August 29.

By Jaro Larnos (Creative Commons).

Some faculty at the University of Pittsburgh's Department of East Asian Languages & Literatures have started a go club, and the first meeting is tomorrow, August 29. From the Department's Facebook page:

The University of Pittsburgh Go Club will be holding meetings every Tuesday from 7:00 to 9:30pm in room 114 of the O’Hara Student Ballroom through fall semester. Anyone interested in the game of go is welcome. The first meeting will be this Tuesday, August 29th.
If you have questions, you can email Stephen Luft (luft@pitt.edu) or James Zhu (jiz144@pitt.edu).

Zen's Noodle House to bring Japanese ramen to Oakland.

Zen's Noodle House has been "coming soon" to Oakland since November 2014. Recently, though, it appears it actually is coming soon: the kitchen is set up and furniture is in place. This week a new sign was added to the facade at 3531 Forbes Ave.: "Japanese ramen" has replaced "Hand Drawn Noodle".


November 2016 and November 2014.

Free Chinese, Japanese, Korean classes in Pittsburgh.

The Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh is an invaluable source of free and enriching programming for people of all ages. Most relevant to this site are the free Chinese, Japanese, and Korean courses at an increasing number of branches. The start of a new school year is an excellent time to revisit this list of free courses available for children, complete novices, high-beginners, intermediate learners, and advanced speakers.

Highest-grossing Chinese film of all time Wolf Warrior 2 (战狼2) to remain in Pittsburgh through August 30.

Wolf Warrior 2 (战狼2), which became the highest-grossing Chinese film of all time earlier this month, will stay in Pittsburgh at the AMC Loews Waterfront theater through at least August 30. A synopsis of the movie, released in China on July 27 and in Pittsburgh on July 28, from the distributor:

The Wolf Warrior is back, bigger and badder than ever, in this action-packed sequel to the 2015 blockbuster hit. With his career in tatters, China’s deadliest Special Forces operative has settled into a quiet life on the sea. But when he crosses paths with a sadistic band of mercenaries terrorizing innocent civilians, he must reaffirm his duty as a soldier and save the day once again. Fists (and bullets, tanks, missiles and much more) will fly in this adrenaline-fueled tour de force of bravura action filmmaking, all culminating into a climactic battle between the Wolf Warrior and the mercenary leader (Frank Grillo, Captain America: The Winter Soldier and Captain America: Civil War).

Tickets and showtimes are available from Fandango. The theater is located at 300 West Waterfront Dr. in the Waterfront shopping complex in Homestead (map), across the Monongahela River from Greenfield, Squirrel Hill, and the rest of Pittsburgh.

No Game No Life Zero (ノーゲーム・ノーライフ ゼロ) coming to Pittsburgh theaters in October.

The upcoming Japanese anime No Game No Life Zero (ノーゲーム・ノーライフ ゼロ) will play at Cinemark theaters in the Pittsburgh area on October 5th and 8th. A synopsis from the distributor:

Six thousand years before Sora and Shiro were even a blink in the history of Disboard, war consumed the land, tearing apart the heavens, destroying stars, and even threatening to wipe out the human race. Amid the chaos and destruction, a young man named Riku leads humanity toward the tomorrow his heart believed in. One day, in the ruins of an Elf city, he meets Shuvi, a female exiled "Ex-machina" android who asks him to teach her what it means to have a human heart. In select movie theatres nationwide, this two-day event also includes exclusive content featuring special footage of members of the cast and crew of No Game No Life Zero.

Korean cyclists raising awareness of "comfort women" in US bike tour pass through Pittsburgh.

via 3A Project.

Two Korean university students are biking across the US to raise awareness of "comfort women", the euphemism for sex slaves used by the Japanese military during World War II. Today's Pittsburgh City-Paper has a profile.

“We want to raise this issue in the U.S. because the U.S. is the center of the media world,” said Young. “We don’t want to see this tragedy in any other [country].”

According to a June NBC News profile, Ha Joo-Young is a 25-year-old student from Kyung Hee University and Jo Yong-Joo is a 21-year-old from Yonsei University.

Takashi Miike's Dead or Alive (犯罪者) trilogy at Melwood Screening Room, August 31 - September 3.

The three films comprising the Japanese Dead or Alive series---DEAD OR ALIVE 犯罪者, DEAD OR ALIVE 2 逃亡者, and DEAD OR ALIVE FINAL---will play at the Melwood Screening Room in Oakland from August 31 to September 3. Pittsburgh Filmmakers summarzies:

Anything can happen in a Takashi Miike film. Beginning with an explosive, six-minute montage of sex, drugs and violence -- and ending with a phallus-headed battle robot taking flight -- Miike's unforgettable DEAD OR ALIVE trilogy (1999-2002) features many of the prolific director’s most outrageous moments alongside some of his most dramatically moving scenes starring the popular duo Show Aikawa and Riki Takeuchi.

Tickets and showtime information is available on the Pittsburgh Filmmakers website. A $15 ticket is available for the entire trilogy. The Melwood Screening Room is located at 477 Melwood Ave. (map).

Tokyo Godfathers (東京ゴッドファーザーズ), Pittsburgh premiere of Napping Princess (ひるね姫 〜知らないワタシの物語〜 ) part of September anime series at Row House Cinema.

Tokyo Godfathers (東京ゴッドファーザーズ) and 2017's Napping Princess (ひるね姫 〜知らないワタシの物語〜 ) are part of an anime series playing at Row House Cinema from September 29 through October 5.

Third annual Pittsburgh Chinese Cultural Festival (匹兹堡 中华文化节), September 17 at Mellon Park.

The third annual Pittsburgh Chinese Cultural Festival (匹兹堡中华文化节) will take place on September 17 at Mellon Park in Shadyside (map). Presented by the Pittsburgh Chinese Culture Center, it features numerous Chinese and East Asian performances, food vendors, crafts, and local business booths.

The Pittsburgh Chinese Cultural Festival celebrates the rich culture of China, past and present, through entertainment, music, art, food and exhibits.

This fun filled day includes: local performances, renowned UNESCO Masters of Arts & Crafts from Wuhan, China, food from Pittsburgh’s BEST Chinese Restaurants and exhibits of handcrafted items, information and much more!

It will run from 11:00 am to 7:00 pm and is free and open to the public.

Studio Ghibli's Castle in the Sky (天空の城ラピュタ) in Pittsburgh area theaters, August 27 and 28.

The 1986 Hayao Miyazaki film Castle in the Sky (天空の城ラピュタ) will play in Pittsburgh-area Cinemark theaters on August 27 and 28 as this month's installment of GKIDS Studio Ghibli Fest 2017. The distributor GKIDS provides a summary:

A young girl with a mysterious crystal pendant falls out of the sky and into the arms and life of young Pazu. Together they search for a floating island in the sky, site of a long-dead civilization promising enormous wealth and power to those who can unlock its secrets.

Castle in the Sky is an early masterpiece of storytelling and filmmaking whose imaginative and ornately detailed vision presaged later films like Princess Mononoke and Spirited Away.

An English dubbed version will play at the Cinemark theaters in Monaca, Monroeville, North Hills, and Pittsburgh Mills on August 27, while a version with English subtitles will play at those theaters on August 28.