SJSU Screening & Discussion: "The First Asian American Film: The Curse of Quon Gwon"

THE FIRST ASIAN AMERICAN FILM: THE CURSE OF QUON GWON

A Screening and Discussion with Dr. Gregory Yee Mark

Monday, Nov. 6, 2023 | 10:30 am to 12:30 pm
Humble lunch catered from Halal Amigos 12:30 to 1:30 pm

SJSU MLK Library (Room 225) or Online

The Curse of Quon Gwon (1916) was directed and produced by Marion Wong. This pioneering movie features an all Chinese American cast. The black-white silent film storyline is a melodramatic storyline filled with romance and intrigue. The pioneering film was produced in the Oakland/San Francisco Bay Area. In 2006, The Curse of Quon Gwon had the distinct honor of being placed on the National Film Registry, the Library of Congress' list of the nation's most treasured films.

Join San Jose State University (SJSU) in a riveting screening of key excerpts followed by a presentation by Dr. Gregory Yee Mark, who is the grandson of the film's star Violet Wong.

Gregory Yee Mark first started teaching Asian American Studies in 1969 as an undergraduate student at UC Berkeley. He then became the first tenure-line professor in Asian American Studies at SJSU. For the past 22 years, Dr. Mark has been a Professor of Ethnic Studies at Sacramento State where he served as the Department Chair (2001-2006). Currently, he is a Professor Emeritus, and he still teaches Asian American Studies and Ethnic Studies to a new generation of students. One of his favorite Asian American Studies course topics is early Asian American motion pictures. In the film showing and companion presentation, Dr. Mark discusses the making of the film, the Wong family’s role (especially the women’s trailblazing vision) in its production, its significance to Asian American Studies and communities, and the Wong family’s fight to maintain the film’s dignity, and its proper place in the American film industry.

Presented by the SJSU Program of Asian American Studies & SJSU Ethnic Studies Collaborative

Parking Information: https://www.sjsu.edu/parking/permits/virtual-permits/visitor-virtual-permits.php

Realtime Parking Status: https://sjsuparkingstatus.sjsu.edu/

Campus Map: https://www.sjsu.edu/map/ 

Online: https://vimeo.com/event/3839443