Highlights of the 2020 Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival
/In our continued work to create spaces for expression, engagement, and empowerment, we proudly kicked off the 36th annual Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival, presented online from September 24 to October 31, 2020, reflecting a lineup that centered conversations that are most critical and compelling at this time.
We came together for a 38-day Festival to recognize the works of more than 250 artists, with over half of our programming free to the public. We presented over 135 programs, hosted over 75 panels and events, and reached over 40K people in over 109 countries globally to keep our community of artists connected.
Visual Communications debuted the projects from this year's Armed With a Camera (AWC) Fellowship, a program founded to guide the next generation of Asian American and Pacific Islander artists to connect communities through the power of our stories. From a visionary glimpse into the future, to a touching memory with a grandparent, each work in Armed With a Camera vol. 2020 is a stunning invitation into poignant reflections on family ties, cultural identities, and intimate portrait documentaries.
Always a must-see at LAAPFF, the films created in Visual Communications' Digital Histories program center the unique voices and perspectives of older adults, and proudly share their stories with the generations to come. This year, Digital Histories 2020 debuted an insightful, heartfelt, and reverential collection of films that reflect and celebrate the ideas and values important to their creators.
Previous editions of C3:Conference for Creative Content aimed to create spaces to converge during the Festival. This year, the conference became C3:CONVERSE - a virtual space for creators to conversate and celebrate each other.
As part of an ongoing partnership with HBO® and their commitment to magnify emerging filmmakers, Visual Communications premiered the winners of this year's HBO APA Visionaries Short Film Competition at the Festival: Tiffany So's FINE CHINA, Johnson Cheng's LONELY BLUE NIGHT, and Thomas Percy Kim's SI.
Building on the success of last year’s debut, the 2020 edition of the REORIENT program highlighted creative works in emerging media—virtual reality, video games, live streaming, and more.
Visual Communications is grateful for our storytellers and partners who believe in the power of media to build and connect communities. Our communities, while ever transforming, continue to act in solidarity and are empowered by your support. Thank you for your allyship. We look forward to the day when we can celebrate each other in person.
“Despite a pandemic, Visual Communications did a fantastic job of creating an exciting Festival. A number of digital panels, a tremendous selection of films, and the best host for filmmakers. Gracious and easy to work with, we loved our experience. An absolute pleasure to be a part of this lovely festival.”
“So difficult for 2020. I felt that the team worked extra hard. We’ve been to many live events in the past and we had our best and most interactive experience with LAAPFF organizers this year. This was the first year I’ve felt like an important part of LAAPFF and we are so thankful for that. It made a bad year better.”
