B.C. STUNTPEOPLE BEAR BRUNT OF NOMINATIONS
At this year's Taurus World Stunt Awards, the four Canadians who garnered nominations are all based in B.C. Crystal Dalman, Lani Gelera, and Angela Uyeda were nominated for best fight and best overall stunt by a woman for X-Men: The Last Stand , while Jason Calder will compete against them in the best-fight category for Firewall .

Calder, who has performed stunts since 1994, doubled for Harrison Ford in that movie. On the line from his Vancouver home, Calder called Firewall 's action the kind of "fight scene you don't see too much these days”¦an old-school fight" that didn't involve wires or martial arts. He had to fall down a wooden staircase and off a balcony into a ditch (during which he twisted his knee).

The award will be presented in L.A. on Sunday (May 20).

> Craig Takeuchi

ASIAN CANADIAN ADVICE FOR BREAKING INTO THE BIZ
As part of Asian Heritage Month, ExplorASIAN presented a panel discussion called "So You Really Want to Get Into the Film Industry?" The eight-member panel, which included actor Olivia Cheng, publicist Debbie Walker, and still photographer Katie Yu, passed on words of wisdom on how to get into the movie business, and recounted their own experiences to a small but attentive audience at Vancity Theatre on May 12.

Stuntman Darryl Quon ( Dragon Boys ) suggested that actors "need to diversify to stay in this business" in order to have "more chances of success", while actor Rick Tae ( Robson Arms , Godiva's ) recommended initiating writing projects on the side because "in order to have an Asian voice, you need to have a script."

Actor Derek Lowe ( Dragon Boys ) has seen some changes in the business for Asian Canadians over the past decade. He has found himself auditioning for fewer roles designated as "Asian"; his last acting gig, for example, was originally described as a bland, 50-year-old white male. Both Lowe and Quon have also seen the number of Asians in the business increase.

Director Jason Furukawa ( Robson Arms , Cold Squad ) said he plays up his ethnicity to his advantage because "if you can't stand out in a crowd, you won't go anywhere in this business."

Echelon talent agent Andrew Ooi reminded attendees to think global and consider opportunities in Asia. To make it in the Chinese market, he recommended learning Mandarin (Cantonese is a limited market, primarily restricted to Hong Kong) and martial arts. Ooi also pointed out that with its cheaper labour rates, China is becoming increasingly competitive as a filming location. He cited Jet Li's Hero , in which about 5,000 extras were used instead of CGI technology, because it was cheaper to do so.

> Craig Takeuchi

SIFF SILVER SCREENS GRACE SEATTLE
There are more premieres than usual among nearly 300 features, and many more venues for them, at this year's Seattle International Film Festival. Again led by artistic director Carl Spence, the 33rd edition launches May 24, with an opening gala for Son of Rambow at the Seattle Center's new Marion Oliver McCaw Hall. The festival wraps 25 days later, on June 17, with the North American debut of France's Molií¨re at the downtown Cinerama theatre.

There are 18 world premieres, all U.S.–made, including Daniel Waters' Sex and Death 101 ; Larry Blamire's Trail of the Screaming Forehead ; Wiley Underdown's The Life and Times of Yva Las Vegas ; Tod Harrison Williams' Trainwreck: My Life as an Idoit [sic]; and American Shopper , from Tamas Bojtar and Sybil Dessau.

More than 40 pictures will be making their U.S. or North American bows, including Milos Forman's Spanish-made Goya's Ghosts ; Getting Home , from China's Zhang Yang; Yella , by Germany's Christian Petzold; "Little Book of Revenge," from Canada's Jean-Franí§ois Pouliot; and I Really Hate My Job , from Brit Oliver Parker.

Among the Canadian offerings, which include Congorama , Manufactured Landscapes , and Sharkwater , is the B.C. film Fido and the local short film "The Saddest Boy in the World".

Guests will include many of the filmmakers plus indie thespians like Julie Delpy and Steve Buscemi, screen scribe Robert Benton, as well as film composer Lisa Gerrard, subject of a doc called Sanctuary . On May 30, there will be a clip-laden tribute to Sir Anthony Hopkins, who will also be on hand.

Other SIFF elements include the new Planet Cinema subset of environmental pics, a spotlight on German cinema, live musical accompaniment to silent movies, and the annual trade forum, this time with the Northwest Trade Market, dedicated to bringing more biz to the region.

Visit www.seattlefilm.org/ for full details.

> Ken Eisner