"Innovative Curricular Models in East Asia," November 17 at Pitt.

The University of Pittsburgh's Institute for International Studies in Education will host "Innovative Curricular Models in East Asia" on November 17.

IISE is honored and proud to host Huiyuan Ye (Pitt alum), Research Fellow of the Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs at Duke Kunshan University in China; Weiyan Xiong (Pitt alum) Research Assistant Professor at Lingnan University in Hong Kong; and Gerardo Blanco-Ramírez, Associate Professor and Academic Director of the Center for International Higher Education at Boston College.

Our distinguished participants will be sharing their work/study on innovative liberal arts and sciences curricular models in East Asian region.

The free event runs from 11:00 am to 12:00 pm on Zoom, and registration is required.

"Imperial Gateway: Colonial Taiwan and Japanese Expansion in South China and Southeast Asia, 1895–1945," November 15 at Pitt.

via @seijishirane

The University of Pittsburgh will host Dr. Seiji Shirane and his talk "Imperial Gateway: Colonial Taiwan and Japanese Expansion in South China and Southeast Asia, 1895–1945" on November 15, part of the center's Asia Now Fall Lecture Series.

This talk examines how Japanese colonizers and Taiwanese subjects transformed colonial Taiwan—the sub-tropical island Japan acquired from China in 1895—into a staging ground for imperial expansion across the East and South China seas. Taking advantage of Taiwan's proximity and cultural affinities with South China and Southeast Asia, Japanese colonial leaders innovated new strategies to compete with the Chinese and Western powers for regional hegemony. They mobilized Taiwanese overseas as economic and cultural brokers in the pre-war period (1895–1937) and as military personnel during the Asia-Pacific wars (1937–45). Studying the intricate ties between colonial governance and international relations helps us transcend the conventional emphasis on two-way relations between Japan's home islands and each of its colonies. A regional approach to Taiwan allows us to recover transnational networks often neglected due to divisions in area studies. Japanese imperialism was a contested process among not only state agencies but also mobile colonial subjects whose interests did not easily map on to national, local, or ethnic categories. The overseas Taiwanese in particular challenge prevailing assumptions of imperial hierarchies. Gradations of power and categories of identity—colonizer and colonized—were much more fluid outside Taiwan's territorial borders.

It runs from 4:30 to 5:45 pm in 211 Lawrence Hall, and is free and open to members of the Pitt community who abide by the university's health guidelines.

2021 movie My Hero Academia: World Heroes' Mission (僕のヒーローアカデミア THE MOVIE ワールドヒーローズミッション) continues in Pittsburgh, through November 17.

he 2021 movie My Hero Academia: World Heroes' Mission (僕のヒーローアカデミア THE MOVIE ワールドヒーローズミッション), which opened in Pittsburgh on October 29, will play here through at least November 17. A synopsis, from the distributor.

When a sinister organization threatens to wipe out all superhuman powers, the fate of the world is on the line. With two hours until the collapse of civilization, Deku, Bakugo, and Todoroki manage to work as a team, but there’s still one problem. Deku’s on the run for murder.

It will continue at the AMC theaters at the Waterfront and South Hills Village Mall. Tickets are available online; please note, some shows are dubbed in English while others are in Japanese with English subtitles.

Looking For A Lady With Fangs And A Moustache at Pitt, November 13.

SCREENSHOT:ASIA will present another screening of Looking For A Lady With Fangs And A Moustache, which opened last month's SCREENSHOT:ASIA film festival, on November 13. From an April 8 New York Times review:

In Khyentse Norbu’s “Looking for a Lady with Fangs and a Moustache,” a Nepalese entrepreneur searches for spiritual enlightenment, hoping to avert a fatal prophecy. Looking to set up a new cafe, Tenzin (Tsering Tashi Gyalthang) sees unnerving visions after scouting an abandoned temple. With mounting fear, he follows the gnomic suggestions of a Buddhist monk in shades and a master sage, who insists that he find a goddess manifest on earth, known as a dakini.
The writer-director Norbu, a Buddhist spiritual leader making his fifth feature, presents Tenzin as a hip modern guy in bluejeans with a wide smile that vanishes as soon as he has to seek self-awareness. The cozy streets of Kathmandu become like a place without a map to Tenzin as he scans passing strangers for signs of divine femininity and leaves his business partners in the lurch. There’s a slight narrative echo of romantic comedy as the monk and the master sage feed him tips and ritual gestures, and it appears the woman he seeks could be right under his nose, in the form of a singer (Tenzin Kunsel) from his music lessons.

It will play at the Frick Fine Arts Building in Oakland at 7:00 pm, and registration is required. It is free and open to the Pitt community and to registered guests. (Those who do not have a valid Pitt ID will need to register at least 24 hours in advance in order to have guest access granted.)

1986 Studio Ghibli film Castle in the Sky (天空の城ラピュタ) in Pittsburgh, November 14, 15, and 18.

The 1986 Studio Ghibli film Castle in the Sky (天空の城ラピュタ) will play in Pittsburgh on November 14, 15, and 18 as part of Studio Ghibli Fest 2021. From the distributor:

Castle in the Sky is a timeless story of courage and friendship, with stunning animation from acclaimed Academy Award®-winning director Hayao Miyazaki.

This high-flying adventure begins when Pazu, an engineer’s apprentice, spies a young girl, Sheeta, floating down from the sky, held aloft by a glowing pendant. Both Sheeta and Pazu are searching for the legendary floating castle, Laputa, and they vow to travel there together to unravel the mystery of the luminous crystal. But their quest won’t be easy, as soon they are being pursued by greedy air pirates, the military, and secret government agents, who all seek the power Sheeta alone can control.The English-dubbed cast includes the vocal talents of Anna Paquin, James Van Der Beek, Cloris Leachman, Mark Hamill, Mandy Patinkin, and more!

It plays locally at the AMC Loews Waterfront and the Cinemark theaters in Monroeville, North Hills, and Robinson, and tickets are available online. The November 14 and 18 shows are dubbed in English while the November 15 show is in Japanese with English subtitles.

Tickets now available for concert film Monsta X: The Dreaming screenings in Pittsburgh, December 9 and 11.

Tickets are now available for the concert film Monsta X: The Dreaming, which will play in Pittsburgh on December 9 and 11.

Is it the knowingIs it the seeingOr Is It The DreamingBest known for their powerful, iconic, and superb performances, K-pop and pop band MONSTA X is loved by -and devoted to -their countless fans around the world.As a gift to their fandom, this brand-new film gives an intimate look at their rigorous journey over the past six years including exclusive one-on-one interviews with each individual member, personal stories from their time in America, and a special concert clip exclusively for MONBEBE. This unmissable cinema event also includes high-energy musical performances of their chart-topping hits along with an exclusive first-look at their upcoming album. Challenge, evolve, and dream. Celebrate the magnificent achievements and the stunning tomorrow of MONSTA X.

So far it has been announced for the AMC Loews Waterfront and the Cinemark theater in Monroeville, and tickets are avaiable online.

"Becoming (and Un-Becoming) Masters of their Own Homes: From United Front to Rebellion on Tibetan Borderland of Early-Maoist China," November 8 at Pitt.

The University of Pittsburgh's Asian Studies Center will host Dr. Benno Weiner and his talk "Becoming (and Un-Becoming) Masters of their Own Homes: From United Front to Rebellion on Tibetan Borderland of Early-Maoist China" on November 8 as part of the center's Asian Now Lecture Series.

When in 1949 the Chinese Communist Party “liberated” the ethnocultural frontier region known to Tibetans as Amdo, its goal was not just to construct a state, but to create a nation—not just control, but transformation. While state building might have been accomplished through coercion, Party leaders understood that nation making required narratives and policies capable of convincing Amdo’s diverse inhabitants of their communion with a wider political community. Rather than immediately implement socialist reforms, the CCP initially pursued relatively moderate “United Front” policies meant to “gradually” and “organically” persuade Tibetans and Amdo’s other non-Han inhabitants of their membership in the new multiethnic nation. At the outset of 1958’s Great Leap Forward, however, United Front gradualism was jettisoned in favor of rapid collectivization. This led to large-scale rebellion, overwhelming state repression, and widespread famine. Rather than a “voluntary” and “peaceful” transformation, Amdo was incorporated through the inordinate and often indiscriminate deployment of state violence. In this talk, Benno Weiner discusses the Communist Party’s United Front strategy in Amdo, the 1958 Amdo Rebellion, and ways in which the violence of 1958 and its aftermath continue to cloud efforts to integrate Tibetans and others into the modern Chinese nation-state.

Benno Weiner is Associate Professor in the Department of History at Carnegie Mellon University. He is author of the Chinese Revolution on the Tibetan Frontier (Cornell UP) and co-editor of Contested Memories: Tibetan History under Mao Retold (Brill).

The hybrid event will take place in 211 Lawrence Hall or on Zoom. It starts at 4:30 pm and registration is required.

University of Pittsburgh hiring Digital Marketing Manager, bilingual in Chinese-English (or Spanish-English) preferred.

The University of Pittsburgh's Office of Admissions and Financial Aid is hiring a Digital Marketing Manager, with a preference for someone fluent in Chinese or Spanish in addition to English.

The Digital Marketing Manager will support the marketing and communications of the University of Pittsburgh's Office of Admissions and Financial Aid (OAFA), reporting to the Director of Marketing Communications. The role requires an in-depth understanding of and a passion for digital marketing, content creation, website and SEO management, social media marketing, and email/sms marketing, preferably for higher education. The ideal candidate will have professional experience working with website content management systems, social media platforms, and salesforce marketing cloud within a marketing and communications framework. Applicants should have experience with campaign planning, data-driven decision making, creative problem solving, and project management. The role will assist with developing strategic, omnichannel campaigns with shifting priorities under multiple deadlines. Teamwork will be essential as the candidate will collaborate with teammates to brainstorm, produce, create, and distribute digital content to key target audiences. Knowledge of Google Analytics and data-driven decision-making for SEO, website management, social, email, and all marketing channels utilized by the Marketing Communications team will be crucial for this role. The incumbent will have a passion for marketing and will immerse themselves in the conversation with key audiences, competitors, and partners under the direction of the Director of Marketing Communications and in alignment with, and support of, OAFA and University goals and communication standards. The Digital Marketing Manager will proactively collaborate with all business units within OAFA and around the University to develop and manage digital content, including writing, proofreading, editing, and organizing content to ensure it is current, accurate, succinct, clear, and effective. It is preferred that the candidate be bilingual with fluency in Spanish or Chinese to assist in creating and translating marketing materials for target populations. The incumbent will also interact with various levels within or outside the University, including Deans, Directors, and Department Heads. This interaction may include interpreting and explaining ideas and concepts as well as solving problems and coordinating projects. The results of actions by the incumbent may have a significant, sometimes financial, impact on a department's operations.

Masters degree wtih 2-3 years of related work experience. It is preferred that the candidate be bilingual with fluency in Spanish or Chinese to assist in creating and translating marketing materials for target populations.

2021 movie My Hero Academia: World Heroes' Mission (僕のヒーローアカデミア THE MOVIE ワールドヒーローズミッション) continues in Pittsburgh, through November 10.

he 2021 movie My Hero Academia: World Heroes' Mission (僕のヒーローアカデミア THE MOVIE ワールドヒーローズミッション), which opened in Pittsburgh on October 29, will play here through at least November 10. A synopsis, from the distributor.

When a sinister organization threatens to wipe out all superhuman powers, the fate of the world is on the line. With two hours until the collapse of civilization, Deku, Bakugo, and Todoroki manage to work as a team, but there’s still one problem. Deku’s on the run for murder.

It will continue at the AMC theaters at the Waterfront, South Hills Village Mall, and Westmoreland County, plus the Cinemark theater in Monroeville. Tickets are available online; please note, some shows are dubbed in English while others are in Japanese with English subtitles.

"Lions Stories: an introduction to Chinese Lion Dance," November 4 at Northland Public Library.

via @SteelDragonMartialArts

Northland Public Library will host "Lions Stories: an introduction to Chinese Lion Dance" with Chris Young of Steel Dragon on November 4.

An emblematic symbol of Chinese culture, the Chinese lion dance has a continuous history of over a thousand years. Used in ceremonies ranging from the more formal and solemn to the more informal and joyous, a lion dance can also be used to tell a story and simply entertain. Join Chris Young, founder of Gong Lung or Steel Dragon, as he presents overview of lion dance, including its history, some of the different types, and some of the structure and meanings in the dance.

The event runs from 6:00 to 7:30 pm; it's free, but registration and masks are required. Northland Public Library is located at 300 Cumberland Road in McCandless Township (map).