East Coast Premiere Director: Kulap Vilaysack 106 mins | Documentary | Laos | English, Lao In her directorial debut, actor/writer/podcaster Kulap Vilaysack explores her tangled family tree to find out who she is. When Vilaysack was 14, she took her father’s side in an argument and her mother replied, “Why are you defending him? He’s …
Asian Arts Initiative
1219 Vine St, Philadelphia, PA, United States
Director: Stephen Tringali 81 mins | Documentary | USA | English Get Tickets The image of the American hero is challenged in this heartfelt portrait of 9/11 Pentagon first-responder Isaac Ho’opi’i. A nationally recognized K9 Unit Officer, Isaac Ho’opi’i was responsible for saving numerous people from the Pentagon during the terrorist attacks on September 11, …
Asian Arts Initiative
1219 Vine St, Philadelphia, PA, United States
Philadelphia Premiere Director: Dianne Fukami 60 mins | Documentary | USA | English Get Tickets A son of immigrants forced into a U.S. World War II concentration camp as a child, Norman Mineta became the first Asian American mayor of a major city (San Jose, California); enjoyed a distinguished 20-year career in Congress; was the …
You are cordially invited to PAAFF Dine-In Theater, our newest virtual fundraiser. Join us for dinner and a movie, PAAFF style! We’ve paired the ultimate all ages, feel-good documentary with your choice of Dinner for 2 from two of Philadelphia’s acclaimed Asian-owned restaurants. Choose a curated meal from either bāo•logy or Hardena/Waroeng Surabaya. Bao-logy showcases …
This year PAAFF will be livestreaming our Preview Party, and you’re invited! So kick off your shoes, slip into your sweats, pour yourself a glass of something special, and tune into our Facebook, Youtube, or Twitch channels on Thursday October 8, at 6:30PM ET for an exclusive sneak peek at our festival lineup. If you’re …
PAAFF is hosting this brunch with our Queer Asian family: Queer Asian Social Club, Philly Asian and Queer, hotpot! Philly, and Philadelphia Asian Performing Artists Continuing our new tradition of Queer Brunch-ing during our festival, we are inviting everyone in our queer-identifying, Asian diasporic, film-loving community to join us in this virtual space to connect …
For our April meeting, we will be discussing Surname Viet Given Name Nam (1989). Vietnamese-born Trinh T. Minh-ha's profoundly personal documentary explores the role of Vietnamese women both historically and in contemporary society. Using dance, printed texts, folk poetry, and the words and experiences of Vietnamese women in Vietnam—from both North and South—and the United …
Spring is in the air! And what better way to celebrate than with a romantic comedy? For the May meeting of PAAFF Film Club, we’ll be talking about writer-director Alice Wu’s 2004 debut Saving Face. Reviewing the film at the Toronto International Film Festival, David Rooney of Variety described the film as a “warmly observed, …
After moving from Calcutta to New York, members of the Ganguli family maintain a delicate balancing act between honoring the traditions of their native India and blending into American culture. Although parents Ashoke (Irrfan Khan) and Ashima (Tabu) are proud of the sacrifices they make to give their offspring opportunities, their son Gogol (Kal Penn) …
Before Jo Jo Rabbit and the upcoming Thor: Love and Thunder, Taika Waititi wrote and directed Boy, the focus of our July PAAFF Film Club meeting. Part The 400 Blows, part Slumdog Millionaire, a pinch of Michael Jackson’s “Thriller,” and all New Zealand, Boy offers a nostalgic coming-of-age narrative that seems made for summer viewing. …
Next month will be our last Film Club meeting of the year! We’ll be closing out our season with A Girl Walks Home Alone At Night, Ana Lily Amirpour's award-winning debut. With hints of homage to Iranian New Wave cinema, the film is more art film than vampire flick. Residents of an Iranian ghost-town, Bad …
The Rail Park
North & Noble Streets, Philadelphia, PA
Curious to know what's in our festival program this year? Join us at The Rail Park! PAAFF’s Annual Preview Party will be held outdoors at The Rail Park on 10/7 at 7PM. Come catch a glimpse of what we have in store for our 14th Annual Film Festival, connect with the community, enjoy the fresh …
Asian Arts Initiative
1219 Vine St, Philadelphia, PA, United States
PAAFF 2021 kicks off with a limited-capacity in-person screening of our Opening Night film Americanish ! In Jackson Heights, Queens, sisters Maryam and Sam and their newly-immigrated cousin Ameera navigate the sometimes conflicting demands of romance, culture, work, and family. Serving both as a lighthearted but critical reimagination of the classic romantic comedy, Americanish tackles …
Centerpiece Documentary: Wuhan Wuhan Unfolding at the height of the pandemic, Wuhan Wuhan offers unprecedented access into the peak of the pandemic lockdown and focuses on the human side of the mysterious virus. Comprising five compelling stories, Wuhan Wuhan follows a soft-hearted ER doctor and an unflappable ICU nurse; a volunteer psychologist at a temporary …
Asian Arts Initiative
1219 Vine St, Philadelphia, PA, United States
Philadelphia Asian Performing Artists (PAPA) is putting on dancing shoes for our latest showcase! These past 20 months have been wild and heavy - I mean, how is it already almost 2022?? It's time for a collective breath and a collective stretch with some of our favorite dance and movement artists. Have You Heard the …
Asian Arts Initiative
1219 Vine St, Philadelphia, PA, United States
PAAFF 2021: PAPA Mini-Resident Joseph Ahmed uses physical theater, storytelling, and circus techniques to explore the childhood narratives and social structures that led him to self-identify as white for most of his young life. Animorphs, Ender's Game, and Harry Potter form the cornerstones of his identity until a loss in the family forces him to …
Asian Arts Initiative
1219 Vine St, Philadelphia, PA, United States
Come join us in-person for an interactive screening of Ang Lee’s Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. As a part of PAPA’s mini-residency, Chantal Vorobei Thieves’ ongoing project, Memory, Vein: The Collected Tapes—where personal memories are shared in connection to specific scenes from various films—invites members of the audience to narrate their own personal memories over the …
Asian Arts Initiative
1219 Vine St, Philadelphia, PA, United States
PAAFF’s Asian Music Showcase is back and in-person at Asian American Arts Initiative! This year’s showcase features an entirely local artist lineup and a variety of music genres: Filipino singer-songwriter and producer Joshua Bation; Marina Murayama, blending synthesized electronic textures and lush orchestral soundscapes; Filipino-American artist and producer Lucas Geniza, aka Lukey; and electronic music …