VCFest – now known as the Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival – begins today at a variety of sites across LA. Here is a quick look at a few of the notable films on the fest’s slate:

The People I’ve Slept With – USA
Quentin Lee and Koji Sakai team up for this rollicking sex and identity comedy starring Karin Anna Cheung. This film serves as the fest’s U.S. Centerpiece.
Screens Sat 5/1 7:00pm at DGA

Bodyguards and Assassins – Hong Kong
VC’s closing night film is a big budget HK historic actioner directed by Teddy Chan. The film takes place in the wild west that was Hong Kong in 1906 and stars such notable HK actors as Donnie Yen, Tony Leung Ka Fai, and Simon Yam.
Screens Thurs 5/6 7:00pm at The Aratani (in Little Tokyo)

She, A Chinese – China
This film from female filmmaker Guo Xiaolu looks to be an interesting character piece about identitiy and gender roles in modern China. It is preceeded by the short film Let Fly by UCSB Film grad Laurie Tsou. Congrats Laurie!
Screens Sun 5/2 4:00pm at Sunset 5.

VC’s Digital Posse – USA
Speaking of UCSB Film grads, VC’s popular Armed with a Camera shorts program is back and includes the short film Slip and Slide by Ms. Emily Lu. A collection of 10 other short narratives and docus screen along side. Pretty cool.
Screens Weds 5/5 8:00pm at The Aratani (in Little Tokyo)

Clash – Vietnam
If you enjoyed 2007’s The Rebel (which I loved), then you might want to catch this actioner directed by The Rebel‘s 1st AD Le Thanh Son and starring The Rebel stars Johnny Nguyen and Veronica Ngo.
Screens Sun 5/2 7:00pm at DGA

Beijing Taxi – China
Female director Miao Wang has put together a modern day portrait of China’s capital from the perspective of three taxi drivers in the days preceding the 2008 Olympics.
Screens Sun 5/2 6:30pm at DGA

The Taqwacores – USA
Straight from critical acclaim at Sundance, Eyad Zahra’s story of a Pakistani-American punk rock and identity makes its LA debut at VC.
Screens Fri 4/30 10:00pm at DGA

Last Train Home – China
I was a big fan of this Chinese migration documentary at Sundance.
Screens Sat 5/1 3:30pm at Sunset 5

The Chinese Connection – Hong Kong
Don’t miss this free outdoor screening of the 1972 Bruce Lee classic. It screens in the Madang Courtyard (Western & 6th) on Friday 4/30 at 8:00pm.

Villon’s Wife – Japan
Tadanobu Asano and Takaku Matsu star in Kichitaro Negishi’s highly decorated drama set in 1947 Tokyo.
Screens Fri 4/30 7:30pm at Sunset 5 and Weds 5/5 4:30pm at Downtown Independent

The Mountain Thief – Philippines
This interesting sounding narrative explores the poorest of the poor who live in Manilla’s largest dump. Writer/Director Gerry Balasta went so far as to cast the actual inhabitants, teaching them how to act in the process.
Screens Sat 5/1 12:30pm at DGA and Sun 5/2 5:00pm at DGA

Adrift – Vietnam
“Bui Thac Chuyen’s seductive and atmospheric rumination on sexual awakening as modern day Vietnam enters a social and moral crossroad.”
Screens Weds 5/5 7:00pm at Downtown Independent

Red and White – Indonesia
This historical drama set against Indonesia’s 1947 struggle for independence boasts the highest budget of any Indonesian film and is said to have some pretty impressive battle scenes.
Screens (for FREE) Fri 4/30 5:00pm at DGA

Hope you can make some screenings.

Ever wonder how Mega Man, Simon Belmont, Link, Samus, or the dude from Contra would fair in the Mushroom Kingdom? Well the awesome folks from Exploding Rabbit want you to find out. Each character has different powers that change as they power up. It is a great idea and will hopefully lead to more. Check it out

via GeniusTown

The competition lineup of 16 films for the upcoming 63rd Cannes Film Festival was released today. Here is a quick look at the titles that will be vying for the prestigious (and usually disappointing) Palme d’Or.

Outrage by Takeshi Kitano
Takeshi Kitano returns to his roots with this new crime drama in which he also star. Trailer (in Japanese)

Another Year by Mike Leigh
I wasn’t a huge fan of Leigh’s Happy-Go-Lucky, but Leigh is a great filmmaker and I’m sure this film starring Lesley Manville and Jim Broadbent will be of the utmost quality.

Tournee by Mathieu Amalric
Amalric is probably best known as the star of Julian Schnabel’s The Diving Bell and the Butterfly (he was also in Quantum of Solace). He takes a turn behind the camera in this movie about American burlesque dancers in Paris.

Des Hommes et des Dieux (Of Gods and Men) by Xavier Beauvois
I know very little about actor/director Beauvois. This film centers around a 1996 murder of French monks in Algeria.

Hors la loi (Outside the Law) by Rachid Bouchareb
This movie is about the Algerian struggle for independence following WWII. It should be familiar territory for the French-born Bouchareb. His 2006 film Indigenes (Days of Glory) is about Algerian forces in WWII. That film won the acting prize at Cannes and was nominated for the Best Foreign Language Oscar.

Fair Game by Doug Liman
Okay so Jumper was nothing special but Liman also directed Swingers and Go. This political thriller stars Naomi Watts and Sean Penn as Valerie Plame and Joe Wilson. Can you guess who plays who?

Un Homme Qui Crie (A Screaming Man) by Mahamat-Saleh Haroun
Tough to find much about the film from the Chad-born Haroun.

Housemaidby Im Sang-soo
Ooh, a Korean horror film in competition at Cannes oughta be pretty good.

Poetry by Lee Chang-dong
Lee’s 2007 film Secret Sunshine won an acting prize at Cannes. This movie is about a Korean woman in her 60s who develops an interest in poetry. Sounds exciting.

Copie Conforme (The Certified Copy) by Abbas Kiarostami
Kiarostami is possibly Iran’s most famous filmmaker. He won the Palme d’Or in 1997 for Taste of Cherry. He returns with this romantic drama set in Italy and starring Juliette Binoche.

You, My Joy by Sergei Loznitsa
I got nuthin…

Biutiful by Alejandro Gonzales Inarritu
Inarritu (Babel) returns with his first all Spanish film since Amorres Perros. It is also his first film not written by Guillermo Arriaga – so expect more cohesion (maybe). The film stars Javier Bardem.

La Nostra Vita by Daniele Luchetti
Luchetti is a protege of Italian director extraordinaire Nanni Moretti.

Utomlyonnye Solntsem 2 (Burnt by the Sun 2) by Nikita Mikhalkov
This is Mikhailov’s sequel to the 1994 Cannes Grand Prix and Foreign Language Oscar winning Soviet epic Burnt by the Sun.

La Princesse de Montpensier by Bertrand Tavernier
This looks to be a 16th century French costumer. Tavernier is most famous for his 1986 film ‘Round Midnight.

Loong Boonmee Raleuk Chaat (Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives) by Apichatpong Weerasethakul
This Thai director has received a ton of awards over his rather short filmography. 2002’s Blissfully Yours won the Un Certain Regard prize at Cannes. 2004’s Tropical Malady won a Cannes jury prize. 2006’s Syndromes and a Century was highlighted at both Venice and Toronto.

We will surely be hearing more about these films as the fest approaches.

South by Southwest’s official name may be the SXSW Music and Media Conference, but according to iW’s Eugene Hernandez, the film side of things took over center stage this year with an explosion. I was unable to make it, but I’ve been pouring over the titles in the couple weeks since and here is what caught my eye and had people talking.

COMPETITION WINNERS

TINY FURNITURE – The big Narrative Jury Prize was won by 23 year old Lena Dunham for her very well received semi-autobiographical offbeat New York comedy. Check out the trailer at the site.

BROOTHERHOOD – Will Canon’s college frat thriller won the Narrative Audience Award, claimed some of the very highest critics’ marks, and scored international distribution. Congrats guys.

MARWENCOL – This Docu Jury winner is about a man who creates a 1/6 scale WWII era village in his back yard. It is directed by Jeff Malmberg, who you probably remember as editor on 2008 Paris Hilton hit The Hottie and the Nottie.

WAR DON DON – This heavy duty looking docu about the International Criminal Court system (with a focus on Sierra Leone) won the prize for Docu Jury runner-up. Trailer here.

FOR ONCE IN MY LIFE – The Audience Docu Award went to this inspirational story of a group of disabled musicians. Looks pretty amazing from the trailer.

PREMIERES

ELEKTRA LUXX – This movie about a porn star quitting the biz features Joseph Gordon Levitt, Timothy Olyphant, and Emmanuelle Chriqui (as a porn star – but not the title porn star). Even more interesting, this is the second film in a trilogy (the first is titled Women in Trouble) by Sebastian Gutierrez, screenwriter of Snakes on a Plane.

COLD WEATHER – It seemed everyone was a big fan of this Atmospheric looking crime drama by young director Aaron Katz. I mean if Jason Reitman digs it, it has gotta be good.

LEAVES OF GRASS – Ed Norton stars as identical twins in actor/director Tim Blake Nelson’s pot growing comic thriller. I’ve been hearing very good things about this one which is set for a late summer release.

CARGO – This low budget Swiss sci-fi thriller had a good deal of buzz – mostly because there aren’t a lot of low budget Swiss sci-fi thrillers. However the critics have been pretty underwhelmed. The movie seems to have quite a few similarities to Sunshine – just check out the trailer. It is bound to be the best Swiss sci-fi thriller trailer you watch this week.

DOCUMENTARIES

PELADA – This competition docu is about some soccer fans that traveled the globe looking for the untold stories of the game. Check out the official site which includes the trailer. Looks amazing!!

SATURDAY NIGHT – James Franco directs a docu about hosting SNL. With behind the scenes action rarely captured, I’m pretty excited to catch this one.

THUNDER SOUL – It sounds like people loved Mark Landsman’s docu that tells the story of a 1970s high school band that became a funk sensation.

AIN’T IN IT FOR MY HEALTH: A FILM ABOUT LEVON HELM – Jacob Hatley’s docu follows The Band great as he reemerges into the spotlight after 25 years in the shadows.

THE THORN IN THE HEART – This charming looking partially animated docu by Michel Gondry about his school teacher Aunt premiered at Cannes and opened in NYC last Friday. Trailer

HEADLINERS – Like most fests, SXSW has a special out of competition section for hot titles from studios or indies that might not be making their premiers. The section featured Sundance holdovers The Runaways, Cyrus, Four Lions, and Get Low (Winter’s Bone and a number of others screened in the “Festival Favorites” section while Tucker and Dale vs. Evil and Enter the Void were in with the Midnighters). Here are a few non Sundance notables:

MICMACS – It has been five years since Jean-Pierre Jeunet gave us A Very Long Engagement (his follow up to Amelie). This film promises to offer another glimpse into his comic-romantic whimsy.

KICK ASS – Most of the pre-fest buzz was for this SXSW opener directed by Matthew Vaughn (Stardust). By now you’ve probably seen the ads for this comic book action comedy starring the dream team duo of Nic Cage and McLovin. It hits theaters April 16.

MACGRUBER – It’s hard not to be excited about the latest SNL spinoff starring Will Forte, Kristen Wiig, and Val Kilmer (as villain Dieter Von Cunth). The film – which only cost a surprising $10M – drops April 23.

MR. NICE – Bernard Rose’s interesting sounding British crime comedy stars Rhys Ifans alongside Chloe Sevigny. The film had the critics relatively happy.

WHAT ELSE?

MARS – Mumblecore in space! Mark Duplass stars in Geoff Marslett’s (yep, that’s his name) rotoscoped love comedy sci-fi. Trailer.

CHERRY – This film in the “Emerging Visions” category had many people talking. It’s a witty looking college sex comedy written and directed by unknown TV director Jeffrey Fine. The trailer looks great.

MONSTERS – One of the quick sales at the fest was this cool sounding sci-fi road movie by Gareth Edwards.

CENTURION – Screening as a SXSW/Fantastic Fest midnight surprise, this Roman-Brit epic is directed by Neil Marshall. As a bit of a fan of Marshall’s, I’m excited to hear that the film retains some of Marshall’s B-movie charm that made both The Descent and Doomsday such fun. It also stars Bond girl ultra-hottie Olga Kurylenko. Trailer.

Apologies for so much time in between posts. Watch for a Tribeca preview and look ahead at the Summer fests soon enough.