2021 Japanese film Drive My Car (ドライブ・マイ・カー) at Harris Theater, January 20 through 27.

The acclaimed 2021 Japanese film Drive My Car (ドライブ・マイ・カー) will play at the Harris Theater from January 20 through 27, 2022. A brief synospis from a December 7 NPR review:

The story follows a middle-aged Tokyo stage actor named Kafuku, superbly played by Hidetoshi Nishijima. He's a calm, mild-mannered guy who's been married for two decades to a screenwriter named Oto. We get a sense of their mutual devotion when we see Kafuku driving around in his bright red Saab, rehearsing his lines by listening to audio tapes that Oto has painstakingly recorded for him.

But their relationship is more complicated than it appears. Years ago, Kafuku and Oto experienced an agonizing loss that has led her to find solace — and perhaps something more — in relationships with other men. Kafuku has deep compassion for his wife, which doesn't make her betrayal any less painful. And then another tragedy strikes when Oto dies suddenly.

It will play at the Harris Theater in downtown's Cultural District (map), though tickets are not yet available.

Carnegie Mellon University hiring Part-time Research Analyst - Engineering and Public Policy; ability to work with data in Chinese preferred.

Carnegie Mellon University is hiring a Part-time Research Analyst - Engineering and Public Policy, with a preference for someone who can work with data in Chinese.

Carnegie Mellon University’s department of Engineering and Public Policy is searching for a part-time Research Analyst. This is an excellent opportunity for someone who thrives in an interesting and challenging work environment. You will contribute to the department by providing vital support by studying the effectiveness of environmental policy in China by analyzing large environmental compliance data sets using the techniques of applied microeconomics.

Lunar New Year Celebration 2022 at Pitt, February 2.

via traveloriented.

The University of Pittsburgh's Asian Studies Center and Global Hub will host a Lunar New Year Celebration on February 2.

Join the Asian Studies Center and Global Hub for a Lunar New Year celebration in honor of the Year of the Tiger! Come for some light refreshments, crafts, a photobooth, performances, and more.

It runs from 11:00 am to 1:00 pm in the Global Hub on the first floor of Posvar Hall, and is free and open to members of the Pitt community who follow the university's COVID-19 safety protocols.

Pennsylvania seeking Request for Proposals for PA Japan Investment Representative position.

The State of Pennsylvania is seeing Requests for Proposals until February 4, 2022 for a PA Japan Investment Representative position.

The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania’s Department of Community and Economic Development (DCED) seeks an experienced consultant or consultancy to serve as an authorized representative, to be based in and focused on Japan. The consultant will be expected to contribute to the growth and strength of the Commonwealth’s economy through the attraction of foreign direct investment to Pennsylvania and the creation of quality jobs, thus increasing the opportunities for economic prosperity for all Pennsylvanians.

The Consultant, in joint effort with DCED’s Office of International Business Development (OIBD), will be responsible for development of programs to attract investors to Pennsylvania. The consultant will have extensive contacts with the region’s government officials, industry associations, business communities, the U.S. Foreign Commercial Service (U.S. Department of Commerce), chambers of commerce, and other organizations (private and public) that will further the Commonwealth’s investment goals and objectives of the region.

New Japanese animated movie Sword Art Online the Movie Progressive: Aria of a Starless Night (劇場版 ソードアート・オンライン プログレッシブ 星なき夜のアリア) stays in Pittsburgh through December 15.

The 2021 Japanese animated movie apanese animated movie Sword Art Online the Movie Progressive: Aria of a Starless Night (劇場版 ソードアート・オンライン プログレッシブ 星なき夜のアリア), which opened in Pittsburgh on December 3, will stay here through at least December 15. A synopsis of the film that, based on a manga series:

Return to the death game where it all began—Sword Art Online. In this new Aincrad Arc by original creator Reki Kawahara, the story is seen through Asuna’s eyes. What at first seems like a dream come true quickly becomes a nightmare when newbie gamer Asuna Yuuki learns the only way to escape the virtual world of Aincrad is to beat all 100 levels—but “Game Over” means you die in the real world.

It will play locally at the AMC Loews Waterfront, and tickets are available online. Please note, some shows are in Japanese with English subtitles while others are dubbed in English.

Wild Ninja Asian Grill opening in Oakland, December 9.

Wild Ninja Asian Grill will hold its grand opening on December 9. It's located at located at 210 Oakland Ave. (map) in what was formerly Uncle Sam's Gourmet Subs. Work has been been underway at the space since December 2019.

2003 Korean film Memories of Murder (살인의 추억) at Row House Cinema, from December 26.

Row House Cinema will present the 2003 Korean film Memories of Murder (살인의 추억) from December 26 through January 6 as part of its Staff Picks series.

Bong Joon-ho (Parasite) wrote and directed this fantastic crime thriller based on the real story of Korea’s first known serial killer. It’s widely considered one of the best films to ever come out of Korea and has been a longtime fav of our staff!

Tickets and showtime information is available online. The single-screen theater is located at 4115 Butler Street in Lawrenceville (map).

Macross Plus Movie Edition (マクロスプラス MOVIE EDITION) in Pittsburgh, December 14.

The Japanese animated film Macross Plus Movie Edition (マクロスプラス MOVIE EDITION), a threatrical cut of a 1994-1995 four-volume series, will play in Pittsburgh on December 14. From the distributor:

From the minds of vision creator Shoji Kawamori and co-director Shinichiro Watanabe, and featuring renowned composer Yoko Kanno, MACROSS PLUS MOVIE EDITION is an action-packed animated masterpiece made for the big screen!

In the year 2040, on the distant planet Eden, former childhood friends Isamu Dyson and Guld Bowman find themselves pitted against each other as test pilots of rival teams in a competition to decide the next generation of variable mecha fighters. The two must also deal with their own unresolved history with mutual love interest, Myung Fang Lone, who has returned as the manager of Sharon Apple, the AI pop star (virturoid) and the galaxy’s biggest singing sensation. When Sharon’s advanced artificial intelligence gains consciousness, Isamu, Myung, and Guld must face their turbulent past and come together as Sharon Apple becomes self-aware and takes control of the Macross battlefortress itself!

It will play locally at the AMC Loews Waterfront and the Cinemark Theaters in McCandless, Monaca, Monroeville, and Robinson. Tickets are available online.

Pittsburgh Opera presents world premiere of In A Grove, based on short story by Ryūnosuke Akutagawa, from February 19.

Pittsburgh Opera will present In A Grove, based on short story by Ryūnosuke Akutagawa, from February 19.

Music by Christopher Cerrone, libretto by Stephanie Fleischmann, based on the short story by Ryūnosuke Akutagawa

A silent, expectant grove. A violent encounter between a man, a woman, and a notorious brigand.

Seven testimonies, each proposing a different perspective on the crime. Akutagawa’s classic short story “In a Grove,” which inspired the plot of Kurosawa’s renowned film Rashomon, offers a searing investigation into the impossibility and elusiveness of truth.

Epic and intimate, timeless and devastatingly timely, the story’s structure lends itself powerfully to music’s ability to conjure—via repetition and variation—how human perception, memory, and desire are fallible, imprecise, and subject to interference.

Join us for this unique world-premiere experience in a place where the ground shifts beneath your feet—a space of ambiguity and clarity, of beauty and menace, and of fragility and strength.

Performances are on February 19, 22, 25, and 27, and March 1 and 3, 2022. Tickets are now available. The theater is located at 2425 Liberty Ave. in the Strip District (map).

"The Chinese Laundrymen of Squirrel Hill" presentation by Squirrel Hill Historical Society, February 8.

Tom Yee Laundry in Homestead, circa 1925.

The Squirrel Hill Historical Society will present Tammy Hepps and her discussion on "The Chinese Laundrymen of Squirrel Hill" on February 8.

Homestead Jewish historian Tammy Hepps, homesteadhebrews.com, will discuss the traumatic dispersion of Chinese laborers after the transcontinental railroad was built, examining their lives as laundrymen in context the microcosm of Squirrel Hill and Homestead.

For much more information on early Chinese residents in the area, and the context, see this well-researched article from the Homestead Hebrews website, whence the photograph of Tom Yee Laundry in Homestead comes.

The talk begins at 7:30 pm and is tentatively planned for the Church of the Redeemer at 5700 Forbes Ave. (map), though recent discussions have just been held over Zoom.