SDAFF 2009: Curtain Call

Fifteen days. We. Are. Done.

Last night was so fetch. The staff and volunteer leads were all dressed up, the theater was buzzing with people from everywhere, and the adrenaline was pumping. Part of the staff piles into theater seven, before the screening of IP MAN begins. Phil does a quick introduction for our chairman Dan Hom who proceeds to thank the board members and patrons. He then recognizes the four women in his life, mother, daughter and wife. And then of course, Lee Ann. Lee Ann gives thanks to everyone who makes this festival possible, and has the staff come to the front of the theater to be recognized. It feels good to know that we are making a difference and that our efforts are appreciated.

Hung out in the lobby for about an hour or so before we can go set up at All American Grill. Karin Anna Cheung is hilarious and she has some really funny behind the scenes stories of THE PEOPLE I’VE SLEPT WITH. Then my friend and I were looking for my name on the stars from the star campaign. Genius that I am, I’m walking around looking up at the stars instead of where I’m going. I end up completely running into the chairs we have in the Ikea Lounge and made this loud scraping noise before losing my balance and falling into them. I stood up and started cracking up. My friend’s like, did you just trip over those chairs? I nodded, still laughing, and he tries to convince me that no one saw. It’s ok if you laugh at me. If I can’t laugh at myself for being a klutz, I wouldn’t have nearly as much fun as I do. Anyway, we didn’t find my star. Sad. But it was cool looking at all the different stars we had up.

Then hung out at the Toyota booth for a while before going upstairs with Karin, Mark, Chi and Eugene. Took a trip to YogurtLand and just kicked it until we could get into All American Grill. As soon as that place opened for us to set up, we took over. Food stations, go. DJ table and equipment, go. Silent auction, go. Add patrons and mix well for a good time.

The night went very smoothly and I think everyone enjoyed themselves. We even had stars from WHITE ON RICE, THE PEOPLE I’VE SLEPT WITH, and ALL ABOUT DAD come back to celebrate the closing night of our tenth anniversary. Thank you guys for making the trip! It’s much appreciated =)

Then cleaned up a bit before heading out to Chorus for some karaoke-ing. Good times.

Much thanks to:
Volunteers (this festival would not happen without you guys)
Staff (this festival would REALLY not happen without you guys)
Lee Ann Kim (this festival wouldn’t even exist without you)
Board of Directors (you guys rock!)
Sponsors (we love you guys!)
Community Partners (thanks for supporting!)
Patrons (we do this for you! Hope you all enjoyed it!)
Industry Guests (we do this for you too! Thanks for coming out!)
Our wonderful, wonderful, wonderful host, UltraStar Cinema and their staff

Tonight? Well, if the party don’t stop, then Megan’s farewell party is the place to be. And tomorrow night? That’s Halloween, silly. I’m sure you’ll find something to do. And Sunday? If you’re suffering from SDAFF withdrawals, go see Ong Bak 2 (it actually opens today at the Landmark Hillcrest Theater). If we can create enough demand for Asian film, we’ll send a message to the big wigs that we want to see Asians on screen! Thereby creating opportunities for Asian actors (Ok, so it’s a bit of a stretch, but we can try). And next weekend? WHITE ON RICE plays in theaters nationwide! As a bonus for the San Diego crowd, the cast will be back! Gaslamp Reading Theater.

Take care, SDAFFers!