A Personal Look Into Finding a Character’s Desires In many ways, filmmaking is a personal outlet for filmmakers. Since graduating from NYU Tisch School of the Arts, Kathy Meng has aimed to tell stories through the medium that are personal and familiar. He ...
Dear Mother, I Meant to Write about Death
The reflections on mortality and mother-daughter relationship of Siyi Chen Siyi Chen wrote and directed the documentary “Dear Mother, I Meant to Write about Death (我们在黑夜的海上)” about the effects of her mother’s post-cancer treatment and aftermath o ...
The Fight For Our Communities: Save Chinatown
Decolonization, and the Power of Intercultural Alliances in Philadelphia The creative discussion at the Philadelphia Asian American Film Festival, ‘The Fight For Our Communities: Save Chinatown,’ unveils a conversation that revolves around the ongoing gen ...
AAPI Stories We Can Still Enjoy in 2024
The Asian American International Film Festival is now open for submissions for its 47th annual run in August 2024! In anticipation of another stellar program, we’ve prepared a roundup of some of the gems we screened last year. What will we come up with n ...
Punk Rock, Activism, and Self-Determination Explored Above and Below the Ground
Discovering Myanmar’s struggle against the Myitsone Dam through grassroots activists and the lens of director Emily Hong Nestled between the Mali Hka and N’Mai Hka rivers lies a village once home to Hkawn Mai, Lu Ra, and Ja Hkawn. Emily Hong’s “Above an ...
Indigenous Tales in Conversation: David L. Cunningham’s “The Wind and The Reckoning”
A Historical Narrative on Authentic Storytelling in the Post-Pandemic Era Born into a family of missionaries, director David L. Cunningham unveiled his latest cinematic masterpiece, “The Wind and The Reckoning,” in 2022. This film serves as a passionate a ...
Transforming Identity through ‘Metamorphosis’
Would you change races if you could? Confucius says, “honor thy mother,” but at what cost? Asian identity is constantly changing, whether it is the questioning of gender norms in the motherland or grappling with racism in the diaspora. Here are some of t ...
Music Night Out!
AAPI filmmakers blend music and visuals to narrate stories of love and family In a film, there is always an invisible main lead: The music. It tells us how to feel and steers us through the story. Now, it’s taking center stage in this series of music vide ...
This Music Video is a Motion Ride Through Time
An Interview with the Creator of "Attack, Decay, Release" H.P. Mendoza’s musical triumph, “Attack, Decay, Release,” is not just a movie. It is a family get-together with the strangers you experience it with. Created by a Filipino director based in San Fra ...