The Seattle Asian American Film Festival was founded in 1985 and has been revived over the years by different producers. The current iteration was founded in 2012 and made its debut in 2013 by co-founders Kevin Bang and Vanessa Au. It is a revival of (and a return to the events original name) of the previously running Northwest Asian American Film Festival, which was directed by Wes Kim from 2003 to 2007 and which had experienced a five-year hiatus. The inaugural film festival was also held at the
Wing Luke Asian Museum
The Wing Luke Museum of the Asian Pacific American Experience is a history museum in Seattle, Washington, United States, which focuses on the culture, art and history of Asian Pacific Americans. It is located in the city's Chinatown-Internation ...
from January 25 to 27, 2013. The festival is currently run and directed by Executive Director, Vanessa Au, and Festival Director, Victoria Ju.
History
Origins
The Seattle Asian American Film Festival was founded in 1985 by KingStreet Media, a community-based Asian American media production and advocacy group based in Seattle's International District. Kingstreet Media was an offshoot of the International Examiner newspaper as almost all its members were either photographers, writers or graphic artists for the paper. The festival came about after the group helped complete "Beacon Hill Boys" - the first ever dramatic film about Asian American youth. The film had caused a sensation locally when it premiered a few months earlier, had been nominated for a student Academy Award, and was beginning to make the festival rounds nationally and internationally. Capitalizing on the film's success and looking to expand their commitment to raising the profile of Asian American cinema the group put together the city's first all Asian American film festival. To emphasize recent breakthroughs in Asian American filmmaking, which up until that time had been almost completely dominated by documentary work, the festival featured programs made up entirely of narrative films (dramas, comedies, etc.). In addition to "Beacon Hill Boys," the line-up included Wayne Wang's acclaimed sleeper hit "Chan Is Missing," Visual Communications' historical epic "Hito Hata: Raise The Banner," Stephen Ning's coming-of-age tale "Freckled Rice," Robert Nakamura's multi-ethnic comedy "Fool's Dance," and Steven Okazaki's mother/daughter profile "The Only Language She Knows" among others. The festival was held at Seattle's historic Nippon Kan Theater with the International Examiner acting as media sponsor. The festival's founders and staff included Dean Wong, William Satake Blauvelt, Sumi Hayashi, Dean Hayasaka, Ken Mochizuki, Jeff Hanada, Greg Tuai, and Jesse Reyes.
The second edition of the festival was held in 1987 with the International Examiner taking over as producer. The paper hired Nellie Fujii-Anderson as festival director and William Satake Blauvelt returned as Programming Director. Also, several other KingStreet Media members who also worked for the paper helped again. This time the festival was held at the University of Washington's Kane Hall and featured an expanded line-up of narrative, documentary, experimental and animation films, as well as independent films from around Asia. The Examiner had taken on the festival, in part, as a way to raise funds for the newspaper. Although the festival was successful on different levels they soon found out that film festivals in general were not money making propositions and so declined to act as producer for any further editions. The International Examiner did continue its role as a media sponsor of the festival to the present day.
The festival then went on hiatus for several years until it was revived in 1994 by Emily Wong, then Assistant Editor of the International Examiner, and William Satake Blauvelt who had been working as a filmmaker/curator/critic. This time the Seattle Asian American Film Festival was set up as an independent organization that put together a large coalition of volunteers, as well as community and media sponsors from within and outside of the Asian American community. Screenings were held at the Seattle Art Museum with side-bar events happening around the city. From 1994 through 1998 SAAFF, as the festival was affectionately dubbed, became nationally known as one of the premiere Asian American film festivals in the country which supported many filmmakers who went on to greater fame including Ang Lee ("Broke Back Mountain"), Kayo Hata ("Picture Bride"), Frieda Lee Mock ("Maya Lin: A Strong Clear Vision"), Kip Fulbeck ("The Hapa Project"), and Justin Lin ("Better Luck Tomorrow"). Aside from the festival itself the SAAFF organization co-sponsored year-round premiere screenings of Asian American films that found mainstream distribution like "The Joy Luck Club." The festival also published quarterly newsletters and a comprehensive annual booklet. Prizes - the Gold, Silver and Bronze Carp Awards for the best films as voted on by the audience were introduced. Programming was further expanded by doing retrospective tributes to selected directors and actors; archival screenings; commissioned live scores for silent films; as well as panels and Q&A's with visiting filmmakers. SAAFF also expanded their efforts to be more international in scope and featured work from around the Pacific Rim that featured under represented groups like Australian aboriginal and Pacific Islander filmmakers. SAAFF also made a commitment to showing work that up to that time had been ignored by the Asian American community including trangressive, experimental work on taboo subjects and films dealing with the Gay and Lesbian experience. Work was screened in all formats including 35mm, 16mm, 8mm, and video. In addition to Emily Wong (Director) and William Satake Blauvelt (Programing Director) the festival staff included John Pai, Albert Shen, Mari Murao, Shannon Gee, Soyon Im, and Vuong Vu among many others.
2003 Revival
The festival was revived once again in 2003 and re-branded as the Northwest Asian American Film Festival and was led by Director Wes Kim for four years, until 2007. Kim is also a filmmaker, writer, director, and producer of the award-winning short films ''Profiles in Science,'' ''Vision Test,'' and ''Cookies for Sale'', and Kim's films have appeared in over 40 U.S. and international film festivals and have screened in 17 countries, as well as being broadcast nationally on public and cable television and featured in programs at the
Museum of Modern Art in New York
The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) is an art museum located in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, on 53rd Street between Fifth and Sixth Avenues.
It plays a major role in developing and collecting modern art, and is often identified as one of ...
and the
Wing Luke Asian Museum
The Wing Luke Museum of the Asian Pacific American Experience is a history museum in Seattle, Washington, United States, which focuses on the culture, art and history of Asian Pacific Americans. It is located in the city's Chinatown-Internation ...
in Seattle.
2012–2013 revival
After the festival concluded in 2007 and took a five-year hiatus, the festival was revived under its original name of the "Seattle Asian American Film Festival" in 2012–2013. Former director Wes Kim still serves as an Advisor on the Festival.
2013 inaugural festival
The inaugural 2013 film festival featured Eliachi Kimaro's documentary ''A Lot Like You'' as Opening Night film (the film also won Best Documentary at the
San Francisco International Asian American Film Festival
CAAMFest, known prior to 2013 as the San Francisco International Asian American Film Festival (SFIAAFF), is presented every March in the San Francisco Bay Area in the United States as the nation’s largest showcase for new Asian American and Asia ...
, and was a Top 10 Audience Choice Award at the
Seattle International Film Festival
The Seattle International Film Festival (SIFF), held annually in Seattle, Washington since 1976, is among the top film festivals in North America. Audiences have grown steadily; the 2006 festival had 160,000 attendees. The SIFF runs for more th ...
(SIFF)). The festival also featured a short film program entitled ''Cinematropolis'' curated by Seattle-based hip hop group
Blue Scholars
Blue Scholars is an American hip hop duo based in Seattle, Washington, created in 2002 while the members, DJ Sabzi (Saba Mohajerjasbi) and MC Geologic (George Quibuyen), were students at University of Washington.
The name "Blue Scholars" is ...
, and named after their album of the same name. Other films included a film written and produced by
Yuji Okumoto
is an American actor of Japanese descent. He is best known for his role as Chozen Toguchi in ''The Karate Kid'' franchise. He has also appeared in such films as ''Real Genius'' (1985), '' True Believer'' (1989), ''Contact'' (1997), ''The Truman ...
and directed by Blaine Ludy entitled ''Out'', and
Andrew Ahn
Andrew Ahn (born 1985/1986) is an American film director and screenwriter who has directed the feature films ''Spa Night'' (2016), ''Driveways'' (2019), and ''Fire Island'' (2022).
Early life
Andrew Ahn was born and raised in Los Angeles. He is ...
's ''Dol (First Birthday)'' (Official Selection of the 2012
Sundance Film Festival
The Sundance Film Festival (formerly Utah/US Film Festival, then US Film and Video Festival) is an annual film festival organized by the Sundance Institute. It is the largest independent film festival in the United States, with more than 46,66 ...
).
Other films include the documentary ''Manilatown Is In the Heart'', short films such as Scott Eriksson's ''How War Ends'', Jocelyn Saddi-Lenhardt's ''Mother and Child'' (a
Visual Communications
Visual Communications (also known as VC) –– is a community-based non-profit media arts organization based in Los Angeles. It was founded in 1970 by independent filmmakers Robert Nakamura, Alan Ohashi, Eddie Wong, and Duane Kubo, who were st ...
"Armed With a Camera" fellowship film),
Steve Nguyen
Steve Nguyen (born December 30, 1985) is a Vietnamese-American director, writer, artist and film producer. Nguyen and fellow director Choz Belen formed Studio APA, a multimedia collective that specializes in the production of animated films, chi ...
and Choz Belen's ''
Hibakusha
''Hibakusha'' ( or ; ja, 被爆者 or ; "person affected by a bomb" or "person affected by exposure o radioactivity) is a word of Japanese origin generally designating the people affected by the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki at th ...
'', Valerie Soe's short film ''The Chinese Gardens'', Akira Boch's ''The Crumbles'' (winner of an Audience Award at the
San Francisco International Asian American Film Festival
CAAMFest, known prior to 2013 as the San Francisco International Asian American Film Festival (SFIAAFF), is presented every March in the San Francisco Bay Area in the United States as the nation’s largest showcase for new Asian American and Asia ...
), Iris Shim's multiple-award winning documentary, ''The House of Suh'', Yumiko Gamo Romer's ''Mrs. Judo: Be Strong, Be Gentle, Be Beautiful'', several short documentaries that were also
Visual Communications
Visual Communications (also known as VC) –– is a community-based non-profit media arts organization based in Los Angeles. It was founded in 1970 by independent filmmakers Robert Nakamura, Alan Ohashi, Eddie Wong, and Duane Kubo, who were st ...
"Armed With A Camera" fellowship films such as ''Basketball, Meri Jaan'' by Veena Hampapur, ''That Particular Time'' by Jeff Man, and ''Magellan Doesn't Live Here'' by Micki Davis.
The final day of the festival screened Tadashi Nakamura's documentary, ''
Jake Shimabukuro
Jake Shimabukuro (born November 3, 1976) is a Hawaiian ukulele virtuoso and composer known for his fast and complex finger work. His music combines elements of jazz, blues, funk, rock, bluegrass, classical, folk, and flamenco. Shimabukuro has writt ...
: A Life on Four Strings'', S. Leo Chiang's ''Mr. Cao Goes to Washington'', (Best Documentary at the
DC Asian Pacific American Film Festival
The DC Asian Pacific American Film Festival is an annual film festival that screens feature films and short films. It is produced by Asian Pacific American Film, Inc., a nonprofit, tax-exempt charity under 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code ...
and the Audience Award for Documentary Feature at the
New Orleans Film Festival
The New Orleans Film Festival is an annual film festival organized by the nonprofit organization New Orleans Film Society, a film society founded in 1989. The festival has been held since the society's inception. The festival takes place in mid-Oc ...
), Porter Erisman's ''Crocodile in the Yangtze'', and Closing Night film was
Timothy Tau
Timothy Tau (born Timothy Tau Hsieh ( ); Chinese: 謝韜; pinyin: Xiè Tāo) is a Taiwanese-American writer, engineer, attorney, law professor and filmmaker. Tau won the 2011 ''Hyphen magazine, Hyphen'' Asian American Writers' Workshop Short St ...
's ''
Keye Luke
Keye Luke (, Cantonese
Cantonese ( zh, t=廣東話, s=广东话, first=t, cy=Gwóngdūng wá) is a language within the Chinese (Sinitic) branch of the Sino-Tibetan languages originating from the city of Guangzhou (historically known as Cant ...
'', a short film bio-pic on the actor and the artist who grew up in Seattle that was most known for being the first on-screen
Kato in the 1940s
Green Hornet
The Green Hornet is a superhero created in 1936 by George W. Trendle and Fran Striker, with input from radio director James Jewell. Since his 1930s radio debut, the character has appeared in numerous serialized dramas in a wide variety of media ...
film serials before
Bruce Lee
Bruce Lee (; born Lee Jun-fan, ; November 27, 1940 – July 20, 1973) was a Hong Kong and American martial artist and actor. He was the founder of Jeet Kune Do, a hybrid martial arts philosophy drawing from different combat disciplines that ...
and the All-American "Number One Son," Lee Chan, in the popular
Charlie Chan
Charlie Chan is a fictional Honolulu police detective created by author Earl Derr Biggers for a series of mystery novels. Biggers loosely based Chan on Hawaiian detective Chang Apana. The benevolent and heroic Chan was conceived as an alter ...
films of the 1930s. Keye Luke is also related to
Wing Luke
Wing Chong Luke (February 18, 1925 – May 16, 1965; ) was a Chinese-American lawyer and politician from Seattle.
Luke served as an assistant attorney general of Washington for the state civil rights division from 1957 to 1962. He was later a ...
, former Assistant Attorney General of
Washington
Washington commonly refers to:
* Washington (state), United States
* Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States
** A metonym for the federal government of the United States
** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered on ...
, member of the
Seattle City Council
The Seattle City Council is the legislative body of the city of Seattle, Washington. The Council consists of nine members serving four-year terms, seven of which are elected by electoral districts and two of which are elected in citywide at-lar ...
and the first
Asian American
Asian Americans are Americans of Asian ancestry (including naturalized Americans who are immigrants from specific regions in Asia and descendants of such immigrants). Although this term had historically been used for all the indigenous people ...
to hold elected office in the state, who also is the namesake of Seattle's
Wing Luke Asian Museum
The Wing Luke Museum of the Asian Pacific American Experience is a history museum in Seattle, Washington, United States, which focuses on the culture, art and history of Asian Pacific Americans. It is located in the city's Chinatown-Internation ...
. The Luke family and the Luke Family Association are also still based in Seattle currently.
[Seth Sommerfeld, Seattle Metropolitan Magazine, Timothy Tau Discusses His Short Film About Keye Luke, http://www.seattlemet.com/arts-and-entertainment/film/articles/timothy-tau-discusses-his-short-film-about-keye-luke]
External links
Seattle Asian American Film Festival Official Page*
ttp://blog.angryasianman.com/2013/01/seattle-asian-american-film-festival.html Angry Asian Man: 2013 Seattle Asian American Film Festival, January 25-26br>
4-Picks from the 2013 Seattle Asian American Film Festival*
ttp://www.seattlechinesetimes.com/english/lifestyle/12858-focal-on-seattle-local-happenings-jan-24-2013 Seattle Chinese Times: Seattle Asian American Film Festivalbr>
Yay-Today: Free Screenings at the Seattle Asian American Film Festival
References
{{reflist
Film festivals in Washington (state)
Asian-American culture in Seattle
Asian-American film festivals
Pacific Islands American history
Festivals in Seattle