The Los Angeles Premiere of JIMMY IN SAIGON

October 22, 2023, 3-5:30 PM

Screening, All Ages
Renberg Theater at the Los Angeles LGBT Center

1125 N. McCadden Place
Los Angeles, CA 90038

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JIMMY IN SAIGON (2022) begins as a personal exploration into the mysterious death and radical life of Jimmy McDowell, an American 24-year-old Vietnam veteran who died as a civilian in Saigon in 1972, when filmmaker Peter McDowell was only five. In his quest to get to know his brother, Peter uncovers a hidden romance, new family ties, and a remarkable global love story.

Director/Producer Peter McDowell, alongside Eve Oishi and Corey Tong, will join us for a Q&A session and reception following the screening.

Participant Bios

Surrounded by opera as a child and trained as a musician and actor, Peter McDowell (He/Him) has always been drawn to melding music and film in his own productions. He produced opera professionally in Chicago from 1999-2006; prior to that, he made two Super 8 short films in the early 1990s that played at San Francisco’s Frameline Film Festival. I Dream of Dorothy went on to festivals worldwide. In addition to filmmaking, Peter works as an arts producer and fundraiser. Peter is the recipient of a highly competitive three-year DeVos Institute for Arts Management International Fellowship. In 2018, Peter was the recipient of grants from the City of Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs and the California Humanities Council for Jimmy in Saigon.

Eve Oishi (She/They) is Associate Professor of Cultural Studies at Claremont Graduate University. Their primary research interests include Asian American cultural studies, independent and experimental film and video, transnational media, and gender and queer theory. Their research has been supported by the Mellon Foundation, University of California Humanities Research Institute, the National Endowment for the Humanities and the Stanford Humanities Center. They are working on a book entitled Partial Form: An Experimental History of Asian American Film and Video. Oishi is also an independent film/video curator and has created programs for film festivals in Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco, Portland and Philadelphia.

Corey Tong (He/Him) is an award-winning producer, director, programmer, distribution and PR/awards consultant. He has executive/produced, represented films, distributors and directed/programmed festivals for over 25 years with CAAMFest, Frameline LGBTQ+FF, SFFILM, DocEdge FF, PBS (Frontline, KQED, World/GBH; ITVS), NatGeo, ABS-CBN, Cinetic, Forum des Images. His films and art installations have been nominated for an Oscar, four Emmys, screening in over 40 territories and 90+ festivals. Notable titles include: Last Day of Freedom; Forever, Chinatown; Kaimana; The Land Has Eyes; and Defender, Point of No Return. He has also joined the PR teams of award-winning films for broadcast/theatrical/award campaigns including: Cairo Conspiracy (Boy from Heaven); The Queen of Basketball; A Thousand Cuts; For Sama; Jane; Sea of Shadows; Departures; and Beautiful Boxer.

This program is organized by Peter McDowell as part of the 2023 Circa: Queer Histories Festival, presented by One Institute. The screening is co-presented by the Los Angeles LGBT Center.

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