Photo-op - Japanese Canadian Cultural Centre showcases the best of Asian
culture at ninth annual Road to Asia Festival

    
    Innovative partnership with Annex-based school, The Dragon Academy,
    creates exciting art assignment for students
    

TORONTO , Oct. 5 /CNW/ - The 2009 Road to Asia Festival is a popular annual two-day arts and entertainment Festival celebrating the richness and diversity of Asian culture - all under one roof. For the ninth year, the Japanese Canadian Cultural Centre (JCCC) will be transformed into a multicultural marketplace filled with a cacophony of sights, sounds, and smells for thousands of visitors.

This year's festival features displays and performances from many of the countries that have a community presence in Canada including the Philippines , Indonesia , India , Thailand , China , Taiwan , Sri Lanka , Tibet, Japan and more.

"The Road to Asia Festival has become a must-attend event for families of so many communities within and around Toronto ," said James Heron , Executive Director, Japanese Canadian Cultural centre. "Since its inception almost 50 years ago, the JCCC's motto has been 'Friendship Through Culture'. The Centre is an inclusive place that is open to all. The Road to Asia festival is really the ultimate manifestation of that ideal.

On both days, artists from each country will perform every hour on the large, main stage. All artists will introduce their performance and explain the origin of their cultural talents as a way of educating the audience. Numerous community and cultural displays, as well as vendors are spread throughout the building. There will also be a food court featuring delicacies from around the region. The dojo area will feature ongoing martial arts demonstrations.

With the focus on the learning opportunity, Annex-based Dragon Academy Visual Arts teacher, Sarah Beatty , has assigned the Grade 11 students with a design project that teaches them about the problem solving considerations of a commission-based event photographer and the layout and design considerations of a graphic designer. They will have the opportunity to attend the weekend long Festival to create their own photo and video diaries of the experience and will then use their images to create a promotional poster for the 2010 event. The JCCC will review all the posters submitted by the students and select one to use in 2010. The project will give all students some basic skills in photography, graphic design and videography and start them with a portfolio they can build upon for use in the future.

    
    Date:       Saturday, November 7th - 11:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.
                Sunday, November 8th - 11:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.

    Location:   The Japanese Canadian Cultural Centre, 6 Garamond Court,
                Toronto, Ontario (Don Mills and Eglinton, north east of the
                Ontario Science Centre), 416-441-2345

    Admission: Adults $5, Seniors and Students $3, Children 12 years and
    under - Free with adult accompaniment

    Parking:    Free onsite parking
    

About the Japanese Canadian Cultural Centre

The Japanese Canadian Cultural Centre (JCCC) is one of the largest Japanese cultural centres outside of Japan . It is a registered charity (BN118972967RR0001) that has been serving the Greater Toronto Area for more than forty five years.

For more information on the JCCC and its activities, visit www.jccc.on.ca.

For further information: Media Contact: Paul Tyler, [phone], [email protected]