The Kollaboration Dinner Club met for its first official meal last Thursday, 9/17 at Masan restaurant in Ktown.

 

From Friday to Saturday, July 24 to 26th, our Kollaboration Staff went on a retreat to Lake Arrowhead.  Read about our Kollaboration Summer Interns experience at the retreat!

Joyce Chun – Summer 2009 Intern 

Kollaboration Retreat: One word that I would use to describe the Kollaboration retreat is: welcoming. When I first decided to intern for Kollaboration this summer, I had no idea what to expect and what kind of experience I’ll take from my time here. Little did I know that this summer I would be embarking on a life-changing journey with an amazing group of people. As dramatic as that sounds, Kollaboration really has opened my eyes to be true to myself, strive to accomplish my goals, and look at the bigger picture.

The retreat site itself was awesome, thanks to Waffle Willy, with its lake view balcony and cabin-esque decorations that provided a very homey intimate atmosphere. I just KNEW great things would happen that weekend. Within the first couple hours, inside jokes and friendships were created that are still used across various online exchanges to this day. The theme for the retreat was branching out and getting to know someone you didn’t know and it really hit home for me. Though I was new to Kollaboration this year and did not know the majority of the people present, the Kollaboration family was very welcoming and I felt like I developed new and lasting friendships through the experiences I had that weekend. I genuinely feel like Kollaboration has grown to become my second family. =]

One of the most inspiring things about the retreat was when we all shared our life stories or dreams in our indoor campfire circle. Everyone’s story was deeply moving and it helped me realize the importance of having a community to share your inner feelings with in order to bond and grow together, because no one can do it alone.

My favorite part of the retreat was by far staying up all night playing nonstop Mafia and shamelessly accusing each other of being the culprit. Mafia can actually be quite a stressful game…if you aren’t good of course ;) but it definitely brought a lot of laughter from defenses like “If I’m the mafia…then it’s one of us, both of us, or none of us“ and “WHOOORE!!.”

I love the Kollaboration family and I’m grateful I was given the opportunity to partake in the movement this summer. I’m so glad everyone had their camera and took a million pictures, because every time I look at the retreat pictures I can’t help but smile. I know I will treasure the memories and I can’t wait to come back next year!

Tiffany Le – Summer 2009 Intern 

In the midst of the hot summer, I got to get away to the cool breezes of Lake Arrowhead last weekend. There was never a dull moment, from the car ride there to the last moments playing Mafia until we parted ways. I met some of the most genuine people I’ve ever known and became part of a second family. I’ve known about the Kollaboration movement since 2007 and have always admired everyone’s efforts in putting on such a ground-breaking show. I finally got a chance to join this summer as an intern and I have to say that it is one of the best decisions I have made.

In the short span of two days, new friendships were made and existing ones grew stronger. We ate, played games, ate, played more games, and did I mention, ate? The food was amazing to say the least. Meals were prepared by our very own chef Seong with the help of the Kollaboration staff. Each meal was made with love and care which made it taste even better.

Playing games till dawn was the best part of the retreat. No one took themselves too seriously so it was friendly competition. Teams bonded during activities and skits. We learned more about ourselves and each other and our role in the world. It got emotional at times but we all supported each other and gained a deeper understanding of one another.

Overall, it was an unforgettable experience filled with laughter and good company. We walk away from it with plenty of memories and some embarrassing pictures. I feel like I’ve gained friendships that I will keep for a very long time. Hopefully our family will grow and next year it will be even better!

Lisa Phan – Summer 2009 Intern 

Good friends, good food, and good memories were the results of second Kollboration staff retreat. Even though I’ve been on staff for two years, I wasn’t close to any of the other staff members. Maybe it was because I was on the youth staff or maybe it was because I just didn’t have the experience to be a big contribution to the Kollaboration cause, but after retreat, my view on things changed.

This staff retreat is the first retreat I’ve been to where we have our own personal chef. At first I was skeptical of how good he was because we were told that we had to help him cook; however, Chef Seong surpassed my expectations and I learned something from the group cooking. Most of us didn’t seem to have a lot of cooking experience but with Seong’s help, we achieved making the best food I have ever tasted. That just reminded me how much teamwork can accomplish. Plus we had super yummy food to reward us for our success.

All the games were extremely entertaining. Only in Telephone Charades can a unicorn become a rhinoceros and tennis becomes volleyball. However, my favorite game was Mafia. When I was “mafia,” I was able to fool and everyone and win against the “citizens.” And I love John’s reasoning of “If it’s not me, and it’s not you, it has to be them, or it’s the both of us…” We played 5AM and still woke up to make breakfast, except for me… on the last day… Punishment was the best part. You have to have been at retreat to know what I’m talking about ;)

This whole weekend was a really great experience for me. I feel that we really are a family, ie: Andrew mooing super loud to save Tiffany. Even though I didn’t get to bond with everyone in that short period of time, I think just talking to them again was all we needed to take another step in our friendship. I’m so glad we all have a million pictures to remind us of the fun we had. We will definitely have to do this again next year. RAW RAW POTATO!!

Jen Ju – Summer 2009 Intern 

The Kollaboration staff retreat this past weekend was really an event I’m glad I experienced. Being new to Kollaboration, I didn’t really know many of the staff members and volunteers who seemed to all have been friends with each other for a really long time. Spending a few days with them in a cabin in Lake Arrowhead really let me all bond with them and truly feel a part of the Kollaboration movement.

I have been on different get-to-know-you retreats before, but they have always been extremely structured. The Kollaboration retreat had enough organization so it didn’t feel like we were just all up there in the same cabin together, but it also gave us enough freedom to do what we wanted to do. The leadership and team-building games we played were extremely entertaining. The silliness was a good way to get to know each other.

One of the most memorable activities was when we were asked to express our views on certain issues by standing on one side of the room or the other depending on what we believed. Because I didn’t really know every one that well, it was nice to learn of their perspectives and understand where they were coming from. This also happened during our sharing activity, where people shared their life stories (condensed). It really made us know each other a lot more.   

The food – and making it, of course - however, was probably by far the highlight of many on the trip. Not only did Chef Seong make amazing dishes, he taught others how to cook various things as well. Every one at the retreat was so full after every meal. I think a lot of the bonding also happened in the kitchen as we all watched and helped out with the cooking.

The Kollaboration made me realize even more how wonderful every one who is a part of it really is. Each individual truly believes in what Kollaboration does and tries very hard to help the movement along. Each person who is a part of Kollaboration loves it and is friendly and fun and welcoming.

After Facebook-friending each other, and spamming each other’s walls after we all returned from Lake Arrowhead, I think every one is thinking, “Let’s do it again!”

So it's Friday night, May 1.  I'm leaving for Korea at 12:30pm on Saturday.  Our company, Mars Entertainment, is releasing Terminator Salvation this coming May 21 in Korea.  It's our biggest project by far and we've got everything on the line-- so I'm a little nervous, anxious, excited.

From everything we've pieced together, this should be the best Terminator ever made.  We're having a special screening on May 7 in Seoul.  If you're reading this blog and you're in Seoul, comment on it and I'll invite you to the screening. 

Then on May 11, I'll be heading to the Cannes Film Festival to check out what films are coming up and to buy some films.  Despite having to cram in meetings while being jetlagged, it's always fun to see what product is out there, and to meet up with old colleagues.  If you ever want to understand the film industry, learn about distribution and attend a film market.  What's a film market?  Well... that's exactly it.  It's a place where sales companies will sell films to domestic and foreign distributors.   Or sales companies will try to pick up new films to represent.  Producers will also promote their films or try to get them picked up by sales companies.  Some producers will sell their films directly to foreign distributors or buyers.  What are buyers?  Buyers are companies or individuals that will claim or purchase exclusive rights to their territory so they can release the film there-- which is what Mars Entertainment does.  So at Cannes, you have the film festival, where you celebrate films and have a competitions.  And you have the film market, where buyers, sellers, distributors and everyone else in the chain converge to make deals on film properties.  Wish me luck on this year's Cannes!  Hopefully we can come away with a Terminator-like blockbuster!

John Legend is one cool dude.  He's an amazing singer, his music is cool, and the way he carries himself is definitely cool.

 A few weeks ago, a friend of mine was flying on a plane and sitting next to John Legend's manager with John sitting right behind them.  Since John was performing in Seoul on March 28, they casually suggested a performance in Seoul the night before to raise money for charities-- John's Show Me Campaign to fight poverty in Africa, and various Korean orphanages. 

Kevin Kim, my friend who was on the plane, calls me to tell me about this idea and also getting the US Ambassador (whom we met the year before) involved, to which I reply "That's a great idea." I say this because it would be impossible to try to set something up with only a few weeks planning, and he wouldn't dare ask me to help him on such a project.  A few days later... we're in full planning mode (a direct violation of my Lunar New Year's resolution to start saying no to people). 

We decide it would be A Night of Charity for Children with John Legend.  Guests of honor would include the US Ambassador to Korea, Kathleen Stephens, as well as Tasha (Yoon Mirae), the #1 R&B singer in Korea.  And having a performance with both of them would be great.  We wanted an intimate event with high ticket prices.  So Kevin and I land in Seoul 4 days before the event date.  Radio interviews, newspaper interviews, meetings at the Embassy, coordinating through email with John's team, coordinating with the venue (Bamboo House), and getting the grand piano and sound equipment had to be squeezed into the 3 days.  Add to that the jet lag, Kevin and I were zombies in suits. 

On March 28, everything fell according to plan.  With the help of other Netkalers (Netkal is an org that I'm a part of - Network of Korean American Leaders) Esther Song, Sara Kim and Sonny Hong, the event went smoothly without a hitch.  Ambassador Stephens was so accommodating and friendly.  She met and took photos with every single person in the room.  Her popularity is rising very quickly with the Korean people.

Prior to the event, I had a chance to sit down with John, Tasha, and Tiger JK (Drunken Tiger).  I mentioned to John that Tasha had a rap for "Greenlight" (his current hit) ready.  Well, since he was only doing the piano tonight, how about if she rapped for him right there to see if she would be right for his concert the next day.  She raps, he says ok, and the plan is set for her to come onstage during the last half of "Greenlight."

I had the privilege of experiencing John perform live in front of a small group.  The next day, I went to the concert.  Not a flashy concert with a bunch of theatrics and pyrothechnics.  It was a basic, music-filled, nonstop lineup of John's music-- an amazing performance.  The Korean audience showed their appreciation on every song-- confirming the fact that there ARE big John Legend fans in Korea, with many of them singing along.  Move to "Greenlight," and as soon as it's time for the rap part, Tasha walks onto the stage and is met with a deafening roar from the crowd.  What a nice surprise it must've been for the audience! 

So it was just a whirlwind five days in Korea-- really just a blur.  I want to thank all the people along the way who put their trust in us and believed that this would all happen. Tasha and JK I've known for a very long time.  JK and I grew up together.  Good people, and they just celebrated their son Jordan's 1st birthday.  And John Legend... softspoken, unbelievably talented, and a nice guy.  I work with celebrities quite often, and occassionally, I have to deal with big egos, divas, primadonnas, and whatever other negative term you could think of.  John isn't one of them. 

By the way, the only reason I agreed to do this event is because we want to turn it into an annual event-- a night of Musical Diplomacy.  Music builds bridges.  I wonder who our next artist will be...

My Kollaboration 9 Experience

First, I would like to thank everyone who came out to support Kollaboration 9. Everyone from audience members to performers to volunteers to show staff was a part of history as we sold out the Shrine Auditorium. Empowerment Through Entertainment! It was an amazing night as we had an UNBELIEVABLE line-up of talent.

Team Millennia set the tone for the night as they opened the show. They jumpstarted the crowd with an amazing routine. I missed that performance because I was in the front trying to figure out a problem. BoA had to walk the red carpet. She was waiting to come out of the car but her heels were too high to navigate the slanted driveway in the front of the red carpet area. Now while we’re trying to figure this out, I’m called by the stage manager to get my butt over to the stage because the intro video (the one with Brian Tee, Moon Bloodgood and Aaron Yoo) is playing and I’m supposed to be onstage at the end of it. But… I need to get BoA on the red carpet. Numerous fans are waiting for her grand entrance and the reporters have their cameras ready. One idea that floated around was to bring the golf cart from the back to take her to the carpet. Golf cart? Not just any golf cart—this one was a bad-ass one with rims. OK, get the golf car. I’ll be right back. I run through the auditorium as I see the video playing. I go backstage and enter just in time with PK. Brian Tee follows onstage and we throw t-shirts out to one of the most deserving audiences ever. Our Kollaboration 9 audience was showing serious love for the show.

Now while I’m onstage, I’m only thinking about BoA and getting her to the red carpet. The golf cart can’t be any golf cart. BoA is an international pop star so this golf cart better be good. I run outside and I see what I had hoped for—BoA getting into the golf cart. OK. Problem solved. 

Then I get word of the chaos that occurred with the ticketing. Here’s the real story with the ticketing. We were informed by Ticketmaster that we could do our own tickets. We come to find out a few weeks before showtime that we MUST use Ticketmaster tickets. Fine, we’ll adapt. We start selling ticketmaster tickets and plan to exchange the tickets on the day of the show, except on that day, we find out we will get no help from Ticketmaster. That’s ok. We have a team of volunteers ready to handle will call and the ticket exchange. The problem is we were ready for 5000 people (only 4500 tickets had been sold or donated at this point). We were not ready for the 7000+ people that showed up. Now, if you’re only prepared for 5000 people, every additional hundred people makes it exponentially harder. Chaos ensued, there was cursing, yelling, shoving. It’s something that I take responsibility for, but we now know exactly how to handle it next year. It was a big jump to go from 2000 people at the Orpheum to 6300 people at the Shrine.

Many people missed a good portion of the show. As I write this, I am answering emails of those that were affected by the chaos. I will take time to write to each person who writes to us.

So I wanted to go over some of the highlights of the night. Kenichi was amazing. That night, everyone knew how Kenichi was able to be the grand champion of Showtime at the Apollo two years in a row. He ended up taking home the grand prize. Jane Lui blew everyone away with her amazing voice. Gives me chills. And Lilybeth won the audience award where audience members could text message vote for their favorite performer. Fanny Pak and Kaba Modern brought down the house with their SICK routines. Norman Ng, the magician, showed us some really cool tricks. Some people asked whether the cell phone trick was staged. Absolutely not. Very fortunate for us that the volunteer’s cell phone carrier was Verizon. Of course, David Choi recording his performance to post on youtube was ingenious! Check out that video if you haven’t already.

 

Our freestyle vocal and freestyle dance competitions ended up being very interesting. Ace (from Culver City, I believe) took home the $500 prize for the freestyle dance. And Gabe Bondoc (another youtube sensation) took home the freestyle vocal prize. That was awesome to see Gabe onstage. And it was great to see the fans show their appreciation. If any of you reading this blog want to lobby for Gabe to be one of the competitors for Kollaboration 10 next year, please let me know. One of my favorite parts of the show is being onstage and FEELING the roar of the audience after a great performance.

 

So anyway, the show is going smoothly and we’re actually only a few minutes behind schedule. Great. We’re going to end right on time, and we can celebrate at the afterparty. That was not to be. Jo Koy got onstage, and his 20 minutes became 40 minutes. Why? The crowd LOVED him. We knew they would, which is why we wanted him on the show. He rocked the crowd. He kept going with his jokes because the audience loved it. Now here is where it’s tough for me. I think Jo is one of the funniest comedians out there. But I assured countless parents that our show was a family show. So while I am loving the fact that our Kollaboration fans really enjoyed Jo’s performance, I am dreading the many conversations I’ll be having as I have to apologize about the language used. So… now that Jo has gone 20 minutes OVER his time slot, BoA is waiting backstage for Jo’s performance to end. Finally, BoA gets onstage and puts on a great performance, and the crowd shows their appreciation.

 

Here’s my opinion on BoA (let me know if you agree or disagree): she’s a superstar in Asia. She’s obviously an amazing performer. She can dance, and sing on key while doing so. But… if you come to America, you HAVE to start over if you want to win new fans. It’s sort of like going to a new school. It doesn’t matter how popular you were at the old school, the students at the new school are going to check you and place you somewhere in the hierarchy that exists in the new school. BoA is the new student, and from all appearances, she looks like she’s headed for the in-crowd, but we all know that in-crowd (meaning mainstream American music), is a pretty fickle one. It will chew you up, tear you up, throw you against the ground, and see whether you belong. BoA has a certain appeal to fans in Asia. What appeals to fans in America is a little different. If she can find that secret ingredient that will appeal to American fans, she’s got a shot at making it. On that note, I think it would be awesome if David Choi wrote a song for BoA… and they performed it at Kollaboration 10!

The winter holidays always bring a multitude of feelings. I guess it starts with the gluttonous feast we call Thanksgiving dinner (which isn't really dinner since it usually starts mid-afternoon). Is it me or does Thanksgiving dinner start earlier and earlier every year? I suspect it's a conspiracy by all the moms to maximize that one turkey and ham, and squeeze out two meals in one Thanksgiving Thursday.

Then I feel sorry for people who have to work on the Friday after. I don't think I've ever had to work on a Thanksgiving Friday. Talk about ruining a 4-day vacation. Or ruining a great shopping day. But then again, since you're all loaded up on turkey, ham, stuffing, and all the other fixings from the day before (plus all those naps from the tryptophan), you might as well get up early at 4am, shop for a few hours, burn off as many calories as possible, then go to work at 9am. Did you know that the term Black Friday originated in Philadelphia because of all the traffic and crowds the Friday after Thanksgiving?

I remember when KOST 103.5 (it's LA's easy listening station) used to start playing Christmas songs 24/7 immediately following Thanksgiving. Now, they don't even wait for Thanksgiving to pass. Christmas music now starts a few days before Thanksgiving, which is really odd to listen to when the weather's in the high 80s.

Cynics criticize the holidays as being too commercialized. Whenever I start to agree with this sentiment, I catch myself and realize that commercializing it, in the long run, is necessary-- especially in this economy. This holiday season is especially tough for everyone across the board. Everyone is now understanding what a recession feels like-- and it's going to get worse before it gets better. Companies are making less, individuals are making less, and this results in less being given to those in need. I don't consider Kollaboration an organization in need, but there's definitely a huge decrease in sponsorships from last year.

Many of us are asked to give in some form or another. I'm sure we wish we were all billionaires so we could give to every charitable organization that asked for help. Since none of us are billionaires (and if you're a billionaire reading this, please click on the sponsorship section of this site to see how you can help Kollaboration), we have to find other ways to give. If an organization asks you to donate money that you don't have, try offering your time. Maybe you can volunteer for their organization. If volunteering isn't a year-round thing for you, what better gift to give than some volunteer hours.

We try to associate the holidays with good times being spent with family and friends. Eating, drinking and being merry. But this holiday season will be tougher than ones past. For some of us, there's the pressure of buying enough Christmas gifts for everyone on our list. For others, it's the pressure of coming up with rent or the mortgage so they don't get evicted or their home doesn't get foreclosed. And for others, it's whether the transplant will come through, or a bone marrow match will be found, or the risky surgical procedure will rid them of their rare cancer. I hope we can all put things into perspective.

So 2008 is almost over. And regardless of whether you're Democrat or Republican, we saw an historic and electrifying election. And even though we're going through one of the worst economic periods in history, there's a light at the end of the tunnel. We have a new President that offers more hope and unity than any other President ever has-- or any other public figure for that matter. I truly believe he'll be the best President we've ever had.

If you have a dollar to give, please give it.

If you don't have money to give, give your time.

If you don't have money or time to give, send a prayer for someone who needs it (regardless of what religion you are).

And if you're not religious, just send positive thoughts.

Slumdog Millionaire is one of my favorite movies of all time... possibly at the top of the list. If you have a chance, go out and see it. It's in very limited release so you'll have to do some research to find a theater that's playing it. Directed by Danny Boyle.

My partner, PK (Executive Director of Kollaboration) is now a FATHER! Solomon Won Kim was born November 19, 2008. It was a very nervous pregnancy, as Solomon wasn't getting enough nutrients through the umbilical cord. His birth weight was lower than average but doctors say that after a month-long stay at the hospital, he'll be fine.

I'm excited and relieved. PK and Tammy have gone through a whole range of emotions during the pregnancy. It's great to see that our prayers were answered; and so wonderful to see it all culminate on this joyous occasion. They're going to be amazing parents, and Solomon will be receiving more love than he can handle.

Congratulations to the new daddy, PK! And welcome to the world, Solomon!

Friday (Nov. 1) was an interesting night. I first went to a fundraiser event by Lucky Brand Jeans. Their organization is called Lucky Smiles and they help Children's Hospital and their work with children who are born with cleft palates. A great and worthy cause.

The event was capped off by one of my favorite 80s groups of ALL TIME... Hall and Oates. Maneater, I Can't Go For That, among others... and my favorite, Out of Touch. Hall and Oates Rocks! If you haven't heard their music yet, you're in for a treat.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jh8d7cjiWUo&feature=related

Afterward, it was off to the Velvet Room, where Artisans Music coordinated DJ Felli Fel's appearance there- the first time a mainstream radio DJ performed at a Korean club. Needless to say, the crowd loved his set- because it wasn't the same set every DJ in K-town spins. Anyone who has been to K-town clubs has probably memorized the song list by now.

It's me, Glen, and Felli-- three grown men making silly faces.