About Pacific Arts Movement

Pacific Arts Movement (Pac-Arts), formerly the San Diego Asian Film Foundation, is one of the largest media arts organizations in North America that focuses on Asian American and Asian international cinema.

Our history dates back to the year 2000 when we launched our first San Diego Asian Film Festival at the University of San Diego with the help of local filmmakers, academics, and journalists. The intent was to simply expose the broader community to Asian American images.

Boy were we surprised on August 9, 2000, when a sold-out audience of 600+ showed up for the opening night screening of  The Debut, one of 60 films we presented that first year. It was clear that we had tapped into something important.

Since then, the San Diego Asian Film Festival has continued each year in the Fall, expanding its attendance, film programming, venues, partnerships, and impact on the community. Today, the Film Festival presents over 140 films from 20 different countries to an enthusiastic audience of over 20,000. Additionally, our expanded screenings – including a Spring Showcase, Film Forums, and Spotlight Screenings – as well as, our educational program, Reel Voices, serve over 40,000 people each year.

Pacific Arts Movement is proud and honored to have supported the work of hundreds of filmmakers and artists, and to have partnered with hundreds of community organizations and business partners. We will continue our commitment to Moving Pictures, Moving Minds.