OMAI by muralist and designer Jason Pereira (Image courtesy of Visual Communications)
The Best of Asian Pacific American Films and Filmmakers from Around the World Come to
Los Angeles at the 38th Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival
Celebrating New Artists, Legends, Leaders, Creators, Indigenous Voices, and World Premieres
Fest Highlights Include:
The LAAPFF Legacy Award to Mira Nair
The HBO Max APA Visionaries Short Film Competition
The 20th Anniversary of ARMED WITH A CAMERA
SXSW Double Award Winner BAD AXE
Sundance Winner LEONOR WILL NEVER DIE
Alika Tengan’s EVERY DAY IN KAIMUKĪ
Eugene Yi and Julie Ha’s FREE CHOL SOO LEE
West Coast Premiere of OMOIYARI: A SONG FILM BY KISHI BASHI
World Premieres of ALL I WANT IS EVERYTHING;
ISTIKHAARA, NEW YORK; and 80 YEARS LATER
North American Premieres of THE ASSAULT, ARISAKA
and THE GIRL FROM THE OTHER SIDE
The Los Angeles Premieres of CROSSING; DAWNING; DEALING WITH DAD;
DELIKADO; MAIKA; STAY THE NIGHT and WATERMAN
The Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival (LAAPFF), presented annually by Visual Communications (VC), Southern California’s leading showcase for new Asian Pacific American and Asian international cinema, has announced the program for the 38th edition of the festival. The festival returns May 5th to 13th in Los Angeles and will feature an exciting lineup of in-person programming, along with virtual programming for our audiences at home in Southern California and beyond.
As Visual Communications’ premiere annual event, LAAPFF continues to build connections between peoples and generations through the amplification of Asian and Pacific Islander film, video, and media. The festival celebrates Asian Pacific American filmmakers and Asian international artists with profound, important and entertaining films and content from the new voices of cinema while honoring the legends and leaders who keep this cultural movement going forward. Important themes of representation, authorship, responsibility, and ethics are at the forefront of content creation. This year’s lineup provides incredible examples of those ideas and themes from Asian Pacific artists who are committed to excellence in cinema in America and around the world.
To kick off this year’s fest, LAAPFF will present an Opening Day lineup of films representative of VC communities and values – setting the stage for a community-forward film festival. The lineup will include the LA Premiere of EVERY DAY IN KAIMUKĪ, directed by Alika Tengan, a new and important indigenous filmmaker from Hawaii. Anchoring the evening, LAAPFF will celebrate and introduce the world premiere works from the ARMED WITH THE CAMERA Fellowship. The fellowship now in its 20th year, has shepherded the early works of notable alums including: Christopher Makoto Yogi (Director, I WAS A SIMPLE MAN), Kristina Wong (2022 Lucille Lortel Awards Nominee for Outstanding Solo Show), Roxy Shih (Director, LIST OF A LIFETIME) and more. This year’s cohort, who gathered during an unprecedented of era social distancing, produced 9 world premieres that tenderly touch upon community movement, family legacy, and ancestral connection.
The 38th Festival edition will also present the LAAPFF Legacy Award to Mira Nair; The HBO Max APA Visionaries Short Film Competition; the SXSW Double Award Winner BAD AXE; Sundance Winner LEONOR WILL NEVER DIE; Eugene Yi and Julie Ha’s timely Sundance hit FREE CHOL SOO LEE; the West Coast Premiere of OMOIYARI: A SONG FILM BY KISHI BASHI (the renowned musician’s directorial debut fresh from SXSW); the North American Premieres of THE ASSAULT, ARISAKA and the animated feature THE GIRL FROM THE OTHER SIDE; the Los Angeles Premieres of MAIKA, WATERMAN, DEALING WITH DAD, DELIKADO, CROSSING and STAY THE NIGHT; and the World Premieres of ISTIKHAARA, NEW YORK; DAWNING; DIGITAL HISTORIES and 80 YEARS LATER.
“In our 38th edition, the Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival continues to transform itself to reflect our ever-evolving artists and experiences,” says Executive Director Francis Cullado. “In a time when our community is dealing straight up with anti-Asian Hate crimes, living through an uncertain pandemic, and adjusting to the ongoing global issues affecting all of us, our festival is instilling a sense of pride, respect and community through art and film. These stories connect us to one another and fill our lives with a sense of purpose. This year, we share a renewed collectiveness to inspire creativity and support collaboration, and the opportunity to gather and celebrate our histories and our lives from all corners of the world.”
Tickets are already on sale to the general public. Complete details are available at festival.vcmedia.org.