This collection of AAPI short films highlights the power of connection and community, reminding us that we are never alone in our journeys. Through stories of family, friendship, resilience, and solidarity, these films celebrate the ties that bind us and the strength we find when we come together. Each short offers a unique lens, yet together they reflect a shared truth: we’re in this together.

An Indonesian boy and his mother attend a church potluck and lie about their dish. Director Biography - Nick Hartanto<a href="https://filmfreeway-production-storage-01-connector.filmfreeway.com/press_kits/headshots/002/499/755/original/28466ca0df-headshot.jpg?1693836514" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"> <img src="https://filmfreeway-production-storage-01-connector.filmfreeway.com/press_kits/headshots/002/499/755/thumb/28466ca0df-headshot.jpg?1693836514" width="233"> </a> Nick Hartanto is an Indonesian-American filmmaker based in New York. His short film, “The Dishwasher,” which he co-directed, was awarded a Special Jury Mention at Tribeca 2019 and was then acquired by HBO Max. His next film, “Atrophy,” a genre bending story about his mother’s fight to recover from a stroke, premiered at Fantasia 2021 and toured the genre festival circuit, winning Best Performance at the Brooklyn Horror and North Bend Film Festival. Also a skilled Cinematographer, he shot the Adult Swim series “Hot Package.“ He was recently a guest speaker at the Asian American Arts Alliance Film &amp; Media Town Hall and is currently touring festivals with his new film, "Daly City,” which was nominated for the Oscar qualifying Best Short Narrative Award at the Hawai'i International and Woodstock Film Festival.

Daly City

Areum (which means 'beautiful' in Korean) is fixated on her physical appearance. She is convinced her monolidded eyes are why she is 'unpretty,' especially in comparison with her longtime best friend, Jane (as in plain Jane), who has double-lidded eyes and is so beautiful that she could be mistaken for a K-Pop idol. Areum tries to work through her insecurities with her therapist, Helen. But when a man humiliates Areum in front of Jane, Areum has to decide whether to finally face a long-festering sore spot and see her own value or let her friendship with Jane deteriorate.NOTE: When watching the film, please view with captions on as some parts of the film include Korean language. Director Biography - Hanah Chang<a href="https://filmfreeway-production-storage-01-connector.filmfreeway.com/press_kits/headshots/002/882/590/original/535f4c1420-headshot.jpg?1726174383" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><img src="https://filmfreeway-production-storage-01-connector.filmfreeway.com/press_kits/headshots/002/882/590/thumb/535f4c1420-headshot.jpg?1726174383"></a> Hanah Chang is a Korean-American actor and writer, who, after years of denying that she had any creativity within her, landed her first on-screen credit in the Netflix karaoke game show, ‘Sing On!’ She also played the lead in the short film, 'Don’t Worry About It,' which screened at SlamDance and Micheaux. As a proud member of the multi-hyphenate club, Hanah wrote, directed, and acted in her short, 'I Wish I Were Pretty,' which navigates how to deal with Korean beauty standards. She has the privilege to teach visual storytelling to students through SeriesFest’s Mobile Cinema Lab and volunteers regularly with Sophia Chang’s Unlock Her Potential and Joey Bada$$’s ImpactMENtorship programs, which provide mentorship to people of color in the entertainment industry. A strong believer in indie film and TV, Hanah is dedicated to increasing authenticity, diversity, and representation both in front of and behind the camera.

I Wish I Were Pretty

When an empty nester loses her ability to summon her daughter back from the afterlife, she is forced to find help from the person she resents the most: her ex-husband's mistress. Director Dorothy Xiao<a href="https://filmfreeway-production-storage-01-connector.filmfreeway.com/press_kits/headshots/002/625/765/original/2f4bdb4359-headshot.jpg?1707175367" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><img src="https://filmfreeway-production-storage-01-connector.filmfreeway.com/press_kits/headshots/002/625/765/thumb/2f4bdb4359-headshot.jpg?1707175367" width="245"></a> Dorothy Xiao is a Los Angeles based award-winning narrative film director and writer with a degree in Psychology from UCLA. A Chinese American daughter of immigrants, Dorothy creates grounded family dramas with a hint of fantasy, focusing on the complexities of vulnerable emotions like loneliness and grief. Dorothy has directed 13 short films and has worked on over 30 film and video projects with companies like CBS, HBO, and Disney. She is an Alliance of Women Directors - Directing the Actor Lab Fellow and winner of the 2023 CAPE Julia S. Gouw Short Film Challenge.Dorothy’s films total over 600,000 views online and have screened at multiple film festivals such as the Nevada City Film Festival, DTLA Film Festival, and the Oscar-qualifying Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival. She directed the award-winning short film COLORFUL MINDS for the 2022 CBS Leadership Pipeline Challenge, which won a donation of $75,000 from CBS to the nonprofit Painted Brain. Her short film DIVE BAR played on board Alaska Airlines. She is an alumnus of the Jubilee Media Fellowship, where she wrote and directed the short film EXPOSURE, which now lives on a Youtube channel with over 7 million subscribers.Dorothy is an avid supporter of empowering underrepresented voices in media, and when not making films, Dorothy binge watches anime with her stuffed bunny Rabby, reads juicy romance novels, and drinks copious amounts of boba milk tea.

Only In This World

Matt often didn't recognize himself in photos and never really understood why—until one day his loss of hearing helped him see more clearly. This educational video breaks down what living with auditory processing disorder can feel like, as well as the complicated feelings that come with this and other diagnoses.

Late-Diagnosed

Anne—seated in an obstetrics and gynecology clinic—grapples with a heart-wrenching dilemma: whether to terminate her unexpected pregnancy for a dream job in Silicon Valley or stay in Taiwan and embrace life as a single mother. As the tension between reason and emotion intensifies, her long-buried fear of family life rises — like a monster from the deep. Directors Yunghan Chang and Huai-Yu Chang<a href="https://filmfreeway-production-storage-01-connector.filmfreeway.com/press_kits/headshots/002/961/936/original/ce1fe8cd15-headshot.jpg?1739042796" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><img src="https://filmfreeway-production-storage-01-connector.filmfreeway.com/press_kits/headshots/002/961/936/thumb/ce1fe8cd15-headshot.jpg?1739042796" width="272"></a> Yunghan Chang (Left):Yunghan was born and raised in Taiwan, where he developed a deep passion for art, fiction, comic books, and film. He pursued his studies in Animation and Illustration at San Jose State University, where he wrote and directed two animated short films, No Robots and Bye-bye Bruce.After graduating, Yunghan joined Pixar Animation Studios as a story artist, contributing to several Academy Award-nominated and winning films, including Inside Out, Coco, Turning Red, Elemental, and Inside Out 2. He also served as the Story Lead on Toy Story 4, shaping the film’s narrative with his storytelling expertise. Huai-Yu Chang (Right):Huai-Yu is a filmmaker from Changhua, Taiwan, with a master’s degree in film and television from the Academy of Art University in San Francisco, specializing in directing and screenwriting.His filmmaking journey began as an art assistant on Orz Boys! (2007, Dir. Yang Ya-Che) and later as a production assistant on Ang Lee’s Life of Pi (2012).While studying in the U.S., he wrote, directed, and edited several short films, including his final thesis Esperanza (2017). After returning to Taiwan in 2018, he has primarily worked as an editor on a range of film and media projects. His credits include serving as an assistant editor on Yee Chih-Yen’s 2021 animated feature City of Lost Things, editing the Golden Harvest Award-nominated short XXXMOG! (2021) and working as an editor for the 2019 Golden Horse Awards promotional films.

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Thank&nbsp;you&nbsp;for your generous donation to the Silicon Valley Asian Pacific FilmFest, a production of CATS (Contemporary Asian Theater Scene), a non profit 501c3. EIN: 77-0402633 Thank&nbsp;You,Silicon Valley Asian Pacific FilmFest<a href="https://www.svapfilmfest.org" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.svapfilmfest.org</a>

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