LATEST NEWS
Stay tuned for the Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival Virtual Showcase!
We are proud to announce our Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival Virtual Showcase, slated for Asian American & Pacific Islander Heritage Month in May. The Virtual Showcase aims to highlight artists whose stories are critical at this moment. From celebrating our histories and cultures, to mobilizing our communities to be socially and politically active, we are looking forward to presenting FREE films and panels to keep us connected.
VC Connect #3: A Call to Action
“Advocacy cinema” has always been a hallmark of Visual Communications’ role within the Asian American Movement, and this selection of short works live up to that lofty legacy. Featuring films from both the Armed With a Camera and Digital Histories programs, a “call to action” is indeed apropos for the times we currently live in.
VC to be a part of Grand Park’s Our L.A. Voices: A Pop-up Arts+Culture Fest
Grand Park’s popular spring arts experience, Grand Park’s Our L.A. Voices: A Pop-up Arts+Culture Fest, goes virtual as Grand Park celebrates the richness and resilience of Los Angeles’ arts community with a free performing and visual arts exhibition, featuring some films produced by VC’s Digital Histories and Armed With a Camera filmmakers.
Ava DuVernay Launches Array Grants To Support Arts Organizations Focused On People Of Color And Women
Thanks to Ava DuVernay and her foundation ARRAY Alliance, Visual Communications is honored to be a recipient of an ARRAY GRANT. We are grateful for the support to continue our work.
Emergency Funding and Artist Resource List
With the spread of coronavirus (COVID-19), we understand that it has been an extremely challenging time for our creative community. We recognize that many people are feeling anxious about the immediate future and the loss of income. We are compiling a list of as many emergency funding sources and additional resources for artists as we can find, and we will continue to add to this listing as more resources become known and available.
VC Connect #2: American Me
The full range of “Americanness” is emphatically expressed through this selection of works from Visual Communications’ vanguard Armed With a Camera (AWC) Fellowship for Emerging Media Artists, a program which develops the next generation of Asian American and Pacific Islander artists to capture their world and stories. No proof of citizenship needed here, and none asked.
Tuesday Night Cafe: A Home (And Family) Away From Home
This past summer, our VC Archives Program Associate Rino Kodama worked on a photo-journalistic project documenting portions of the 21st season of Tuesday Night Cafe, the longest running spoken word/open mic venue in all of Southern California since 1999.
VC Connect #1: The Many Colors of Little Tokyo
We’re excited to launch VC CONNECT, an online destination through which just some of the hundreds of films and media productions created by Visual Communications can be found for your enjoyment. Each week, we’ll roll out a new batch, specially themed for our audience’s diverse cinematic palate. Our focus this week is Little Tokyo, featuring films made by participants in our Digital Histories program.
Asian Pacific American Media Coalition Heralds Two New Cable Network Series Featuring South Asian Americans
As a member of the Asian Pacific American Media Coalition, Visual Communications is proud to support the premiere of two new television series on cable networks that feature South Asian Americans: the unscripted FAMILY KARMA on Bravo and the animated MIRA: ROYAL DETECTIVE on Disney Junior.
A Letter to Our Friends and Supporters
In keeping with directives from our local, state, and federal health agencies, we are rescheduling the 36th Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival (LAAPFF), originally slated for April 30 - May 8, 2020, to later this year. We are committed to the well being of our volunteers, artists, and audiences.
A Festival in Flux: VC and its Film Festival 1999 - 2003
The years 1998 through 2003 were game-changing years for Visual Communications, as the organization shifted from a creation based organization to a talent incubator with a focus on developing programs like the Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival. Take a look at some photos from the VC Archives that were selected by our 2020 Winter Quarter Program Associates from UCLA.
An update about the 2020 Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival
We are closely monitoring the latest developments of coronavirus (COVID-19) and are listening to the recommendations of our local health officials at the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health. We are moving forward with our Festival as planned, and should the situation change, we will update you right away.
Dancing the Night Away in Little Tokyo on Feb 1st
On Saturday, Feb 1st, we hosted our "Dance the Night Away" fundraiser at the Nishi Hongwanji Temple in Little Tokyo. The turnout this year was great! Thank you to everyone who attended the dance and supported the event.
#APAParkCity Wraps "Sweet 16" Edition in Style
Co-organized by Visual Communications, the “Sweet 16” edition of the Asian Pacific Filmmakers Experience in Park City was another successful event, comprised of eight filmmaker panels, over thirty speakers, and audience members of nearly 800 cinematic and media artists, activists, and casual movie-goers.
Save the Date for the 2020 Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival!
Presented by Visual Communications, the 36th Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival (LAAPFF) will be on April 30 - May 8, 2020 at select cinemas in the Los Angeles area. A key highlight Asian Pacific American Heritage Month, the Festival is the culmination of broad support from cinema artists and audiences alike. LAAPFF is also a proud Academy Award®-qualifying film festival for the Short Film Awards.
Join us for a VC Archives "Tagging Party"!
Sign up for one of Visual Communications’ “tagging parties" to help us add historical info to images in our VC Archives! If you have knowledge of some (or even many) of the people, places, and/or events that took place over VC's nearly 50-year history, we need your help.
16th Annual Asian Pacific Filmmakers Experience in Park City
For the 16th year, Asian Pacific filmmakers are making their presence felt throughout Park City with a wide range of remarkable films and creative projects at the 2020 Sundance and Slamdance Film Festivals. Join us at our 2020 Asian Pacific Filmmakers Experience to celebrate from Jan 24-Jan 26.
"Dance the Night Away" with VC on February 1st, 2020!
Support Visual Communications by attending our dance fundraiser "Dance the Night Away" on Saturday, February 1, 2020 at the Nishi Hongwanji Temple in Little Tokyo! The fundraiser will benefit VC's artist programs.
Introducing our 2020 Armed With a Camera Fellows
In its eighteenth season, the Armed With a Camera (AWC) Fellowship for Emerging Media Artists nurtures the next generation of Asian Pacific American artists to capture their world, surroundings and outlook on life. VC works with the Fellows for six months and provides special training, mentoring, networking opportunities, access to facilities and equipment, plus a cash stipend to create four to five-minute digital short films that will premiere at the Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival. Meet our new AWC Fellows below!
Literary Artists Offer “Reflections/Refractions” In Little Tokyo Showcase
Our September 19th event “REFLECTIONS/REFRACTIONS: 10 Works Inspired by At First Light” brought together ten artists — and two musicians — who were invited to select an image from the current “At First Light” exhibit that inspired them to create an original written work to perform in front of a live audience. Read about how this event was a success!