Director Jean Yeo Presents The Leap Years at Vancouver's 14th Annual explorasian Festival

Vancouver, BC (May 12, 2010) – Singapore film director Jean Yeo will be attending the encore screening of her film, The Leap Years, this month in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, at the 14th Annual explorASIAN Festival in celebration of Canada’s Asian Heritage Month.

The Vancouver Singapore Film Festival (VSFF) is proud to partner with explorASIAN Festival and Mediacorp Raintree Pictures, Singapore’s pioneering movie company, for this special screening of The Leap Years.

Hand-picked from VSFF 2009 selections, The Leap Years represents the best of Singapore cinema at this year’s explorASIAN Festival - Canada’s second oldest Asian Heritage Month Festival that has highlighted over 900 artistes since 1996. The Leap Years is one of 50 diverse arts and cultural events taking place this May in support of Canada’s Asian Heritage Month, which celebrates Asian Canadian cultural and artistic expressions and traditions.

The Leap Years will be screened as the main feature film at the Pacific Cinematheque - one of Vancouver’s oldest and established festival venues. The venue exhibits over 500 curated films annually and is host to the prestigious Vancouver International Film Festival.

The Leap Years is a feature length film starring veteran actress Joan Chen of The Last Emperor (1987) fame, seasoned Singaporean actress Wong Li Lin and Australian-Thai heartthrob Ananda Everingham (star of the original Thai version of Shutter, later remade into a Hollywood movie starring Joshua Jackson). This love story is an adaptation of a novella by best-selling author Dr. Catherine Lim, Singapore’s answer to Margaret Atwood.

Since its release in February 2008, The Leap Years has gone on to become the highest grossing, locally produced English movie at the Singapore Box Office and has received international acclaim - selected as the closing film for the 2009 Vancouver Singapore Film Festival, nominated at 2009 Singapore International Film Awards and screened at the Shanghai International Film Festival in 2008.

Ms. Yeo will introduce her film on Tuesday, May 25, at 8.45pm at the Pacific Cinematheque in Vancouver and lead a post-screening Q & A. She will be available for media interviews.