Bertha Bay-Sa Pan
Encyclopedia
Bertha Bay-Sa Pan is an American Director, Writer and Producer. Born in New Jersey and raised in Taiwan
, Pan was educated at Boston University
(B.A. in Film & Art) and the Columbia University
Graduate Film School in 1997 receiving a Masters of Fine Arts degree in Directing, while working as a Sales Executive in Film Distribution. Pan’s graduate thesis short film at Columbia University, entitled "Face," garnered various awards from Film Festivals worldwide, including the Director's Guild Award for Best Asian American Student Filmmaker and the Polo Ralph Lauren Award for Best Screenplay.
Pan’s First Feature Film also titled “Face” – which stars Kristy Wu
, Bai Ling
, Kieu Chinh
, Ken Leung
, Treach
, Will Yun Lee
and Golden Globe Award and Emmy Award nominee Tina Chen
, Premiered at the 2002 Sundance Film Festival
in the Dramatic Competition, co-written by Oscar nominee Oren Moverman
and featured a score by Leonard Nelson Hubbard of The Roots
. “Face” obtained the CRITICS AWARD for Best Director at the CineVegas Film Festival,The Audience Award at the GenArt Film Festival, and the Grand Jury Award for Best Director at the Urbanworld Film Festival. Pan was nominated for the prestigious Open Palm at the GOTHAM AWARDS, and awarded the PREMIO SPECIALE PRIZE at the International Women’s Film Festival in Turin, Italy. “Face” was released theatrically in 2005, and received glowing reviews from major publications including The New York Times (as a New York Times Critics Pick ), Entertainment Weekly, The Hollywood Reporter, TV Guide, The San Francisco Chronicle, The Star Ledger, The Chicago Tribune, and the BBC, and is currently available on DVD and cable TV.
Pan's Second Feature, "Almost Perfect" Stars Kelly Hu
, Edison Chen
, Ivan Shaw, Tina Chen, Christina Chang, and Tony Award winner Roger Rees
. It screened at various Festivals including The San Francisco International Asian American Film Festival
, The Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival
(as Centerpiece Film), Hawaii International Film Festival
(as American Immigrant Filmmaker in Profile), Friars Club Comedy Film Festival, and the San Diego Asian Film Festival
(as Opening Night Film), among other film festivals.
Pan has also Directed a short film entitled "Sluggers", Produced films such as Fighting Fish, and Directed Music Videos for Tre Hardson's "Just Can't Hold On," Chris Trapper's "Wish I Was Cool" and "Look What The Wind Blew In" and Princess Katie and Racer Steve's "Sand in My Sandwich." Her Official Production Company is known as "Slew Pictures"http://www.slewpictures.com launched in 2008.
Taiwan
Taiwan , also known, especially in the past, as Formosa , is the largest island of the same-named island group of East Asia in the western Pacific Ocean and located off the southeastern coast of mainland China. The island forms over 99% of the current territory of the Republic of China following...
, Pan was educated at Boston University
Boston University
Boston University is a private research university located in Boston, Massachusetts. With more than 4,000 faculty members and more than 31,000 students, Boston University is one of the largest private universities in the United States and one of Boston's largest employers...
(B.A. in Film & Art) and the Columbia University
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
Graduate Film School in 1997 receiving a Masters of Fine Arts degree in Directing, while working as a Sales Executive in Film Distribution. Pan’s graduate thesis short film at Columbia University, entitled "Face," garnered various awards from Film Festivals worldwide, including the Director's Guild Award for Best Asian American Student Filmmaker and the Polo Ralph Lauren Award for Best Screenplay.
Pan’s First Feature Film also titled “Face” – which stars Kristy Wu
Kristy Wu
Kristy Wu is an American actress of Chinese descent. She is known for her recurring role as Chao-Ahn in the hit TV series, Buffy the Vampire Slayer and co-starring as Melissa Wu in Flight 29 Down. Other television credits include guest appearances on Joan of Arcadia, Freaks and Geeks and Moesha...
, Bai Ling
Bai Ling
Bai Ling is a Chinese actress known for her work in films such as The Crow, Red Corner and Wild Wild West, and in TV series such as Entourage and Lost. In 2011 she appeared in the fifth season of the VH1 reality television series Celebrity Rehab with Dr...
, Kieu Chinh
Kieu Chinh
Kieu Chinh is a Vietnamese American actress best known for her role in The Joy Luck Club...
, Ken Leung
Ken Leung
Kenneth "Ken" Leung is an American actor best known for his role as Miles Straume in the ABC television series Lost and roles in such films as Shanghai Kiss, Rush Hour, X-Men: The Last Stand, and Saw.-Early life:...
, Treach
Treach
Anthony Criss , better known by his stage name Treach, is an American rapper and actor. He is best known as the lead rapper of the hip hop group Naughty by Nature.-Career:...
, Will Yun Lee
Will Yun Lee
Will Yun Lee is an Korean American actor.He is best known for his roles on TNT's supernatural drama series Witchblade as Danny Woo and as Jae Kim on NBC's science fiction television drama Bionic Woman...
and Golden Globe Award and Emmy Award nominee Tina Chen
Tina Chen
Tina Chen is a Chinese American actress best known for her appearances in the films Alice's Restaurant, Three Days of the Condor and The Hawaiians....
, Premiered at the 2002 Sundance Film Festival
Sundance Film Festival
The Sundance Film Festival is a film festival that takes place annually in Utah, in the United States. It is the largest independent cinema festival in the United States. Held in January in Park City, Salt Lake City, and Ogden, as well as at the Sundance Resort, the festival is a showcase for new...
in the Dramatic Competition, co-written by Oscar nominee Oren Moverman
Oren Moverman
Oren Moverman is an Israeli filmmaker, screenwriter, and former journalist based in New York City.Moverman was the screenwriter and associate producer of Jesus' Son, a 2000 Lion’s Gate/Alliance Release...
and featured a score by Leonard Nelson Hubbard of The Roots
The Roots
The Roots is an American hip hop/neo soul band formed in 1987 by Tariq "Black Thought" Trotter and Ahmir "Questlove" Thompson in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. They are famed for beginning with a jazzy, eclectic approach to hip hop which still includes live instrumentals...
. “Face” obtained the CRITICS AWARD for Best Director at the CineVegas Film Festival,The Audience Award at the GenArt Film Festival, and the Grand Jury Award for Best Director at the Urbanworld Film Festival. Pan was nominated for the prestigious Open Palm at the GOTHAM AWARDS, and awarded the PREMIO SPECIALE PRIZE at the International Women’s Film Festival in Turin, Italy. “Face” was released theatrically in 2005, and received glowing reviews from major publications including The New York Times (as a New York Times Critics Pick ), Entertainment Weekly, The Hollywood Reporter, TV Guide, The San Francisco Chronicle, The Star Ledger, The Chicago Tribune, and the BBC, and is currently available on DVD and cable TV.
Pan's Second Feature, "Almost Perfect" Stars Kelly Hu
Kelly Hu
Kelly Ann Hu is an American actress and former fashion model. She was Miss Teen USA 1985 and Miss Hawaii USA 1993.-Early life:Hu was born in Honolulu, Hawaii, the daughter of Juanita, an engineering drafter for Honolulu, and Herbert Hu, a salesman and exotic bird breeder; the two divorced during...
, Edison Chen
Edison Chen
Edison Koon-Hei Chen is a Hong Kong film actor, Cantopop singer, Hong Kong hip hop rapper, model, record producer, fashion designer, and a pop icon. Chen is also the founder of CLOT Inc., and the CEO of Clot Media Division Limited...
, Ivan Shaw, Tina Chen, Christina Chang, and Tony Award winner Roger Rees
Roger Rees
Roger Rees is a Welsh actor. He is best known to American audiences for playing the characters Robin Colcord on the American television sitcom show Cheers and Lord John Marbury on the American television drama The West Wing...
. It screened at various Festivals including The San Francisco International Asian American Film Festival
San Francisco International Asian American Film Festival
The San Francisco International Asian American Film Festival presented every March is the nation’s largest showcase for new Asian American and Asian films, annually presenting approximately 130 works in San Francisco, Berkeley and San Jose, USA...
, The Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival
Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival
The Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival – formerly known as VC FilmFest – is an annual film festival presented by Visual Communications . It was established in 1983 as a vehicle to promote Asian Pacific American and Asian international cinema. The festival fulfills a unique mission in...
(as Centerpiece Film), Hawaii International Film Festival
Hawaii International Film Festival
The Hawaii International Film Festival is a film festival held in the U.S. state of Hawaii. It was started in 1981 by Jeannette Paulson Hereniko and has been held annually in the fall for two weeks...
(as American Immigrant Filmmaker in Profile), Friars Club Comedy Film Festival, and the San Diego Asian Film Festival
San Diego Asian Film Festival
The San Diego Asian Film Festival is an annual event organized by the San Diego Asian Film Foundation. The festival was first held in 2000 at the University of San Diego by the Asian American Journalists Association of San Diego.-Organization Overview:...
(as Opening Night Film), among other film festivals.
Pan has also Directed a short film entitled "Sluggers", Produced films such as Fighting Fish, and Directed Music Videos for Tre Hardson's "Just Can't Hold On," Chris Trapper's "Wish I Was Cool" and "Look What The Wind Blew In" and Princess Katie and Racer Steve's "Sand in My Sandwich." Her Official Production Company is known as "Slew Pictures"http://www.slewpictures.com launched in 2008.
Filmography
- Almost Perfect (2011) - Writer, Director, Producer
- Fighting Fish (2010) - Producer
- Face (2002) - Writer, Director, Producer
- Sluggers (2001) (short) - Writer, Director, Producer
- Face (1997) (short) - Writer, Director Producer
Music Videos
- Princess Katie and Racer Steve's "Sand in My Sandwich" (2010)
- Chris Trapper's "Look What The Wind Blew In" (2010)
- Chris Trapper's "Wish I Was Cool" (2007)
- Tre Hardson's "Just Can't Hold On" (2005)