For our fourth edition of Film Stories on December 18th we’ve bundled forces with Ito Collective. This Rotterdam-based group of amazing women aims to create a strong and safe community for the East-Asian diaspora in the Netherlands. Together we’ve invited Dutch Chinese filmmaker and restaurant owner Fow Pyng Hu. We will watch the films of Fow, alternated with a conversation about his work and filmmaking in general. The conversation will also focus on the link between his Chinese heritage and his work. It wouldn’t be an Ito evening without food, so this time we will invite you to have dinner with us before the screening starts. The cosiest bar in Rotterdam will host us, Vrijmoed. It might be our gezelligste edition so far… Not many spots so be quick. Cute t-shirts available for sale, obviously. Longsleeve this time! Oh and not unimportantly: this time our event will be English-speaking!

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Fow Pyng Hu’s film Jacky (2000) was the first Chinese feature film made in the Netherlands. The main character Jacky (played by Fow himself!) is a 25–year–old second-generation child of Chinese migrant parents. Jacky’s carefree life is disrupted when his mother urges him to marry a woman from China, follow tradition, and leave the parental home. Jacky was one of the few Dutch films that made it to Cannes.

Fow studied at the TU Delft and Gerrit Rietveld Academy. He made several short, experimental films like Cola Lovers (1995), Noodle (1996), Sunny Afternoon (1997), Atomic Boy (1997) and Ultra Land (2000). He then continued his filmmaking career by directing three feature films, Jacky (2000), Paradise Girls (2004) and Nick (2012). During the gap years between Paradise Girls and Nick he lived in Japan for six years. His Japanese years inspired him to pursue his other passion: food, so he opened his own restaurant Fou Fow Ramen. We are curious… did Fow stop filmmaking? Is ramen more important than films? Will he ever make a film again? How does his Dutch Chinese heritage impact his vision as a filmmaker? We have many questions to ask, but we will save plenty of time for yours!

The word 糸 (Ito) in Japanese means ‘string’, symbolizing the Ito Collective’s mission to connect the Asian community in the Netherlands, as well as to foster connections with others. They also organize numerous events focused on food, art, and culture. Additionally, their main presence can be found online, primarily on Instagram with insides of east-Asian culture, interviews with artists and more.

Film Stories, curated by Rotterdam-based film production company mint2, is a series of film events centered around a single director and their work. Film Stories presents the full picture of filmmaking, with all the compromises, decisions, and dilemmas that come with it. Setbacks and how to overcome them are central to the conversation between the filmmaker, moderator, and audience.

What: Film Stories x Ito Collective with Fow Pyng Hu
When: December 18
Where: Vrijmoed, Ketelaarstraat 7 Rotterdam
Time: Dinner starts 18:30, screening + talk starts 20:00