[WEBCAST] Tigertail: Alan Yang on Immigration and Sacrifice
VIEW EVENT DETAILSTigertail producer/director Alan Yang talks about Taiwan, immigration, and sacrifice with Hollywood producer Janet Yang. (53 min., 55 sec.)
What must one sacrifice in the search for a better life? While many risk their lives to reach new and unfamiliar places, others must leave family, loved ones, and the comforts of home behind. At a time when xenophobia is on the rise, Tigertail is an important and powerful story that explores the complexities of the immigrant experience. The film follows a man’s journey from Taiwan to the United States and focuses on his reflections on life, relationships, and difficult choices he had to face in search of opportunity. It should be a familiar story for immigrants and their descendants — regardless of their origins — and serves as a reminder that the decision to immigrate is not an easy one and often comes with a price.
Join us for a conversation with Tigertail director and award-winning writer Alan Yang on his debut film and his perspectives on immigration, identity, and the American dream. In discussing his acclaimed body of work, Yang will share his views on representation in media and why the Asian American point of view is so important — now more than ever. The conversation will be moderated by the acclaimed Golden Globe and Emmy Award-winning producer Janet Yang.
Tigertail trailer (2 minutes).
Speakers
Alan Yang is a writer, director, and producer. He is the co-creator, executive producer, and director of the Netflix series Master of None, for which he received the 2016 Emmy Award for Best Writing in a Comedy Series, becoming the first Asian-American recipient in the award's history. The show has been nominated for twelve Emmys and three Golden Globes and was the recipient of a Peabody Award, two AFI Awards, and the Critics' Choice Award for Best Comedy. He is also the director, writer, and producer of Tigertail, an intergenerational Taiwanese-American family drama inspired by his own family's story. He serves as an executive producer of the critically-acclaimed Apple TV+ anthology series Little America and co-created the WGA-nominated Amazon Prime Video series Forever, starring Maya Rudolph, Fred Armisen, and Catherine Keener. He also directed the music video for Jay-Z's MOONLIGHT, starring Lakeith Stanfield, Tessa Thompson, Tiffany Haddish, Jerrod Carmichael, and Issa Rae. Previously, he was a writer, co-executive producer, and director for Parks and Recreation, for which he was nominated for an Emmy in 2015.
Janet Yang (moderator) is a Golden Globe and Emmy Award-winning Hollywood producer with deep roots in China, and a member of the Board of Governors of the Motion Picture Academy, having worked with some of the most formidable directors and actors in the world. She came to prominence through her collaboration with Steven Spielberg on Empire of the Sun, followed by a long partnership with multiple Academy Award-winner Oliver Stone—where she served as Executive Producer on the iconic The Joy Luck Club, and as a producer on the Golden Globe-winning The People vs. Larry Flynt. She is currently in production on an animated feature based on her original story inspired by the Chinese moon goddess. Iconic animator Glen Keane directs the movie for Netflix and Pearl Studios. She has been named one of the “50 Most Powerful Women in Hollywood” by the Hollywood Reporter. She has been a long-standing member of the Committee of 100; is an advisory board member of Asia Society Southern California, where she also chairs its highly-regarded U.S.-Asia Entertainment Summit; and is co-founder of Gold House, the non-profit collective of influential Asian cultural leaders. She serves on the Motion Picture Academy’s Executive Committee of the Producers Branch, its International Outreach Committee, its Diversity Membership Committee, and its Academy Museum Committee.
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