I have been meaning to write this entry for awhile but have just not found the time. I am gonna share with you something that has really bothered me these days. The fact is that Gaysians are totally marginalized in this city; guys either don't like us with deep conviction or are major rice queens. You might think I am generalizing a complicated social order, but when it comes down to it, it really is that simple. Perhaps it's because there are so many Gaysians in SF so that people think it's okay to disrespect us. We get the short end of the stick on the social ladder, and there is no denying it. We already have to fight off all sorts of stereotypes like we're all submissive bottoms with tiny penises who can't speak English. But we also are often made to feel unattractive because guys seem to reject us simply based on our skin color or ethnic background. How fucked up is that?!

I walked into the Student Advice Center.  I had already phoned in, and asked to schedule a meeting with a ‘person that knows about housing.’  I was ushered to go in to the office in the corner.

A man with greying hair who looked good-natured greeted me; the kind of guy that you would like to run into if you were lost in a dark forest.

“So, what can we do for ya?” he asked, as he leaned onto his chair comfortably.

“Well,” I started hesitantly, “the house I was renting caught fire, and I was wondering about the legal process.  Such as, how much would housing insurance cover.” 

Without changing his expression – I was pretty sure he had heard some pretty weird stuff working there – he continued to explain that that the issues involving law wasn’t really his speciality, and that I should talk to other people in the center.

Not wanting to leave empty-handed, I asked what I was curious about.  I asked what kind of queries he got the most often then.

Johnny Wu is an Independent Filmmaker in Cleveland, Ohio.  He has been the Executive Producer, Director, Cinematographer, Writer, Editor, Actor, Composer, Fight Choreographer, Stunt Coordinator, and more for over a dozen films and features, such as Jean Claude: The Gumming Zombie, The Seashell Project, The Rapture, and A Joker’s Card.  He is active in the Chinese-American community, as well as the Independent Film community.

How did you or your family end up in Cleveland? 

During their diplomatic travel, my family ended up here and I was born. Cleveland is my hometown.

How did you become interested in film-making?

Probably I kicked off in real gear in 1998 when I met my ex, Greg.  He is a great photographer and he has an eye for good quality pictures. So, he and I talked and we thought we could pull our knowledge together, as I was good in organizing and business, while he was good at technical stuff. We joined forces and did our first $3000 16mm action film called Twisted for which we cast Sean Faris, who became the main lead of many films including Never Back Down. Twisted was his first film, and it inspired him.  From there, I started to do more shorts and videos as I honed my craft.

Lou Ye’s Reputation According to Chris

Given the reputation of Lou Ye, I had to be in a certain frame of mind when attending the film screening. Mr. Lou has left me quite bewitched, bothered and bewildered twice before with his “Suzhou River” (2000) and “Summer Palace” (2006). Don’t ask me to tell you anything about “Suzhou River” because I cannot remember much, except I discovered the luminous actress Zhou Xun (周迅) and could not help falling in love with her and her mermaid outfit. The image of Zhou’s free falling into Suzhou River lingers and is a classic. Then came Hou Lei (郝蕾) of Summer Palace, Lou’s creation of a free- spirited Chinese woman in the backdrop of the 1987 Tiananmen student protest is refreshing to watch. Her character is truly a French woman trapped in a Chinese body. The film followed Hou Lei into the forays of love, sex and betrayal. Oh! Did I mention the sex scenes? Delightful when Hou Lei’s intercourse partner is the super dreamy Guo Xiaodong (郭晓冬). There you have it, Lou Ye 101 in one paragraph. Please take note Lou Ye is not a Chinese Porn director.  Lou Ye is a Gen. 6th Chinese Director who has two films exhibited at the Cannes Film Festival. I think Lou Ye is a French man trapped in a Chinese body.

For some Bollywood actors, I don’t mind watching their films twice: Shahid Kapoor is one of them. To write this review, I watched Chance Pe Dance on DVD again to refresh my memory. The film was as entertaining as I’d first watched it a month ago.

Shahid plays Sameer Behl, an aspiring actor who moves from Delhi to Mumbai to pursue his dream. But four years have passed and he’s still juggling between his courier job and auditions. His only so-called big break is a forgettable TV commercial; it helps him to pay for a second-hand car but the exposure did not get him anywhere. When a famous director promises him to be the hero of his next film, Sameer did not expect that chance to slip away too – just like all his other auditions. It is another big blow to him after losing both his job and accommodation. Despondent but not giving up, he joins the Star of India contest with encouragement from his choreographer girlfriend, Tina (Genelia D’Souza). Again, bad luck follows him like his shadow: a nationwide crisis in Delhi forces him to return home and separates him from Tina and his dream.

Because of the Christmas holiday, fewer doctors and hospital staff were on duty.  John was taken to the emergency room, where a neurosurgeon awaited him with a smile.  It was the first time I had ever been to an emergency room in the States.  The room looked a lot smaller than I had expected, and not every doctor looked like Dr. Greene or Dr. Carter on ER.  Everybody looked “normal,” maybe too normal. We were led into a private room where the neurosurgeon and a nurse were busy preparing for the procedure.  John was surrounded by all sorts of machines that were making rhythmic noises.  The neurosurgeon began to inform us of what he had found on the MRI.

I went for a NOH8 photoshoot today with my bandmates. It was organized by Daryl Dyck, a Vancouver photographer. The band has been a proud supporter of the local gay community for years, so it wasn't a vanity project - it was something we felt we needed to do.

The original NOH8 is an ongoing campaign founded in early 2009 by American photographer Adam Bouska. So far, over 3500 official and non-official photos have been taken in support of the campaign. While its main motivation was California's Proposition 8, the campaign speaks not only for gay marriage, but also for what appears to be the never-ending battle for equality for gay communities everywhere.

On December 27th, 2009, a gay Malawian couple was arrested after holding a private engagement ceremony. On May 18th, 2010, Steven Monjeza and Tiwonge Chimbalanga were found guilty of sodomy and indecency and sentenced to 14 years in prison. The story has made headlines around the world.

On May 29th, 2010, just days after they were sentenced, Steven and Tiwonge were pardoned and released from prison after Malawi president Bingu wa Mutharika spoke with UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon. However, the president was quoted as saying the two men had "committed a crime against our culture, our religion and our laws" and that the pardon was given "on humanitarian grounds" only.

Another Bollywood film review but neither John Abraham nor Shahid Kapoor is in it. If you wonder who caught my eyes recently in the Tinseltown, it’s Ranbir Kapoor.

Ranbir Kapoor has escaped my eyes whenever I’ve shopped for my next Bollywood treat. By now, you know that I only watch Bollywood films with muscular actors. My criterion is shallow but that’s what attracts me to Bollywood films in the first place besides their extravagant choreography. In fact, long before John and Shahid, I was already ogling at the body of one of the famous Khan in Bollywood – Salman Khan. Tear factor rarely works for me except for Kal Ho Naa Ho starring the great Shahrukh Khan; six years later, Wake Up Sid wakes up the emo in me again. 

While I was riding the train, I was looking outside of the window absently.  The window displayed grassy fields, then houses, then rails…. It simply kept showing one ordinary scene to another, the distance I had to cover till I reached Ned’s.

I stopped looking outside of the window.  I saw that the man sitting in front of me was looking at me curiously.

 “Do you do art?”  He asked, a smile beaming on his friendly round face.

I looked at him, furrowing my eyebrows to say, ‘what do you mean?’  The man raised his hands, and fluttered his fingers. 

"Your fingers.  It looks like you do a bit of art.  Chalk, perhaps.”

"Oh no, I don’t do art.  My house simply burned down this morning.”

The man quickly stopped smiling.

"It’s soot,” I explained.  Probably out of guilt, the kind-looking man cast his glance downward at his lap.

It was the second time I visited Ned’s house.