The Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival (LAAPFF) – formerly known as VC FilmFest – is an annual film festival presented by

Visual Communications (VC) Visual communication is the use of visual elements to convey ideas and information which include (but are not limited to) signs, typography, drawing, graphic design, illustration, industrial design, advertising, animation, and electronic resourc ...

. It was established in 1983 by Linda Mabalot as a vehicle to promote

Asian Pacific American Asian/Pacific American (APA) or Asian/Pacific Islander (API) or Asian American and Pacific Islanders (AAPI) or Asian American and Native Hawaiians/Pacific Islander (AANHPI) is a term sometimes used in the United States when including both Asian ...

and Asian international cinema. The festival fulfills a unique mission in illuminating the visions and voices of Asian Pacific peoples and heritage. The festival is held in Los Angeles in May, which is Asian Pacific American Heritage Month. The festival is the largest in Southern California dedicated to showcasing films by and about Asians and Pacific Islanders. It presents about 150 films and mediaworks, including opening and closing night celebrations, a centerpiece presentation, panels, workshops, and special events.

History

The Festival began working with the UCLA film department. It is one of the largest showcases of Asian and Asian American filmmaking in the United States. In 2003, the festival, held at several sites around Los Angeles, drew 10,000 people over seven days in early May 2003. The Festival sponsored young Asian American filmmakers, such as

Justin Lin Justin Lin (, born October 11, 1971) is a Taiwanese Americans, Taiwanese-American film and television director, producer, and screenwriter. His films have grossed over $3 billion USD worldwide . He is best known for his directorial work on ...

, who directed,

Better Luck Tomorrow ''Better Luck Tomorrow'' is a 2002 American independent crime drama film directed by Justin Lin. The film is about Asian American overachievers who become bored with their lives and enter a world of petty crime and material excess. ''Better Luck ...

. The festival has two categories of awards in both North American and international categories.

Activities

According to Justin Lin, "Mabalot allowed him to use Visual Communications’ offices in Little Tokyo for auditions and rehearsals and was a source of unwavering moral support for a movie that contradicted the image of Asian Americans as a model minority." In 1977, Duane Kubo and Eddie Wong are two of the founding members of Visual Communications. Linda Mabalot joined the collective of artists while walking in Little Tokyo one day in 1977 and meeting Kubo and Wong. As a result, a documentary titled “Manong,” which focused on Filipino farmworkers in the Central Valley and on Philip Vera Cruz, a Filipino American pioneer in the United Farm Workers movement was created. In 1985, when Visual Communications, the sponsor of the festival, faced financial troubles, Mabalot earned the position of executive director.

Events

* Screenings of

Asian American Asian Americans are Americans with ancestry from the continent of Asia (including naturalized Americans who are immigrants from specific regions in Asia and descendants of those immigrants). Although this term had historically been used fo ...

and Asian international films * Post-screening discussions with directors and cast members * Industry panels on acting, directing, writing and cinematography * Gala receptions and networking mixers

Awards

LAAPFF presents juried awards to selected films in the following categories: * Narrative Feature * Documentary Feature * "Golden Reel" Award for short film * "Linda Mabalot New Directors/New Visions" Award LAAPFF is an

Academy Award The Academy Awards, commonly known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit in film. They are presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) in the United States in recognition of excellence ...

-qualifying festival for "Golden Reel" Short Film Awards. The festival also presents an Audience Award for narrative feature.

Venues

Directors Guild of America The Directors Guild of America (DGA) is an entertainment guild that represents the interests of Film director, film and Television director, television directors in the United States motion picture industry and abroad. Founded as the Screen Dir ...

theaters *

Laemmle Theatres Laemmle Theatres ( ) is an American arthouse movie theater chain with seven locations, all in Los Angeles County, California. It is owned and operated by Robert Laemmle and his son Greg. The company's first theater was bought in 1938 by Robert's ...

Sunset 5 * (

JANM The is located in Los Angeles, California, and dedicated to preserving the history and culture of Japanese Americans. Founded in 1992, it is located in the Little Tokyo area near downtown. The museum is an affiliate within the Smithsonian Affi ...

) National Center for the Preservation of Democracy * Aratani/Japan America Theatre * Pacific Amphitheatre, Orange County *

The Downtown Independent The Downtown Independent (formerly the ImaginAsian Center) was a one screen theater and cinema located at 251 S. Main Street in the Little Tokyo area of Los Angeles, California. It was operated by the Downtown Independent and owned by Orange C ...

References

External links

LAAPFF websiteVisual Communications websiteLAAPFF
on

MySpace Myspace (formerly stylized as MySpace, currently myspace; and sometimes my␣, with an elongated Whitespace character#Substitute images, open box symbol) is a social networking service based in the United States. Launched on August 1, 2003, it w ...

Film festivals in Los Angeles Asian-American film festivals Asian-American culture in Los Angeles Film festivals established in 1983 Pacific Islands American culture in California {{US-film-festival-stub