TORRANCE, Calif., July 7 CA-Toyota-AsianFilm
TORRANCE, Calif., July 7 /PRNewswire/ -- The Toyota Matrix is the official
vehicle sponsor of the 31st Asian American International Film Festival
(AAIFF), running July 10 through July 19, 2008.
The festival takes place in New York City, and reaches an audience of more
than 25,000 during the eight days. Proudly known as "The First Home to Asian
American Cinema," the AAIFF was the nation's first festival dedicated to
screening works by media artists of Asian descent and about the Asian
community. Presented by Asian CineVision in association with Asia Society, it
continues to be the leading showcase for Asian American film and video.
"Toyota is proud to be a part of such a historical event that supports the
Asian American film industry," said Dionne Colvin, National Advertising
Strategy Planning Manager. "As the official vehicle sponsor of the AAIFF,
Toyota encourages and promotes rising talent in the Asian community."
Toyota Matrix will be involved with several events throughout the
week-long festival, including providing a shuttle service that will transport
guests from the screenings to the after-parties. Prior to the festival, Toyota
Matrix will also sponsor an online scavenger hunt where festival fans can
search for clues and submit their findings to the AAIFF website. The answers
for the scavenger hunt will be on Matrix's very own Asian American cinema
site, http://www.thedirectorschairsite.com. The site features the latest
interviews, movie reviews and special insider information on the Asian
American film industry. Winners of the scavenger hunt will redeem tickets to
select screenings and other festival prizes.
The festival will open on Thursday, July 10, with the East Coast debut of
"Princess of Nebraska," marking acclaimed director Wayne Wang's return to
indie filmmaking. The opening night presentation will be followed by a gala
reception at the Asia Society.
On Saturday, July 19, the festivities will close with "Ping Pong Playa,"
the first narrative feature film from Academy Award-winning director Jessica
Yu. Also on closing night is the awards ceremony, where the AAIFF will present
awards in seven different categories, including Emerging Director and
Excellence in Short Filmmaking.
"Toyota, while tapping into this niche of cinema culture, is demonstrating
that it is savvy about reaching out to not only the content creators but this
most desirable demographic as well," said John C. Woo, Acting Director of
Asian CineVision.
For more information about the Asian American International Film Festival,
please visit http://aaiff.org/2008. And to find out more about the 2009 Toyota
Matrix, please visit http://www.toyota.com/matrix.
Media Contact:
Toyota Motor Sales, U.S.A.
Cindy Knight
(310) 468-2170
Cindy_Knight@Toyota.com
interTrend Communications, Inc.
Jennifer Chang
(562) 733-1855
Jennifer@intertrend.com
AAIFF
Clara Yun
clara@asiancinevision.org
SOURCE Toyota Motor Sales, U.S.A.
