DisOrient Film Festival & Asian American Culture in Eugene

"Moloka’I Bound" is this year’s DisOrient Centerpiece Film. A Hawaiian man on parole is determined to reconnect with his family after years of incarceration. However, adjusting to a normal life in Hawai‘i proves challenging, and Kainoa often makes mistakes despite his good intentions. His journey is one of reconciliation and redemption, as he strives to prove himself worthy of his family and his native heritage.

Screening on Sunday, March 9, "Making Waves: The Rise of Asian America" examines the role of Asian American Studies has in redefining the narrative and promoting service to communities across the country.

Museums

While in town for the film festival, be sure to stop into the University of Oregon museums.

The Museum of Natural and Cultural History’s latest exhibit "Roots and Resilience—Chinese American Heritage in Oregon" highlights more than 150 years of Chinese American heritage in Oregon. Using archaeological discoveries around the state alongside personal histories, the exhibit sheds light on the experiences of Chinese people, the intense discrimination they faced, and their perseverance in shaping Oregon’s diverse industries, businesses, and communities. This exhibit will be on view through 2025.

The Jordan Schnitzer Museum of Art is renowned for its large and important assemblage of Asian and Asian American art. Currently on display is "Twenty-Four Seasons: Critical Temporality and Qiu Zhijie’s Light Writing", The series of 24 long-exposure photographs highlights and names each 15-day long seasonal marker (or jieqi) in China’s traditional solar calendar. On the first day of each jieqi, Qiu was photographed writing the Chinese name for the jieqi in the air with a specially-designed flashlight. Be sure to also see the museum’s other exhibits, including "Four Seasons in Japanese Art and Tea" and "Landscape, Mindscape—Portrayals of Nature and the World from Korea and Beyond, 1700-2020".

Food and Drink

Eugene boasts a vibrant culinary scene with lots of Asian and Asian American options.

Here are a few of my favorites:

Day and Night Boba and Ramen House offers a wide variety of milk teas served with fresh boba and your choice of sugar and ice level. My favorite is the Cold Hong Kong Style Milk Tea or the Brown Sugar Boba Lava Milk.

Tiger Mama in Eugene’s Whittaker neighborhood has an extensive menu of Korean dishes with plenty of vegan and gluten free options, as well as drink options with imported liquors from Korea. My favorite dish is the bulgogi bibimbap. 

Hungry for Bao? Eugene has you covered with two incredible options: Bao Bao House and Jade Dumpling and Noodle House. Try them both!

Top photo: Courtesy of Museum of Natural and Cultural History. Photography by Jack Liu.