An 11-day festival of virtual and online film screenings representing the Asian, Asian American and Pacific Islander experiences got underway Thursday, May 13 with CAAMfest 2021.
This year CAAMfest opened with drive-in screenings at Ft. Mason in San Francisco beginning with Debbie Lum’s Try Harder on Thursday, May 13. The film follows a group of high achieving students at San Francisco’s Lowell High School as they deal with the pressures of high academic demands and the college application process. The film can still be seen virtually on May 23.
RELATED: Documentary Try Harder tackles race and college admissions
Friday night, May 14, The Fabulous Filipino Brothers directed by Dante Basco, makes its California premier.
Basco plays himself along with his real life brothers as they deal with love, romance and family. This is Dante’s directorial debut.
RELATED: Dante Basco brings family together for Fabulous Filipino Brothers
Other highlights include a conversation with Margaret Cho and the premier of her film, Koreatown Ghost Story on May 16. Described as a supernatural horror tale, this 14 minute short uses Korean rituals and beliefs as a means to explore themes of gender and culture in a macabre way.
This year’s Centerpiece presentation is Snakehead by Evan Jackson Leong. It follows an undocumented immigrant who gets mixed up in an illegal smuggling operation. The film starring Celia Au and Jade Wu is both intense and riveting. It screens on May 22.
The festival closed May 23 with Americanish by Iman Zawahry. In Jackson Heights, Queens two sisters and their fresh off the boat cousin try all the conventional ways to earn the love and respect of the matriarch of their family only to learn that life works out in the most unconventional ways.
The full line up and ticket information can be found at CAAMfest.com2021.
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