Author+illustrator MariNaomi at Pitt, April 7.

Author and illustrator MariNaomi will speak at the University of Pittsburgh on April 7.

MariNaomi is the award-winning author and illustrator of Kiss & Tell: A Romantic Resume, Ages 0 to 22 (Harper Perennial, 2011), Dragon's Breath and Other True Stories (2dcloud/Uncivilized Books, 2014), Turning Japanese (2dcloud, 2016), I Thought YOU Hated ME (Retrofit Comics, 2016), and the Life on Earth trilogy (Graphic Universe, 2018-2020). Her work has appeared in over sixty print publications and has been featured on websites such as The Rumpus, LA Review of Books, Midnight Breakfast and BuzzFeed.

MariNaomi's comics and paintings have been featured by such institutions as the Smithsonian, the De Young Museum, the Cartoon Art Museum, the Asian Art Museum, and the Japanese American Museum.

The event starts at 7:00 pm in the William Pitt Union's Lower Lounge (map) and is free and open to the public.

2003 Studio Ghibli film Spirited Away (千と千尋の神隠し) at Pitt for Spectacles Film Series, April 8.

The final installment of the University of Pittsburgh's Spectacles Film Series is the 2003 Studio Ghibli Film Spirited Away (千と千尋の神隠し) on April 8. Once a month, the Film Studies Program website explains,

Spectacles invites religious studies, cultural studies, and film studies enthusiasts to join together and watch a movie with religious themes. Afterwards, religious studies majors will lead an open discussion about the movie. And of course, there will be movie snacks!

Border Passages with Viet Thanh Nguyen, April 9 at City of Asylum.

Via Nguyen's Facebook page.

The City of Asylum will host Pulitzer Prize-winning author Viet Thanh Nguyen for a reading on April 9, ahead of his sold-out lecture that evening.

Join us for a reading with Viet Thanh Nguyen presented in partnership with Pittsburgh Arts & Lectures and the Carnegie Nexus: Becoming Migrant series.

“A major writer with firsthand knowledge of the human rights drama exploding on the international stage—and the talent to give us inroads toward understanding it.”—THE WASHINGTON POST

Pulitzer Prize-winning author Viet Thanh Nguyen can’t remember a time when he wasn’t a refugee. When he was four, in 1975, his family joined the masses of South Vietnamese fleeing the Viet Cong. His first reliable memories began when his family arrived at a Pennsylvania resettlement camp and was temporarily split up.

Join Nguyen, author of The Refugees and The Sympathizer, Divya Heffley of Carnegie Museum of Art, and Patrick McShea of Carnegie Museum of Natural History for a live reading and discussion, followed by a hands-on workshop that layers passages of text with memories of what we perceive to be home.

7th annual Tomodachi Festival at Carnegie Library in Oakland, April 28.

The Main Branch of the Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh will host the 7th annual Tomodachi Festival on Saturday, April 28.

Tomodachi is a Japanese word meaning “friends.” Help us celebrate the spirit of friendship through activities, art and food that showcase Japan, its people and rich history. Activities will include Kamishibi storytelling, singing and dancing, origami art, kimono try-ons, and Japanese inspired refreshments.

The event, presented by the Japan-America Society of Pennsylvania, runs from 2:00 to 5:00 pm in the Children's section of the library, and is free and open to the public. The library is located at 4400 Forbes Ave. in Oakland (map) and is accessible by buses 28X, 54, 61C, 61D, 67, 69, 71A, 71B, 71C, 71D, and 93.

Japanese storytelling with Motoko, at City of Asylum April 7.

via motoko.folktales.net.

The City of Asylum's Alphabet City will host Japanese storyteller Motoko on Saturday, April 7.

2018 Korean Food Bazaar (제23회 선교바자회), May 5 in Shadyside.

Look for the 2018 Korean Central Church of Pittsburgh Korean Food Bazaar (제23회 선교바자회) on Saturday, May 5, from 10:30 to 4:00 pm. The highly-anticipated annual Korean food festival is in its 23rd year, and is held at 821 S. Aiken Ave. in Shadyside (map).

Pittsburgh Taiko beginners' workshop, Saturdays from March 31.

A Pittsburgh-area Japanese drumming group, Pittsburgh Taiko, will offer beginners' workshops Saturdays this spring, starting March 31.

The Slow Way Home, a documentary on "how a society intent on keeping streets safe for kids made them walkable for everyone," at Pitt on April 3.

A 2016 documentary The Slow Way Home, followed by a discussion with the producer, will play at the University of Pittsburgh on April 3.

The way children travel to school structures daily life for families around the world—but differs dramatically. In Japan, 98 percent of children walk to school every day, unaccompanied by a parent. In the United States, just 13 percent of children walk or bike to school, and most are driven to school by a parent.

Book launch for Zouping Revisited, March 29 at Pitt.

The University of Pittsburgh's Asian Studies Center and Graduate School of Public and International Affairs will present a book launch for the forthcoming Zouping Revisited: Adaptive Governance in a Chinese County on March 29.

Mongolia's HAYA making US debut at Indiana University of Pennsylvania, April 5.

The Mongolian music group Haya (Хаяа), will make its US debut on April 5 at Indiana University of Pennsylvania. A profile of the "Migrations" concert, from its management company:

“Migration” is about searching for one’s own spiritual home, experiencing the beauty of life itself, and returning to a simplistic, survivalist lifestyle. HAYA Band’s “Migration” Concert employs innovative musical language alongside classic traditional songs, fusing a variety of musical elements such as chants, the Mongolian horsehead fiddle, plucked string instruments, throat singing, and shaman drums. Their music is refined and captivating. Their shows have a distinct “ceremonious” feel. Migration provides us with a path for escape from this fast-paced modern world, a contemporary migration to another realm, one surrounded by the wonders of nature and life.

Tickets for the 8:00 pm show are available for $16 to $30 online. IUP is located roughly 60 miles east of Pittsburgh, and the concert will be held in the Fisher Auditorium of the IUP Performing Arts Center (map).