Saving Face isn't, interestingly enough, the only film about a
Chinese-American lesbian; in 2005, Georgia Lee's debut feature Red Doors
was released (read about the making of the movie here). This drama/comedy about
a uniquely dysfunctional Chinese-American family includes a story line about
daughter Julie Wong (Elaine Kao), another doctor, who falls for bombshell
actress Mia Scarlett (Mia Riverton).
Following in the family drama vein, Chutney Popcorn (1999) from out
director and actor Nisha Ganatra is about Reena (Ganatra), a young
Indian-American lesbian who offers to be a surrogate mother to her infertile
sister.
In The Gymnast (2006), Addie Yungmee plays Serena, the graceful lesbian
acrobat who falls in love with previously heterosexual Jane (Dreya Weber). And
in Some Prefer Cake (1998), Machiko Saito plays a one-night stand who
comes back to haunt the main character. In her review of the film, Danielle
Riendeau wrote, "Saito is an incredible scene-stealer and plays Katie with
fantastic comedic instincts."
You know what's so great about these movies? None of the lesbians die in the
end! In fact, they pretty much all survive to live another day and even end up
with a girlfriend. Hopefully, the upcoming romantic comedy When Kiran Met
Karen, about an Indian-American actress who falls for her female co-star, will
continue this positive trend.
Television, sadly, hasn't been as kind to lesbian/bisexual Asian Americans. On
the short-lived sitcom Coupling, Lindsay Price played a stereotypically
manipulative bisexual, Jane. This past season on The L Word, biracial
actress Sandrine Holt (she is of Chinese and French descent) played the wealthy
(and, OK, manipulative) gambler Catherine Rothberg, though her Asian background
seemed to have nothing to do with her character. (For a positive portrayal of
an Asian lesbian on television, you have to go north of the border to Canada's
teen drama Edgemont, in which Grace Park, now on Battlestar Galactica,
played a lesbian high school student.)
In real life, there aren't too many out Asian-American women celebrities, but
there are a good handful. If you haven't done so already, read our interview
with Margaret Cho or catch up on what Jenny Shimizu was up to last year. Don't
forget about outspoken poet (and co-host of She Said What?) Staceyann Chin and
directors Alice Wu and Ligy Pullappally. And in 2003 we spoke to openly lesbian
Kashish Chopra, who won the Miss Congeniality award at the Miss India USA
pageant.
If you're interested in looking beyond the borders of the United States, we've
covered queer Asian women across the globe as well. In "Queer Asian Women Gain
Momentum in Western Entertainment," Helen Madison examines the evolution of
queer Asian women in film and TV, including Joan Chen's sexy role in Wild Side.
"From Fire to Journey to Kiran" explores how representations of Indian lesbians
in film have changed over time. "China's Super Girl Li Yuchun" takes a look at
the 2006 winner of China's American Idol-style pop music contest.
We've covered films set outside the U.S., too, from the Indian-Scottish
romantic comedy Nina's Heavenly Delights (which should be coming to the
U.S. this year) to The Journey (2005), about young women in rural India who
fall in love with each other, and the classic film Fire. Les Filles du Botaniste
is set in 1980s China, while Butterfly is set in present-day Hong Kong,
and Lily Festival is a rare exploration of lesbian sexuality among older
Japanese women.
Finally, readers have had a treasure trove of same-sex stories in the Japanese
tradition of manga. More recently, Korean graphic novelist June Kim's 12 Days
was released, telling a moving tale about Jackie mourning the death of her
lover, Noah.
