22 PHILIPPINE ASIAN NEWS TODAY April 16 - 30 , 2018
Film Highlights Overseas Filipino Workers in Hong Kong Domestic Helpers Who Transform Themselves Into Dazzling Beauty Queens for One Special Day
Demand Film , the Australianbased “ event cinema ” film distributor who successfully brought the documentary feature “ Mamil ” to screens throughout Canada in 2017 , will present the Canadian premiere of documentary feature “ Sunday Beauty Queen ” at 20 cinemas throughout Canada on Monday , May 14 . All seating for the one-night national screening must be reserved in advance , online at https :// ca . demand . film / sundaybeauty-queen .
Directed by Baby Ruth Villarama and shot over the period of four years , “ Sunday Beauty Queen ” follows a particular , yet universal , tale of OFWs ( Overseas Filipino Workers ), Filipino maids and domestic helpers who compete to become Hong Kong ’ s beauty queens on their one day of freedom each week , while also revealing their workaday lives lived with their employers . They work long hours for near-slave wages in order to support families living back in the Philippines . “ Sunday Beauty Queen ” features the real stories of five women among the thousands of OFWs ( Overseas Filipino Workers ) in Hong Kong working as domestic helpers . Each Sunday , these Filipino maids transform themselves into dazzling beauty queens , entertaining their fellow Filipinos and raising funds for distressed OFWs in need of help .
“’ Sunday Beauty Queen ’ is not just an OFW story ,” says director Baby Ruth Villarama . “ It ’ s the story of every Filipino , struggling to make a living and yet finding light and hope in any way they can .”
“ Sunday Beauty Queen ” has been featured at numerous international film festivals , including the Metro Manila Film Festival 2016 , where it was named Best Picture ; CinemaAsia Film Festival 2017 , where it won the Audience Choice Award for Best Documentary , the Busan International Film Festival , HotDocs 2017 and Shanghai International Film Festival 2017 , among others . Variety hailed the film as “ an engaging documentary on Filipina overseas workers ’ selfempowerment through beauty pageants .”
Demand Film has agreements in place with both major movie theatre chains as well as independent screens , whereby Demand Film essentially co-ops traditionally low attendance nights , and crowd-sources audiences to those cinemas with unique offerings of cinema-worthy films .
Following is a complete list of cinemas where “ Sunday Beauty Queen ” will screen on Monday , May 14 at Cineplex esplanade in North Vancouver , Cineplex Strawberry Hill in Surrey and Cineplex Park Theatre in Vancouver . All showings are at 7:00 pm , local time , with the exception of Calgary , where the film will screen at 8:00 pm local time . ( From website https :// ca . demand . film / sunday-beauty-queen /)
Serena Ryder and Brett Kissel to Headline Surrey Canada Day 2018
Surrey , BC – Canadian singersongwriters Serena Ryder and Brett Kissel will co-headline City of Surrey ’ s annual Canada Day celebration on Sunday , July 1 at Bill Reid Millennium Amphitheatre .
Presented by Coast Capital Savings , this year ’ s free familyfriendly event — featuring an amusement park , midway games and interactive activities for all ages — is expected to be the largest Canada Day event in Western Canada , welcoming over 100,000 throughout the day .
“ Our annual Canada Day celebration draws record crowds from throughout the Lower Mainland to experience the best in Canadian entertainment here in Surrey ,” said Mayor Linda Hepner . “ This year I am proud to present our first ever co-headline performance . I want to extend an open invitation to our residents and visitors to come celebrate our national pride and community spirit at Surrey ’ s Canada Day celebration .”
Additional musical guests include Toque , Warren Dean Flandez , DJ Flipout and Krystle Dos Santos . New to the event this year is the Maple Leaf Stage presented by Tim Hortons , featuring performances by emerging Surrey
MHHS ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING
“ The Multicultural Helping House Society Annual General Meeting will be held on Saturday , June 23 , 2018 at the MHHS Building , located at 4802 Fraser Street , Vancouver , BC V5H4H4
All members are encouraged to attend . Nomination for Board Members are now being accepted . Nomination Forms will be available at the MHHS Reception desk . See guidelines for details .
Deadline for submission of nominations will be at midnight , May 20 , 2018 . For more information call Cholo Insua 778 882 7024
talent . Additional features include an Indigenous Village , drone racing , amusement rides , food trucks and a kid ’ s zone .
“ Coast Capital Savings ’ community activities support youth , and Canada Day events such as the City of Surrey ’ s celebration are a great example of community building activities that bring multigenerations together to nurture our rich history and national pride ,” said Wendy Lachance ,
Director , Community Leadership , Coast Capital Savings . “ We are excited to give young people — and the entire Surrey community — an opportunity to celebrate the birth of our nation at a fun , inclusive and accessible event .”
Bill Reid Millennium Amphitheatre is located at 176 Street and 64 Avenue in Cloverdale . Doors open at 10 a . m . with the fireworks finale at 10:30 p . m . Learn more at www . surrey . ca / canadaday .
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