Schema Magazine

A monthly series of web-writing workshops and speakers, featuring some of the most pioneering, innovative and ethnic cool voices on the Internet. iWriteAboutMe.com showcases dynamic web personalities, social media gurus, bloggers and writers who will talk about how they transformed their personal stories and diverse identities into an online brand.

Giant Robot Invades Vancouver!
MAY 20, 2010 at Museum of Vancouver

Schema Magazine and Museum of Vancouver present
Eric Nakamura and Martin Wong, Asian American pop culture icons and the creators of Giant Robot.
Sponsored by The Laurier Institution and Bing Thom Architects.

Thursday May 20, 2010
6:30 PM | Museum of Vancouver | 1100 Chestnut Street, Vancouver, B.C.

Free Event and everyone is welcome. RSVP required as seating is limited. Please visit NAAAP Vancouver to reserve a seat.

In celebration of Asian Heritage Month, Schema Magazine and Museum of Vancouver present Eric Nakamura and Martin Wong the creators of the iconic Asian American pop culture magazine Giant Robot in the fifth installment of iWriteAboutMe.com.

Via broadband from their headquarters in LA, Eric and Martin will share the inside story on the making of one of the most innovative and influential Asian American magazines, which over the past 15 years (and 63 issues) galvanized the Asian pop culture movement.

Described as "a small, punk-minded magazine" it is known internationally for its quirky and playful perspective on Asian American alternative culture. The first platform to highlight Asian American history, art, music, film and books with a blend of Asian toys, technology, skateboarding, and of course, reviews of instant noodle.

Over the years, Giant Robot has inspired many prolific Asian American voices, including Phil Yu, the creator of the super-blog AngryAsianMan.com.

I first discovered Giant Robot when I was in college. I was extremely excited to find a magazine that was covering "Asian Pop Culture and Beyond" with some attitude and an eye for cool -- and best of all, they were doing it completely on their own terms. It was inspirational. In truth, without Giant Robot there would be no Angry Asian Man.

Giant Robot Official Website

Space is limited! Please RSVP with NAAAP Vancouver.

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Partners and Sponsors
Eric Nakamura and Martin Wong are presented by Schema Magazine and the Museum of Vancouver, in partnership with the North American Association of Asian Professionals Vancouver (NAAAP), theTyee.ca, Fresh Media (Vancouver). Sponsored by The Laurier Institution and Bing Thom Architects.

PREVIOUS WORKSHOPS & SPEAKERS

Jen Wang and Diana Nguyen | April 2010

Jen Wang and Diana Nguyen, the creators of DISGRASIAN.com, two Asian American chick's blog about pop culture, politics, sports, music, race and identity, and one of the most popular and influential Asian American blogs of our time!

A little ditty about Jen and Diana, two Asian American chicks who grew up in the Heartland. Jen was gonna be a football star, Diana was gonna be the first girl in NASCAR. Suckin' on chili dogs, outside the line at Pink's, Diana's eating Jen's fries, gets some ketchup on her sleeve. Jen says, Hey Diana, let's run off and start this blog, quit our lame day jobs and do what we please. Diana says, Oh yeah! Life goes on, long after the thrill of livin' is gone. Oh yeah...Jen says, Hold on. Are we singing "Jack and Diane"? Diana says, Hells yeah, we're singing "Jack and Diane." Where were we? Oh right...and together they go, Gonna let it rawk, let it ro-oll! Let the bible belt come and save ma so-o-oul!

David Beers | January 2010
Sponsored by the UBC Graduate School of Journalism

Photo (from left to right): Jordana Mah, David Beers, Linda Chan and Mauree Matsusaka.

We began the new year with David Beers, the Editor and web-media-pioneer of theTyee.ca, an independent daily online magazine reaching every corner of B.C. and beyond. David has won national awards for his journalism in Canada and the United States, and is widely recognized as pioneering a model for independent online news magazines.

Writing for The Globe and Mail, Vancouver Magazine, The New York Times Magazine, Harper's, National Geographic and many other publications. David Beers was also a founding member of IMPACS, a Vancouver non-profit firm providing media help to non-profit groups, former vice chair of the Vancouver City Planning Commission, and a lecturer at the UBC School of Journalism. David shared his experiences and insight to working in the media, being an alternative news source, and his views on media democracy.

Jennifer Thym | November 2009

The second installment featured Jennifer Thym, New York-born Writer and Director of LUMINA, an original web series starring JuJu Chan, Michael Chan and Vince Matthew Chung. Filmed on the RED One, the nine part web series is a dark, densely woven fantasy set against the sparkling backdrop of Hong Kong. To minimize the carbon footprint of this event, Jennifer Thym spoke in Vancouver via video-conference from her current headquarters in Hong Kong.

The workshop was preceded by a special screening of films from Mighty Asian Moviemaking Marathon 2008, presented by the Asian Canadian Cultural Association (UBC), in partnership with the Vancouver Asian Film Festival.

Phil Yu | September 2009

The series began with Phil Yu, aka. AngryAsianMan.com, a trailblazer for Asia American voices on the web and someone who has truly set the stage for online discourse around race, culture and identity for the blogging generation. Phil shared the inspiring story of starting one of the most influential online spaces in today's Asian American movement, share tips on how he keeps his content accessible and relevant, and what was involved in moving AngryAsianMan.com from activism to super-blog status.