How lucky was I to be invited to the opening night of Asian Pop-up Cinema in Chicago yesterday? Very! The brainchild of Sophia Wong Boccio, Asian Pop-up Cinema is a series of Asian films that will be screened in the Chicago area this fall–and beyond.
The cocktail reception took place at Lao Szechuan on North Michigan Avenue. I was invited by the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office in New York and brought my oldest son Jake and my mom along. The place was hopping and I wish I had taken more photos inside, including group shots with friends and family against this backdrop.
But I was too busy talking and then listening to the opening remarks before we adjourned to the movie theater down the street. I did manage to get this photo just inside the restaurant (which is quite beautiful inside).
Once we made it to the theater, a raffle was drawn for two round-trip tickets to Hong Kong on Cathay Pacific, a proud sponsor of Asian Pop-up Cinema. I didn’t win, but it was still super exciting to have such a high-stakes raffle.
The movie shown last night was Hong Kong director Pan Ho-Cheung’s Women Who Flirt.
The movie was so much fun and appealed to people from all backgrounds. My 17 year old son enjoyed it as did my mom and I. A rom-com set in Shanghai and Taipei, it was in Mandarin with English and Chinese subtitles.
And if that wasn’t fabulous enough, as we exited the theater, each attendee received a gift bag! I love gift bags, especially when they’re Hong Kong-centric. This one included a Cathay Pacific bag and luggage tag, a picture holder from the HK Economic and Trade Office, and a $25 gift card to the Asian restaurant, Sunda. So much fun!
For the fall schedule of Asian Pop-up Cinema in Chicago, check out their website here.
Sophia’s Choice, the organization that created Asian Pop-up Cinema, will be holding the first ever Asian Film Festival in Chicago in the spring of 2017!
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