Child Celebrity to Demo Art and Animation

Child Celebrity Animator, Artist, Film Critic Perry Chen to Demo Art and Animation at Aaron Brothers Mira Mesa on August 31, 2013.

Aaron Brothers, the nation’s premiere framing and art supply company, is announcing a special appearance by Perry S. Chen, 13-year-old celebrity award-winning artist, filmmaker, illustrator, and film/entertainment critic at its Mira Mesa store in San Diego, California on Saturday, August 31, 2013 from noon to 3 pm.  Perry will be signing autographs, doing art and computer animation demos using COPIC markers, Toon Boom Animation software, and a Wacom digital tablet, which are all corporate sponsors to Perry and the event.  Perry will also share with the audience a trailer of his most personal, new animation short about his late father “Changyou’s Journey,” which he is writing, animating, and directing.  He will demonstrate how to make art from commonly found materials, including tin foil and recycled objects.  “When you make art, the only limitation is your imagination,” said Perry. This will be Perry’s first appearance at Aaron Brothers.

Perry S. Chen Personal Appearance

Aaron Brothers Mira Mesa 

10765 Westview Parkway, San Diego CA 92126

Saturday August 31, 2013 noon to 3 pm.

Refreshments, raffle prizes, special store discounts

Select pieces of Perry’s art, including custom-designed greeting cards, posters, T-shirts, Perry’s multiple award-winning film, “Ingrid Pitt: Beyond the Forest”, and a parenting book “The Parent’s Guide to Raising CEO Kids,”featuring Perry, will be offered for sale.  Perry will autograph his art and merchandise.  Perry is the sole animator of “Ingrid Pitt: Beyond the Forest”, an Oscar-qualifying animation short in collaboration with animation legend, two-time Oscar-nominee Bill Plympton, produced by Perry’s mom, Dr. Zhu Shen.  A video loop of Perry’s animation film along with Perry’s TV & film festival appearances, Hollywood director interviews, and other features will be shown at the store event.

An additional 10 percent special store discount for all Aaron Brothers merchandises (on top of existing sales at the time) and raffle prizes including Aaron Brothers’ gift certificates, COPIC markers, gift cards from popular local restaurants including Sammy’s Pizza and Roppongi, will be given out at the event.  Everyone is welcome!

Delicious refreshments for this special event will be provided by Dolce Cibo Catering.

For further information about the event and partnering opportunities, please contact Rosemarie Bergdahl, General Manager, Aaron Brothers Mira Mesa (tel: 858-271-5314 email: rbergdah@san.rr.com ).  For media interest and corporate sponsorship opportunities, please contact Zhu Shen, 858-761-7955, bioforesight@gmail.com .

About Perry S. Chen

Perry S. Chen is a 13-year-old award-winning animator, artist, renowned film and entertainment critic, TEDx speaker, and entertainment personality, currently in 7th grade from San Diego.

Perry became the youngest animator at age 10 when he made his first critically acclaimed 6-minute animation short “Ingrid Pitt: Beyond the Forest,” about a young Holocaust survivor, in collaboration with two-time Oscar nominee Bill Plympton who provided storyboard and character design.  The film went on to win three film festival awards and screened at over 30 film festivals around the world, and was an Oscar-qualifying film in 2011. The film is distributed by Shorts International, and available on iTunes in 54 countries. More info.

Perry has made three animation films to date, and is writing, animating, and directing his 4^th and most personal animation short, “Changyou’s Journey,” about his late father Dr. Changyou Chen who passed away at age 49 from cancer in 2012.  Watch trailer.

Perry started reviewing movies at age 8 in 3rd grade using a kid-friendly starfish rating system, and became a national sensation when he debuted on CBS Evening News with Katie Couric as the youngest film critic in the country in May 2009.  He has since been featured in numerous regional, national and international media, including NPR, NBC, ABC, Fox, CNN, CCTV (China Central Television), Variety, Animation Magazine, The Young Icons, Live Life & Win, The Guardian, The China Press, etc.  He was a presenter at the 2010 Annie Awards for Animation, and has written movie reviews for Animation World Network (AWN), San Diego Union Tribune, San Diego Entertainer, The Carmel Valley Life, Amazing Kids! Magazine, and his own Perry’s Previews blog.

Perry won an “Excellence in Journalism Award” from San Diego Press Club in 2010 and 2011 for his movie and restaurant reviews, an “Excellence Writer Award” from “We Chinese in America” Magazine in 2010 for his movie review column. Perry is widely recognized as an authoritative spokesperson about movies for his generation, and appears frequently at red carpet movie premieres, press junkets, awards, and film festivals, interviewing prominent directors from such films as Wreck-it Ralph, Toy Story 3, Up, How to Train Your Dragon, Kung Fu Panda 2, and Despicable Me.  Perry and his producer mom Dr. Zhu Shen are featured in a book about parenting and youth entrepreneurship, “The Parent’s Guide to Raising CEO Kids,” published in Aug 2011.  Perry-designed Thank-You cards with animal alphabet are currently sold at the gift shop of the Reuben H. Fleet Science Center in San Diego.

For information about Perry Chen, media inquiries, and partnership opportunities, contact Dr. Zhu Shen, publisher of Perry’s Previews, email: bioforesight@gmail.com,  858-761-7955.

For Perry Chen’s movie reviews, film project updates, upcoming events, visit here.

Follow Perry on social media: You Tube channel, Facebook, Linkedin, and Twitter.

About Aaron Brothers

Aaron Brothers is the nationally recognized authority providing ideas and solutions for art, framing, and displaying memorabilia. From being a place where artists can get supplies and ideas to providing every type of framing possibility imaginable, Aaron Brothers has become the authority on creativity. What began over 60 years ago by two brothers in Hollywood, California has flourished into 130 stores featuring the largest frame selection in the country. For more information, contact:

Rosemarie Bergdahl, General Manager, Aaron Brothers Mira Mesa, 858-271-5314