Sine Trading International (赛因国际贸易) hiring Chinese-proficient customer service representative.

Manchester-based Sine Trading International (赛因国际贸易) is hiring a Chinese-speaking customer service representative.

Sine Trading International (www.SineTrading.com), a fast growing company providing international logistics, Customs Clearance and domestic shipping to companies nationwide, is expanding fast and in need of a full time customer service who can speak Chinese. The successful applicant will focus on answering customer inquiries by email and instant messenger, and other office work assigned. This is a full time position in Pittsburgh, PA.

Interested candidates should:

Speak fluent Chinese.

Be able to type in Chinese at more than 30 words per minute.

Understand English well.

Be proficient with Microsoft Office applications and functions.

Have a great attitude.

Understanding of international trade or international shipping a plus.

Are coachable.

Be able to work independently.

Anime Movie Marathon, January 29 at Pitt.

The Pitt Program Council will present three Ghibli movies as part of an Anime Movie Marathon on January 29, free to all University of Pittsburgh undergraduates with a valid student ID card.

Join the Pitt Program Council in Nordy's Place for a night of Studio Ghibli films! Spend the evening watching Howl's Moving Castle, Spirited Away, and My Neighbor Totoro with free food and drinks provided.

Howl's Moving Castle: 5:00 - 7:00 PM

Spirited Away: 7:10 - 9:15 PM

My Neighbor Totoro: 9:25 - 11:05 PM

All Pitt Program Council events are open to all undergraduate Pitt students with a valid (Oakland) Student ID.

Students with disabilities are encouraged to contact the Pitt Program Council at ppc@pitt.edu or by phone at 412-648-7900 for proper accommodations.

The Tale of Princess Kaguya (かぐや姫の物語) in Pittsburgh, December 16 and 18.

The 2013 film The Tale of Princess Kaguya (かぐや姫の物語) will play in Pittsburgh on December 16 and 18 as the final installment of this year's GKIDS Ghibli Fest. A 2014 A.V. Club review provides a summary:

A humble bamboo cutter named Okina (translation: “old man”) happens upon a glowing stalk in the grove near his house. When he investigates, the shimmering tree blossoms reveal a baby nested inside. Believing this discovery to be a gift from the heavens, Okina brings her home to his wife Ouna (“old woman”), with whom he begins to raise the child as their own. Dubbing her “Princess” Kaguya, Ouna and Okina marvel at how rapidly the girl begins to grow, racing from infancy to pre-adolescence in a matter of days.

While Kaguya busies herself with a normal childhood, making friends with the local kids and bonding with an older boy named Sutemaru, her adopted father becomes distracted by Kaguya’s value to him—the bamboo shoot from which she was born begins producing gold. As Kaguya transforms into a teenager, Okina relocates their family to the capital city, where the girl receives lessons on how to be a proper woman, and is celebrated as a rare beauty. When five aggressive suitors come calling—followed by the emperor himself—Kaguya begins to feel trapped, things falling apart as she imagines a different life for herself.

It goes on to say the film has "some of the most beautifully expressive animation that Ghibli (or anyone else) has ever produced".

The film will play locally at the AMC Loews Waterfront and the Cinemark theaters in Monroeville, the North Hills, Pittsburgh Mills, and Robinson, and tickets are available online. The December 16 shows are dubbed in English while the December 18 screenings are in Japanese with English subtitles.

“An Island of Death”: Homo Sacer and Ungrievable Deaths, December 13 at Pitt.

via thejejumassacre.com

Y.J. Hwang will give a lecture, “An Island of Death”: Homo Sacer and Ungrievable Deaths, on the Jeju Island Massacres on December 13.

Jeju Island is internationally known as “the Hawaii of Asia” because of its scenic landscapes. But it is not known that this volcanic island is also called “an Island of Death” in connection with the Jeju massacre (1948-1949). This talk thus focuses on the ways in which the victims of the mass killing are enacted in relation to cultural implications of conceptualizing deaths of the Jeju incident. Given that the main characteristic of the Cold War narrative is associated with the reburial of the dead and the finding of missing bodies in the context of modern Korean history, this talk engages with the way in which cultural memory is performed in Jeju Peace Memorial Park through artistic practices and monuments. Concentrating on the injustice of death, the ethics of the dead, and the relationship between history and memory, it also includes how this site reveals a futuristic vision of understanding the Jeju massacre.

YJ, Hwang is a teaching fellow, working on her doctoral project in relation to South Korea’s Jeju massacre and its cultural memory at the University of Pittsburgh. As a theatre and performance studies scholar, her research interests include gender, memory, and mobility.

It starts at 12:00 pm in 4130 Posvar Hall (map).

Chinese-Australian movie The Whistleblower (吹哨人) continues in Pittsburgh through December 17.

The 2019 Chinese-Australian movie The Whistleblower (吹哨人), which opened in Pittsburgh on December 6, will continue here through December 17.

Following a fatal accident, a Chinese expatriate working for a mining company in Australia discovers that new technology developed by the company may be a health risk, and investigates a web of conspiracies in his search for the truth.

It plays at the Cinemark in Pittsburgh Mills through the 12th and at the AMC Loews Waterfront through the 17th, and tickets are available online.

Bong Joon-ho film Parasite (기생충) continues in Pittsburgh through December 19.

The acclaimed 2019 Bong Joon-ho film Parasite (기생충), which opened in Pittsburgh on November 1, will continue in Pittsburgh through at least December 19.

Bong Joon Ho brings his singular mastery home to Korea in this pitch-black modern fairytale.

Meet the Park Family: the picture of aspirational wealth. And the Kim Family, rich in street smarts but not much else. Be it chance or fate, these two houses are brought together and the Kims sense a golden opportunity. Masterminded by college-aged Ki-woo, the Kim children expediently install themselves as tutor and art therapist, to the Parks. Soon, a symbiotic relationship forms between the two families. The Kims provide “indispensable” luxury services while the Parks obliviously bankroll their entire household. When a parasitic interloper threatens the Kims’ newfound comfort, a savage, underhanded battle for dominance breaks out, threatening to destroy the fragile ecosystem between the Kims and the Parks. By turns darkly hilarious and heart-wrenching, PARASITE showcases a modern master at the top of his game.

Parasite won the Palme d'Or at the 2019 Cannes Film Festival. It continues locally at the Southside Works Cinema (map) and the Manor Theater in Squirrel Hill (map). Tickets are available online.

The Course of Democracy Never Did Run Smooth: Hongkongers’ Political Awakening (從反送中運動看港人的掙扎與蛻變), December 15 at CMU.

Cafe Philo @ Pittsburgh will present an English-language talk, The Course of Democracy Never Did Run Smooth: Hongkongers’ Political Awakening (從反送中運動看港人的掙扎與蛻變), on December 15 at Carnegie Mellon University.

The Anti-Extradition Movement in Hong Kong Political apathy seems to have reigned Hong Kong for very long. And yet the recent Anti-Extradition Movement, the largest and longest social movement in the history of Hong Kong, has been joined by over one-third of the population. Through a discussion on the Anti-Extradition Movement, this seminar aims to provide a general understanding of the struggle for democracy in Hong Kong, especially its milestones, transformations, and current obstacles, and to explore the reasons for Hongkongers' political awakening.

Speakers: Hong Kong Social Action Movements in Boston (https://www.facebook.com/HKSAMBOS/)
Date: Sunday, December 15th , 2-4 pm
Place: CMU Wean Hall 4623
Host: Café Philo-Pittsburgh
This talk will be delivered in English.

Japanese rock band The 5.6.7.8's to open for Reverend Horton Heat in Warrendale tonight.

The Japanese trio The 5.6.7.8's will open for Reverend Horton Heat on December 10 at Jergel's Rhythm Grill in Wexford. The 21-and-over show starts at 7:00 pm and the doors open at 5:00. Jergel's Rhythm Grill is located just off Route 19 (map) in the North Hills.

New bubble tea place coming to Squirrel Hill.

via oxborrow (Creative Commons)

Work has recently begun on a new bubble tea place opening in Squirrel Hill. It will be located at 5871 Forbes Ave. (map), most recently home to Kidz and Company. According to building permits the future occupants also run the New China House in Monroeville.

Japanese Coming-of-Age Ceremony (成人の日) at Pitt for students turning 20, January 10.

The University of Pittsburgh's Asian Studies Center and English Language Institute will hold its annual Seijin-no-shiki (Coming of Age) ceremony on January 10 for students turning 20. The idea emerged three years ago because Pitt's ELI hosts a large cohort of Yasuda Women's University students each year who miss the traditional ceremony offered in Hiroshima. Several local publications---including the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Tribune Review, and City-Paper---have covered the ceremony over the last two years. Meanwhile, Japan Visitor introduces the day and its traditions:

Seijin Shiki or 成人式 could be translated as 'Coming of Age Day Ceremony' in English. Seijin-no-hi (Coming of Age Day) is a Japanese public holiday that occurs on every second Monday of January.

Coming of Age Day or Adult's Day honors every person that has turned 20 years old over the past year. When young people reach twenty they officially become adults in Japanese society and they now have responsibilities as well as newfound liberties: such as being able to drink, smoke, go to hostess bars, gamble and to drive legally. The voting age was lowered from 20 to 18 in 2015.

The girls always wear gorgeous and very expensive kimono, although most admit to having rentals as the outfit is worth up to 1,000,000 yen. The boys usually wear a regular suit and tie but a few will wear traditional Japanese dress.

The event starts at 7:00 pm in the University Club's Ballroom A (map). Those who are turning 20 between April 2019 and April 2020 who are interested in participating should email asia@pitt.edu by December 15.