12/5/09 -"Images of East Asia" one-day workshop at UTLA

I found this workshop to be extremely valuable. The speakers were all very knowledgeable and diverse. I especially enjoyed listening to Irv Drasnin. I had a better understanding of the cultural revolution through his perspective as a filmmaker and documentarian. His film, "Misunderstanding China", is a candid view of China in 1972. Although it is probably something I wouldn't show to my fourth graders, if only because it is not "entertaining" enough for 10 year olds, I have already shared it with several colleagues. The documentary is definitely appropriate for high school students and would be an interesting resource to help teach about certain freedoms we take for granted here in America.

In regards to the other speakers, I was also impressed with Jie Zhang's presentation. The list of movies she provided was impressive. I appreciated how she organized the titles by generation and by film movements (new wave, underground, etc.). I had seen some of the movies she spoke of, but will be sure to revisit them. In addition, I look forward to discovering new titles from her list.

I think that this seminar tends to stand out the most to me, and it is because of all the "images" included. Because I teach a foreign language (Spanish) and visual culture is such a huge part of connecting students, I have seen the important factors in using film, photography, documentary, etc. to "show" rather than "tell". I know we all learn in a variety of modalities, but I think visual "artistic expression" and the ability that it gives us to create our own interpretations are where real learning is exemplified.
Great seminar.

I also enjoyed listening to Irv Drasnin and having the opportunity to not only see some of his documentary but also to receive a copy of it! I plan on using parts of this documentary to help students visualize and "feel" what was truly happening during the Cold War. People who did not live through this era have a diffcult time grasping the international intensity of it! Thanks for bringing us Irv!

I can't wait to show Joint Security Area from U-tube when I teach about the Korean War. Also, just to show Korean film clips in general will be educational and entertaining for my high school students. I will show My Sassy Girl (Drunk Girl on Subway Platform) and the Korean soap opera style with Winter Sonata . Thanks to U-Tube!

I have to confess that I was so curious about Choco Pies that I went to a local Korean grocery store to buy one. One of the things that I love about living in California is that we all live with a little bit of everyone, and everyone brings their homeland's food with them. Where else could you find kimchee tacos?
I would recommend the Choco Pies to anyone who can search them out. They taste similar to an old fashioned Moon Pie but perhaps a little sweeter. I wish my local Albertson's carried them.

You can make Choco pies? How can I do this? If you still have the recipe you used in chef class, can you email it to [email protected]? How did they come out?

One other thing, though, (to be fair) cultural superiority myths were generated at both ends (East and West). "Misunderstanding China" does a pretty good job of demonstrating the perpetuation of these collective beliefs in both the United States and China.