Austin Asian American Film Festival Showcases Bold Voices in Independent Film

The Austin Asian American Film Festival rolled out the red carpet on June 27 at AFS Cinema, welcoming filmmakers, actors and guests to its 17th annual event. The screening of Luka Yuanyuan Yang’s “Chinatown Cha-Cha” served as the festival’s centerpiece, concluding a record-breaking year that drew more than 1,300 attendees over five days.

Before the screening, guests walked the red carpet as filmmakers, actors and Austin creatives stopped for photos. The night’s Playful Rebellion theme carried through to the afterparty at St. John Studios, where badgeholders and guests kept the celebration going.

“This year, Austin Asian American Film Festival turned a page by leaning even more into building deeper community connections together over our theme of Playful Rebellion with our visiting filmmakers, returning, and new attendees,” said Executive Director Hanna Huang. “It was a reinvigorating and electric five days of new independent film full of reunions from former AAAFF volunteers and alum filmmakers as well!”

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Chie Endo (Photo by Roger Ho)

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(From left) Angela Chen, Huiju Park, and Marlon Hedrick. (Photo by Roger Ho)

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Sook-yin Lee. (Photo by Roger Ho)

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Prince Nakamura and Tadashi Nakamura. (Photo by Roger Ho)

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Casie Luong (Photo by Roger Ho)

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Grant Parsons and Hang Luong Nguyen. (Photo by Roger Ho)

A celebration of diverse voices and community

For the third year in a row, the festival sold out its all-access badges, welcoming 33 filmmakers and guests from around the world alongside a strong showing of Austin-based Asian American creatives. This year’s lineup spanned international, Asian diasporic, Asian American and Texas stories, highlighting the range of voices in the community.

Filmmakers praised the event’s organization and sense of connection. “I had so much fun, learned a lot, and met new and cherished friends,” said filmmaker Sook-Yin Lee, whose film “Paying for It” earned a Special Jury Award. “It was so special, and a deep honour to receive this citation. I think that sometimes it’s hard to see what you’ve got from the inside, but as someone who came to visit, I must tell you you have an incredible filmmaking community… a festival with depth and intention, and the emerging filmmakers in Austin are outta sight!”

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(From left) Huay Bing Law, Sam Mohney, Ivy Chiu and Rajinee Buquing. (Photo by Roger Ho)

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(From left) Amy Bench, Angela Chen and Ivy Chiu. (Photo by Roger Ho)

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Rajee Samarasinghe and DaManuel Richardson. (Photo by Roger Ho)

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Jeremiah Abraham. (Photo by Roger Ho)

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Keili Fernando. (Photo by Roger Ho)

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Storm Kahan and Chrystie Nguyen. (Photo by Roger Ho)

Themes of rebellion

Filmmaker Hang Luong Nguyen, awarded the Special Jury Award for “Rooftop Lempicka,” said, “…thank you (AAAFF) for the recognition for my film but also your quiet hard work of showing up and giving to the art and community. I truly felt a sense of community and belonging. Please keep up the good work you’re doing, the community absolutely needs it in a time like this.”

Huang added, “In the selected films this year, we see so many stories of rebellion. It comes as stories on screen about rebelling against perceptions about how we should act, look, and be.”

With record attendance and award-winning films, the festival continues to highlight diverse stories and foster a sense of belonging among filmmakers and audiences alike.

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