SOUTHWEST PREMIERE! Describing Chris Martinez' delicately-nuanced film as a Filipino BUCKET LIST is patently unfair, but perhaps inevitable. Yellow Post-it notes figure prominently as ambitious career woman Joyce (Mylene Dizon) resolutely wraps up her earthly affairs after learning that she has incurable cancer. She swears her peppy best friend Ruby (Eugene Domingo) to secrecy as they indulge in a series of long-delayed minor pleasures, in striking contrast to the globe-trotting fantasy adventures one might expect. What Joyce didn't count on, though, was the outpouring of love and affection from friends and family when they learn the truth, most notably her widowed, steel-willed mother (Tessie Tomas). No one wants to see Joyce march off silently and alone into that long goodnight. 100 will make you laugh and may make you cry, yet above all it makes you stop and think about the things that you treasure most. Chances are, it's not Post-it notes.

SOUTHWEST PREMIERE Preceeded by short film "Dara" Remember the spooky stories you used to tell at sleepovers? The ones you and your friends would whisper to each other until everyone was freaked out and hiding under the blankets? 4BIA is a lot like that – only with more eye-gouging. And falling off balconies. Seriously, you’d think people would be more careful. Don’t they watch movies? Which is exactly the point. 4BIA is a Thai anthology film for jaded, seen-it-all horror fans – a series of tales that poke open, mean-spirited fun at the Asian horror conventions that have sadly become trite and tired over the last 15 years (complete with sneering references to long-haired ghost girls), while incorporating the crutches and conventions of our modern world. Bullies! Texting! Bromance! Food Allergies! All there, and part of the nasty, shrieking fun. In 4BIA, restless spirits aren’t looking for sweet, warm closure. They want someone to PAY, and aren’t particularly choosy about whom. And in the end, isn’t that what we’re looking for in a scary movie? If brutal, unfair, bloody twists of fate aren’t your bag, you might be better off keeping your head under the blankets for this one.

SOUTHWEST PREMIERE! Two best friends, LITTLE PAPAYA and BIG PAPAYA, dream of escaping the dreariness of their everyday lives and becoming stars of the glittering, flamboyant and uniquely Singaporean musical showcase known as Getai (Song Stage), an annual concert festival performed for spirits and ghosts. Starting out the sisters struggle to make a mark, but determined to succeed they appeal to the magical Goddess of Getai who grants their wish but warns them of the price. Their success binds them to obey the rules of Getai and one rule forbids them from ever loving any man. Blessed by the Goddess, the Papaya Sisters rise to stardom, all the while battling heartbreaking personal tragedies and their evil rivals, the Durian Sisters. Singapore's official submission to the Best Foreign Language Film Category of the 2008 Academy Awards and a local, record breaking box office sensation, 881 is a magical, heart wrenching, singing and dancing extravaganza.

SOUTHWEST PREMIERE! Director Mark Tran and Actor Chi Pham in attendance. Filmmaker Mark Tran was a 19-year-old San Jose State University student when he wrote the screenplay for his feature debut ALL ABOUT DAD (Audience award winner, Cinequest FF), based on his experiences growing up in a large Vietnamese family in California. The main character Ty, is based loosely upon himself – a biology major about to give up his studies to pursue filmmaking (a.k.a. the worst thing a Vietnamese father could ever hear from a son). Newcomer Chi Pham steals the show as the patriarch of the Do family, the head figure who only sees hard work, Catholicism, higher education, and loyalty to family as the only way to happiness and success in life. But Mr. Do is about to find out the inner passions and dreams of his four children, and his world is about to unravel. The end result of this often intense family drama is at times also hilarious, touching, and heartbreaking as Mr. Do comes to terms with his disappointments and realizes he must learn to accept his children as they truly are or risk losing them. It is the familiar story of tradition versus modernity, but the film never comes off as didactic or heavy-handed and Mr. Tran’s first film is a fine portrait of a Vietnamese American family just trying to keep up with the times. – Mye Hoang

All Asian collection of animated short films.

OPENING NIGHT FILM SOUTHWEST PREMIERE! In Dante Lam's The Beast Stalker, practically every character's face is weighted down by physical scars and the intense burden of some unforgettable, traumatic event. Captain Tong (Nicholas Tse) is the intense leader of a strike force out to nab a rarely-seen crime-lord. Ann Gao (Zhang Jingchu) is a prosecuting attorney faced with a moral and ethical dilemma brought on by the crime-lord's activities, while she also deals with the grief of a recent, deeply personal loss. Hung (Nick Cheung) handles kidnappings for the crime-lord's outfit, while caring for his bedridden wife and slowly going blind due to a mysterious injury. The film begins with an explosive raid which is quickly followed by a car chase where Tong and his men almost catch up to the crime-lord's gang. Their pursuit ends in a gut-wrenching, multiple-car collision; this accident is revisited twice, each time exposing more shocking impacts on the people involved. After the accident, Tong is conflicted by the agonizing regret and failure he feels due to an incidental shooting; his nose bleeds when he becomes stressed, and he fights to keep his emotions in check at all times. Ann's daughter Ling (the adorable Wong Suet-Yin, who handles the grueling events of the film like a champ) is kidnapped to force the attorney to destroy evidence, and Tong's off-the-record investigation brings him face to face with Hung. Their final confrontations rely more on dramatic intensity than acutely-paced action. Nominated for 5 Hong Kong Film Awards and winner of 2 (Nick Cheung for Best Actor and Liu Kai-Chi for Best Supporting Actor as Tong's right-hand man), The Beast Stalker is a highly entertaining mix of action and melodrama bolstered by a strong cast and production values. Sponsored by Staybridge Suites

TEXAS PREMIERE! If you have ever created a crude origami swan or crane as a child, be prepared for a jaw-dropping experience examining the hyper-detailed world of paper folding. The only rule: you must begin with a single square of paper. But from this very simple starting point, artists create brilliantly complex facsimiles from all aspects of nature, as well as abstract models that rival the best of modern art. BETWEEN THE FOLDS takes a look at the many international practitioners of paper folding, and their varied and fascinating creations. What seems like a deceptively simple art form is actually a highly sought after tool for a variety of fields, including education, mathematics, engineering, technology and science. The results in each of these areas are both surprising and breath-taking. Vanessa Gould has taken the intricacy and delicacy of origami and made a highly engaging and inspiring documentary.

TEXAS PREMIERE! Taiwan's Highest Grossing Film of All Time. Aga left Hengchun for Taipei in the hope of becoming the singer in a band. After ten years of hard work, he returns home, his dream unfulfilled. Tomoko is a Japanese model who is asked to put together a local warm-up band for an upcoming Japanese super star beach concert to be held in Hengchun. However, recruiting the band members proves to be as difficult a task as the search for the famous seven samurai. Together with five other ordinary Hengchun residents with no hopes of fame, they form an unbelievable band.