FINDING HOME: AAPI SHORTS

A selection of short films about Asian immigrants searching for their place in America: the opportunities found, and the challenges faced along the way.

2024 | Documentary & Narrative | USA | 82 min | English, Mandarin and Tibetan, with English Subtitles | Digital

Presented In Partnership with:

Chinese American Museum of Chicago
https://ccamuseum.org/

Our mission is to advance the appreciation of Chinese American culture through exhibitions, education, and research and to preserve the past, present, and future of Chinese Americans primarily in the Midwest.

https://www.cbcacchicago.org/

Coalition for a Better Chinese American Community (CBCAC) is a civic engagement nonprofit in Chicago Chinatown established in 1998. CBCAC unites the resources of member organizations and individual members to empower Chinese American communities in Greater Chicago. CBCAC carries out its mission through civic education, issue advocacy, communication with policy makers, and community mobilization.

Monday, May 19, 2025
6:00 PM

Gene Siskel Film Center
164 N State St, Chicago, IL 60601

TICKETS ON SALE SOON!

Saraṇam Gacchâmi (I Take Refuge)

Directed by Priyanka Suryaneni [In-Person for Q&A]
https://prisuryaneni.com/

Thupten Donyo, a visionary Buddhist monk from the Himalayan foothills of Nepal, leads one of the Bay Area's largest Tibetan monasteries—an invaluable sanctuary for Tibetan culture and community in the diaspora. He wears many hats at the monastery—prayer leader, spiritual guide, gardener, and even Halloween party planner! Now, nearing retirement, he hopes to find a worthy successor to carry forward the Monastery's legacy.

Rock Springs

Directed by David Huang
https://www.davidhuangfilm.com/

Told from the perspective of five Chinese miners in the days before the massacre, the story focuses on two brothers, Lor and Leo Sun as they attempt to survive the night. Lor, the younger brother, is on the cusp of venturing West and pursuing a brighter future in less explored territories, right as the events of the massacre begins. Leo, the eldest, feels indebted to the mining company, and has more responsibility with his own mining crew. The two part ways the evening preceding the massacre, Lor back to the Chinese quarter and Leo to his mining crew/camp. When news of the massacre reaches their camp, Lor must make the choice between leading his crew to safety or setting out alone to find his brother.

Bluff City Chinese

Directed by Thandi Cai [In-Person for Q&A]
https://bluffcitychinese.com/

Bluff City Chinese follows two Chinese American storytellers, filmmaker Thandi Cai and Delta elder Emerald Dunn, as they uncover the untold history of Chinese immigrants in Memphis, Tennessee. Through personal journeys, community oral histories, and archival research, the film weaves a 150-year tapestry of identity, belonging, and resilience. Set against a backdrop of social and racial tensions, this intergenerational collaboration celebrates the power of storytelling to preserve heritage, bridge divides, and inspire unity for future generations.

2024 | Narrative | USA | 47 mins | English | Digital