The Search for General Tso
World Premiere

The Search for General Tso

Spotlight
| USA | 73 MINUTES | Chinese, English | English subtitles
Documentary, New York, Food
From New York City to the farmlands of the Midwest, there are around 50,000 Chinese restaurants in the U.S. While there can be quite a range of Chinese-American dishes, one in particular seems to have conquered the American culinary landscape with a force befitting its military moniker—“General Tso’s Chicken.” Walk into any Chinese restaurant in the country and you can be fairly certain you’ll be rewarded with a plate of this sweet and sticky fried chicken—seemingly just spicy enough for the American palate. But how did this dish reach such levels of ubiquity and who was General Tso in the first place? This delightfully insightful documentary seeks to uncover the origins of a dish that Americans have warmly adopted as their own. As director Ian Cheney journeys to Shanghai and Hunan, it becomes increasingly clear that the answers lie much closer to home, as the story of General Tso’s Chicken becomes inextricably linked to the story of Chinese Americans’ own search to define their identity.

-Ian Hollander

Cast & Credits
Directed by
Ian Cheney
Ian Cheney is an Emmy-nominated and Peabody Award-winning documentary filmmaker. His past projects include King Corn (2007), The Greening of Southie (2008), Truck Farm (2010), and The City Dark (2011).
Director
Ian Cheney
Producer
Amanda Murray, Jennifer 8 Lee
Editor
Frederick Shanahan
Cinematographer
Ian Cheney, Taylor Gentry
Composer
Simon Beins, Ben Fries
Animator
Sharon Shattuck

Contacts
US Sales Contact
John Sloss
Cinetic Media
New York, NY 10004
Phone: 2122047979
john@slosslaw.com
International Sales Contact
David Piperni
Cargo Film and Releasing
New York, NY 10012
Phone: 2129958139
dpiperni@cargofilm-releasing.com
Print Source
Ian Cheney
Wicked Delicate Films, LLC
Northampton, 01060
Phone: 347 804 4732
ian@wickedelicate.com
Press Contact
David Magdael
David Magdael & Associates
Los Angeles, CA 90015
dmagdael@dmagpr.com
* Rush Tickets available at venue except for
Beacon Theatre
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The Rush system functions as a standby line that will form at the venue approximately one hour prior to scheduled start time. Admittance is based on availability and will begin roughly 10 minutes prior to program start time. Rush Tickets are the same price as advance tickets and are payable upon entry.

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