Guru is: the cinematic pre-wedding for Indian royalty, the first Bollywood film to premiere in North America, the latest by acclaimed director Mani Ratnam. But APA argues it's all that, but also a reflection of a new mass political consciousness.

The Tiffany's of DVD, Criterion releases three early sixties Japanese Films -- When a Woman Ascends the Stairs (1960), Yojimbo (1961) and Sanjuro (1962)

Mao's Yan'an talks on art echo in the villages of China, as documentarian Wu Wenguang leads a team of videographers on a mission to teach ordinary people to make films about their own communities.

Dogeaters tells the story of a politically divided Philippines, leaving little space to develop the stories of its individual people.

Hot off her acclaimed solo debut Ecdysis, former Cibo Matto and Gorillaz star Miho Hatori makes a splash onstage in L.A.

San Francisco indie band Deerhoof delivers another eclectic art-pop collection of songs with their new album Friend Opportunity.

Arundhati Roy writing again, John Woo splits his film in two, and the Chinese Music Awards went to the usual people. All this and more in the latest edition of News from Abroad.

Harold and Kumar at it again, MTV World on unstable ground, and Yellow Handkerchief as a Hollywood remake. All this and more in the latest edition of News Bites.

As the world's most populous country (to say nothing of its notorious bureaucracy), China has one of the most severe AIDS problems anywhere. Oscar-nominated director Ruby Yang recounts the arduous process of bringing a nation's shame to the mass consciousness with her documentary short The Blood of Yingzhou District.

A finalist for The National Book Award, Gene Luen Yang's American Born Chinese merges what seems to be the life of a typical Chinese boy with elements of antiquity and perverse modern-day stereotyping, giving readers a triumphantly funny and creative story.

Already a cult hit around the world and India's submission this year for the Oscar foreign language nomination, Rang De Basanti will be re-released in US theaters in March with an edit specifically for American foreign film audiences. APA interviews director Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra.

The new DVD for the 1961 musical Flower Drum Song comes with historical tidbits, a beefed-up soundtrack, new cast interviews, but alas no feedback from ordinary Asian Americans of a new generation -- precisely the audience that may have the most to say about the film today. APA invited blogger Angry Asian Man to help us fill in that void.

As a major hub in Asian-Pacific entertainment financing and production, Los Angeles was the setting of this year’s APEM Summit, drawing international experts and practitioners for two days of brainstorming.

Taiwan gives out Golden Horse Awards, Korea's Family Ties earns recognition, and Shahrukh Khan takes over game show hosting duties from Amitabh Bachchan. All this and more in the latest edition of News From Abroad.

Camille Chen went from commercials and guest roles to landing a coveted re-occuring spot on Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip, where she plays a featured player on the show-within-a-show and gets to share screentime with such TV veterans as Matthew Perry, Bradley Whitford, and DL Hughley.

Independent Spirit Award nominees announced; Hiro, George Takei is your father; and no critical love for Taj Mahal Badalandabad. All this and more in the latest edition of News Bites.

APA talks to some of the creators of the sketch comedy show TeleMongol about bringing Asian American humor to the masses.

Already a cult hit around the world and India's submission this year for the Oscar foreign language nomination, Rang de Basanti will be re-released in US theaters in March with an edit specifically for American foreign film audiences. APA interviews director Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra.

The choice to use Japan in the globe-trotting Babel is more than blind chance, but a calculated way to imagine -- and profit from -- difference.

Forget the festivals. If you want to see great films in L.A., you better be part of the army of distributors, exhibitors, journalists, and financiers at the American Film Market. Civilians strictly prohibited.