1995 Studio Ghibli film Whisper of the Heart (耳をすませば) in Pittsburgh, July 1 and 2.

The 1995 Studio Ghibli film Whisper of the Heart (耳をすませば) will play in Pittsburgh on July 1 and 2 as part of the 2019 GKIDS Ghibli Fest. The distributor provides a synopsis:

Discover the brilliance of this heartwarming coming-of-age classic from the legendary Studio Ghibli, creators of My Neighbor Totoro and the Academy Award®-winning Spirited Away.

A chance encounter with a mysterious cat sends Shizuku, a quiet schoolgirl, on a quest for her true talent. Together with Seiji, a boy determined to follow his dreams, and enchanted by The Baron, a magical cat figurine who helps her listen to the whispers of her heart, Shizuku embarks on a life-changing adventure that takes her beyond the boundaries of her imagination. This beautiful tale based on a screenplay from Hayao Miyazaki will delight and amaze audiences of all ages!

The movie will play at the AMC Loews Waterfront and the Cinemark theaters in Monroeville, North Hills, Pittsburgh Mills, and Robinson. The July 1 shows are dubbed in English and the July 2 ones are in Japanese with English subtitles. Tickets are available online.

2018 Chinese film Long Day's Journey Into the Night (地球最后的夜晚) continues in Pittsburgh through July 4.

The 2018 Chinese film Long Day's Journey Into the Night (地球最后的夜晚), which opened in Pittsburgh on June 21, will continue through July 4. An April Atlantic review calls it "a gorgeous and impossible puzzle of a movie that could become a cult hit when it arrives in the United States."

The plot of Long Day’s Journey, which has nothing to do with the Eugene O’Neill play of the same name, centers on three characters: Luo (played by Huang Jue), a man haunted by his time as a youth in 2000; Luo’s long-lost lover, Wan Qiwen (Tang Wei); and a childhood pal named Wildcat, who was murdered. Roughly 20 years after Wildcat’s death, Luo tries to find Qiwen again and dig into the mystery of what happened between them decades prior. But any simple explanation for what’s going on is never offered. As Long Day’s Journey progresses, its meaning becomes more elusive, and its narrative strands stubbornly refuse to tie together.

The movie plays at the Regent Square Theater at 1035 South Braddock Ave. (map). Tickets are available online.

We Are Here: Asian Pacific Islander American Artists in Pittsburgh at Cultural District Gallery Crawl, July 12.

The Greater Pittsburgh Arts Council will host Art on the Walls Reception - We Are Here: Asian Pacific Islander American Artists in Pittsburgh from July 12. It will open as part of that evening's Gallery Crawl through the Cultural District and will remain on display through December.

Event Details
As part of Greater Pittsburgh Arts Council's exhibition series, Art on the Walls, "We Are Here: Asian Pacific Islander American Artists in Pittsburgh" features art by April Brust, Wen Gao, Pralhad Gurung, Eriko Hattori, Sesame Kim, Huei-Hsuan Sun, Estelle Tian,Patty Tran, Marieke Van Der Maelen, Grace Wong, and Ariel Xiu. The exhibition is available on display in GPAC's Big Room from July through December 2019. You can view the exhibition during July's Gallery Crawl on Friday, July 12.

About the Exhibition:
Although Asian Pacific Islander Americans (APIA) have been present in Pittsburgh since the 1870s and represent an ever-growing community in the city and in the country at-large, APIA’s continue to struggle for representation. This exhibition aims to provide visibility for this community: for the first time in Pittsburgh’s history, every exhibiting artist in "We Are Here" identifies as APIA. While some of these artists create work directly informed by their race, family backgrounds, and socio-political history, all possess an identity created in the context of omission and discrimination.

By giving a physical space for viewers to look at and engage with these artists’ work, we hope to set a precedent for the local art scene, educate the larger public, develop dialogue, and voice that "We Are Here," we have been here, and we will continue to create.

The event is free but online RSVP is required. It runs from 5:30 to 8:00 pm on the 12th in the GPAC Big Room on the 7th floor of 810 Penn Ave. (map).

Blackpink's "Kill This Love" at this weekend's K-pop Class, June 28.

The weekly K-pop Dance Class at Yanlai Dance Academy will do Blackpink's "Kill This Love" for its sixth meeting on June 28. The class is held each Saturday from 4:00 to 5:00 pm, and the cost is $18 for a drop-in session. Yanlai Dance Academy is located at 2260 Babcock Blvd. in the North Hills (map).

Beyond Chinatown: Pittsburgh's "Chinamen" once entertained idea of "Chinese Building" downtown.

A 1908 Pittsburgh Gazette Times article reports on the efforts to replace Pittsburgh's Chinatown with a state-of-the-art "Chinese building" downtown.

Koreatown at November cookbook club meeting in Squirrel Hill.

Koreatown by Deuki Hong and Matt Rodbard will be featured at the November meeting of the Dish! cookbook club at the Carnegie Library in Squirrel Hill. A summary, from the book's official site:

A trailblazing book featuring nearly 100 recipes, essays, profiles and documentary-style photography concentrating on many of the lesser-known aspects of Korean food, drink and culture. The book is co-written by Deuki Hong and Matt Rodbard, two authorities in the exploding Korean food movement in the United States and abroad. Together Hong and Rodbard spent over two years traveling to the Koreatowns of the United States, researching the book and interviewing over 100 chefs and business owners. Once back in their New York City kitchens, they developed recipes that reflect traditional home and restaurant cooking — translated with historically rich (and entertaining!) notes and easy-to-follow directions.

The event is free but online registration is required.

2019 film Promare (プロメア) in Pittsburgh, September 17.

The 2019 Japanese animated film Promare (プロメア) will play in Pittsburgh on September 17. The distributor summarizes:

The first feature-length film from the acclaimed studio TRIGGER, creators of the hit series KILL la KILL and Little Witch Academia, and director Hiroyuki Imaishi (GURREN LAGANN, KILL la KILL), Promare uses a bold cel-shaded visual style to tell a blistering action-adventure story, and is the spiritual successor to many of director Imaishi’s former works.

Thirty years has passed since the appearance of Burnish, a race of flame-wielding mutant beings, who destroyed half of the world with fire. When a new group of aggressive mutants calling themselves “Mad Burnish” appears, the epic battle between Galo Thymos, a new member of the anti-Burnish rescue team “Burning Rescue,” and Lio Fotia, the leader of “Mad Burnish” begins.

It will play at the Southside Works Cinema, though showtime information has not yet been released.

Japan-inspired T-Swirl Crepe coming soon to Oakland.

T-Swirl Crepe, a chain serving Japanese-style crepes, has a location coming soon to Oakland. Signage recently went up in Schenley Plaza, in a kiosk most recently occupied by Waffallonia. The chain, which opened its first Pittsburgh location in Squirrel Hill in 2017, describes itself like this:

The story of T-swirl Crepe starts thousands of miles away on the shores of Japan. The Japanese Crepe borrows from a western concept and modernized it into new level of versatility that you can gobble on the go. Building on this new concept, T-swirl started to research and have perfected the 100% gluten free rice flour batter, to craft a crispy thin chewy layer that embraces all the decadent condiments. T-swirl is synonymous with using the finest ingredients to construct a trendy/artistic crepe that arrives to your hand with incredible speed. We have standardized the process to give you a consistently clean and delicious crepe.

BTS's "Boy With Luv (작은것들을 위한 시)" at this weekend's K-pop Class, June 22.

The weekly K-pop Dance Class at Yanlai Dance Academy will do BTS's "Boy With Luv (작은것들을 위한 시)" for its fifth meeting on June 22. The class is held each Saturday from 4:00 to 5:00 pm, and the cost is $18 for a drop-in session. Yanlai Dance Academy is located at 2260 Babcock Blvd. in the North Hills (map).

Twice's "Fancy" at this weekend's K-pop Class, June 15.

The weekly K-pop Dance Class at Yanlai Dance Academy will do Twice's "Fancy" for its fourth meeting on June 15. The class is held each Saturday from 4:00 to 5:00 pm, and the cost is $18 for a drop-in session. Yanlai Dance Academy is located at 2260 Babcock Blvd. in the North Hills (map).