Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival Virtual Showcase

Welcome to the Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival Virtual Showcase!
Presented by Visual Communications, the LAAPFF Virtual Showcase aims to highlight artists whose stories are critical at this moment. As we celebrate our histories and cultures and mobilize our communities to be socially and politically active, we are presenting FREE films and panels to keep us connected. Click here to see a schedule of films and events.

Special Presentations

AND SHE COULD BE NEXT + Q&A
A documentary mini-series about women of color as political candidates and organizers who seek to expand the electorate, asking whether democracy can be preserved or made stronger by its most marginalized.
113 min | 2020 | United States
AND SHE COULD BE NEXT + Q&A
ASIAN AMERICANS + Q&A
Told through intimate personal stories, ASIAN AMERICANS is a film series that will cast a new lens on U.S. history and the ongoing role that Asian Americans have played.
2020 | United States
ASIAN AMERICANS + Q&A
BULGE BRACKET + Q&A
In the high-intensity world of mergers, acquisitions, and IPOs, a young female investment banker confronts the patriarchy in the frat house of Wall Street.
73 min | 2020 | United States
BULGE BRACKET + Q&A
CTFF presents: Rise & Dough
His story is one of fate, perseverance, and donuts. Ted Ngoy’s rag to riches story is the center of Alice Gu’s film, THE DONUT KING. Tune in for a special conversation with Alice and Ted, as we talk about Ted’s pursuit of the American dream.
CTFF presents: Rise & Dough
FIRST VOTE + Q&A
FIRST VOTE is a feature length documentary chronicling the democratic participation of four Asian American voters from 2016 through the 2018 midterm elections in the South and Midwest.
2020 | United States
FIRST VOTE + Q&A
THE DONUT KING
The rise and fall of a Cambodian refugee who escaped genocide and overcame poverty to build a life for himself — and hundreds of other immigrant families — by baking America’s favorite pastry and building an unlikely empire of donut shops.
100 min | 2020 | Cambodia, United States
THE DONUT KING
THE MISEDUCATION OF BINDU
When a bullied Indian teen forges her mother's signature to test out of high school, she discovers she must pay a test fee by the 7th period, leaving her no choice but to turn to the students she desperately wants to leave.
2019 | United States
THE MISEDUCATION OF BINDU
Vietnamese American Retro: ALL ABOUT DAD + Q&A
ALL ABOUT DAD addresses the familiar theme of old world father vs. new world kids with deftness and originality. It’s a family portrait that’s sure to resonate with any family.
2009 | United States
Vietnamese American Retro: ALL ABOUT DAD + Q&A
Vietnamese Boat People presents: Being Bao Nguyen
Tune in for a special presentation of a Vietnamese Boat People videocast with award-winning independent film and commercial director Bao Nguyen.
Vietnamese Boat People presents: Being Bao Nguyen

Pacific Cinewaves

KA HUAKA'I: THE JOURNEY TO MERRIE MONARCH
A dancer, a kumu hula (teacher of hula) and a former Miss Aloha Hula go on a journey to the annual Merry Monarch.
47 min | 2020 | United States
KA HUAKA'I: THE JOURNEY TO MERRIE MONARCH
MELE MURALS
MELE MURALS is a documentary about the transformative power of art through the unlikely union of graffiti and ancient Hawaiian culture.
2016 | United States
MELE MURALS
Q&A: BORN THIS WAY
In New Zealand, an openly transgender Maori teen embarks on a journey from male to female and overcomes various hurdles.
2017
Q&A: BORN THIS WAY
Q&A: Pacific Cinewaves
Tune into a panel discussion with unforgettable and transformative documentary subjects of Hawaii-based documentaries MELE MURALS, KA HUAKA’I: JOURNEY TO MERRIE MONARCH, and STANDING ABOVE THE CLOUDS.
Q&A: Pacific Cinewaves
Q&A: THE ROGERS
An intimate glimpse of the first visible group of transgender men in the Pacific Islands -the Rogers of Samoa.
2020
Q&A: THE ROGERS
STANDING ABOVE THE CLOUDS
Follow these Native Hawaiian mother-daughter activists as they stand to protect their sacred mountain Mauna Kea from the building of the world's largest telescope.
2019 | United States
STANDING ABOVE THE CLOUDS

Programmers' Picks

9-MAN
Players of an athletic Chinese American event battle to be champion and to preserve the sport.
2014
9-MAN
A TREE FALLS IN THE FOREST
Told through the voices of three subjects who experienced the tragedy firsthand, A TREE FALLS IN THE FOREST is a visual meditation about the impact of September 11th on New York City's Chinatown.
2010
A TREE FALLS IN THE FOREST
A VILLAGE CALLED VERSAILLES
In the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, residents rebuild their homes — only to have them threatened by a toxic landfill planned in their neighborhood. As the community fights back, it turns a devastating disaster into a catalyst for change.
2009
A VILLAGE CALLED VERSAILLES
AUGUST AT AKIKO'S
Musician Alex Zhang Hungtai (Dirty Beaches, Last Lizard) returns to the Big Island of Hawai‘i to reconnect with his roots.
2017 | United States
AUGUST AT AKIKO'S
COLUMBUS
Casey lives with her mother in a little-known Midwestern town haunted by the promise of modernism. Jin, a visitor from the other side of the world, attends to his dying father. Burdened by the future, they find respite in one another and the architecture that surrounds them.
2016 | United States
COLUMBUS
CORRIDOR FOUR
Isaac Ho'opi'i, a survivor of 9/11, works to put the traumatic experience behind him with the support of his family and his love of Hawaiian music.
2017 | United States
CORRIDOR FOUR
DON’T STOP BELIEVIN’: EVERYMAN'S JOURNEY
Filipino musician Arnel Pineda gets the opportunity of a lifetime when Journey guitarist Neal Schon sees him perform on YouTube, leading to a job offer as the band's new lead singer.
2013
DON’T STOP BELIEVIN’: EVERYMAN'S JOURNEY
DRIVEWAYS
A lonesome boy accompanies his mother on a trip to clean out his late aunt's house, and ends up forming an unexpected friendship with the retiree who lives next door.
2019
DRIVEWAYS
EATING UP EASTER
Rapa Nui is facing increasing challenges to preserve its culture and environment from tourism and modern society.
2018 | Chile, USA
EATING UP EASTER
FOR IZZY
A recovering addict and her single mother move in next door to a widowed father and his adult daughter with autism.
2018 | United States
FOR IZZY
GO BACK TO CHINA
When spoiled rich girl Sasha Li blows through most of her trust fund, she is cut off by her father and forced to go back to China and work for the family toy business.
2019 | China, United States
GO BACK TO CHINA
IMELDA
A documentary that explores the complex persona of former Philippine first lady Imelda Marcos, her rise to power, and fall from grace.
IMELDA
ISLAND SOLDIER
The untold story of Micronesian soldiers fighting for their piece of the "American Dream" and the future of a small island nation.
2017 | Afghanistan, Micronesia, USA
ISLAND SOLDIER
JADDOLAND
A visit to her artist mother's home in Texas prompts the filmmaker to explore the meaning of home and the search for belonging across generations.
2018 | United States
JADDOLAND
JAKE SHIMABUKURO: LIFE ON FOUR STRINGS
The life of ukulele virtuoso Jake Shimabukuro, from his childhood to his rise to international stardom.
2013
JAKE SHIMABUKURO: LIFE ON FOUR STRINGS
LEITIS IN WAITING
A feature documentary about an intrepid group of transgender women rising to reclaim their righteous place in a South Pacific Kingdom.
2018 | Tonga, USA
LEITIS IN WAITING
LUCKY GRANDMA
Set in New York City's Chinatown, an ornery, chain-smoking Chinese grandma goes all in at the casino, landing herself on the wrong side of luck - and in the middle of a gang war.
2019 | United States
LUCKY GRANDMA
MERATA: HOW MUM DECOLONISED THE SCREEN
New Zealand film archivist Heperi Mita traces the cinematic legacy of his mother and trailblazing Maori filmmaker Merata Mita.
2018 | New Zealand
MERATA: HOW MUM DECOLONISED THE SCREEN
MOTHERLAND
MOTHERLAND takes us into the heart of the planet’s busiest maternity hospital, in one of the world’s poorest and most populous countries: the Philippines.
94 | Philippines, United States
MOTHERLAND
NORMAN MINETA AND HIS LEGACY: AN AMERICAN STORY
Meet the man who served as cabinet secretary for Presidents Clinton and George W. Bush.
2018 | United States
NORMAN MINETA AND HIS LEGACY: AN AMERICAN STORY
OUR MAN IN TOKYO (THE BALLAD OF SHIN MIYATA)
OUR MAN IN TOKYO is a short documentary about the struggles and obsessions of Shin Miyata, a Tokyo-based music promoter and record label owner who specializes in the challenging task of distributing Chicano music from East Los Angeles throughout Japan.
2018 | Japan, USA
OUR MAN IN TOKYO (THE BALLAD OF SHIN MIYATA)
OUT OF STATE
Shipped from Hawaii to a private prison in Arizona, two native Hawaiians discover their indigenous traditions from a fellow inmate serving a life sentence.
2017 | United States
OUT OF STATE
POWER MERI
A documentary film that follows the journey of Papua New Guinea’s first national women's rugby league team, the PNG Orchids, to the world cup.
2018 | Australia
POWER MERI
RESISTANCE AT TULE LAKE
This film tells the explosive story of "disloyals" and “no-nos,” Japanese Americans confined in camps during World War II who protested and resisted their incarceration.
2017 | United States
RESISTANCE AT TULE LAKE
SCIENCE FAIR
Nine high school students from around the globe navigate rivalries, setbacks, and of course, hormones, on their journey to compete at the international science fair.
2018 | USA, Germany, Brazil
SCIENCE FAIR
SEADRIFT
A fatal shooting in a small Texas fishing village ignites a maelstrom of hostilities against Vietnamese refugees along the Gulf Coast.
2019 | United States
SEADRIFT
THE CHINESE EXCLUSION ACT
Examine the origin, history and impact of the 1882 law that made it illegal for Chinese workers to come to America and for Chinese nationals already here ever to become U.S. citizens.
2017 | United States
THE CHINESE EXCLUSION ACT
THE PARADISE WE ARE LOOKING FOR
Helmed by four award winning cinematic voices, these four short docs map multiple San Diego’s — all distinctly Asian American.
2019 | United States
THE PARADISE WE ARE LOOKING FOR
THE TIGER HUNTER
It's 1979, and engineer Sami is excited to leave his Indian village for a job in Chicago. But he soon runs into problems achieving his American dream.
2016
THE TIGER HUNTER
TYRUS
An award-winning documentary film about the inspiring life, art, and enduring impact of Chinese-American artist and Disney Legend, Tyrus Wong.
2017
TYRUS
VISIONS IN THE DARK: THE LIFE OF PINKY THOMPSON
After surviving a serious eye wound in World War II, Myron "Pinky" Thompson becomes a social worker and leader in the Native Hawaiian community.
2014
VISIONS IN THE DARK: THE LIFE OF PINKY THOMPSON
WE GON' BE ALRIGHT
Based on the bestselling book of the same name, writer Jeff Chang adapts and updates the ideas explored in "We Gon’ Be Alright" into a new digital series for PBS Digital/Indie Lens Storycast.
2019
WE GON' BE ALRIGHT