Event
PENN ARTS & SCIENCES PRESENTS The 2022 Stephen A. Levin Family Dean’s Forum
Crazy Determined Asians: Jon M. Chu and the Power of Representation
Jon M. Chu, Storyteller, Filmmaker & Director in conversation with David L. Eng, Richard L. Fisher Professor of English and Asian American Studies
Filmmaker Jon M. Chu joins David L. Eng to talk about artistic passion and the power of representation. Chu’s blockbuster Crazy Rich Asians, the first film by a major Hollywood studio to feature an all-Asian cast in more than 25 years, is a visual feast that helps to counter racial animus at a time when violence against AAPI communities is on the rise. He followed it with his adaptation of Lin-Manuel Miranda's musical In the Heights, and is in pre-production on Wicked. As one of Hollywood’s most sought-after filmmakers, Chu’s coming of age also signals a national coming of age for Asian Americans in the arts.
The 2022 Stephen A. Levin Family Dean’s Forum will take place on Thursday, March 17 from 4:30 -6:00 PM (doors open at 4:00 PM).The event will not be livestreamed, but we will record it for internal distribution.
Check highlights of the event here:
Director Jon M. Chu talks to Professor David Eng about his earliest beginnings in film and gaining the support of his family as a filmmaker.
https://vimeo.com/694512109/9d710a2b81 [vimeo.com]
Director Jon M. Chu talks to Professor David Eng about social change and addressing violence towards AAPI communities.
https://vimeo.com/694507064/d21ce351f5 [vimeo.com]
Director Jon M. Chu discusses his response to #OscarsSoWhite and his motivation to make Crazy Rich Asians.
https://vimeo.com/694506649/0c0c8fbea5 [vimeo.com]
Director Jon M. Chu talks about overcoming the polarization around issues of race.
https://vimeo.com/694505870/7a640566fb [vimeo.com]