Moderated by Brian Lau, Director, SFIAAFF. Invited guests include Anne Marie Booth, Boston, Asian American Resource Workshop (AARW); Abe Ferrer, Los Angeles, Visual Communications (VC); Ben Kim, Chicago Asian American Showcase and Foundation for Asian American Independent Media (FAAIM)

This year colleagues from Asian American film festivals around the country are gathering at the SFIAAFF to discuss their programs, challenges, successes and to offer advice for filmmakers and programmers. This panel will provide a report from the field as well as an indication of the national scope of Asian American cinema activities.

AARW in Boston, MA is a community-based membership organization dedicated to empowering the APA community since 1979. While art and culture programming has been at the core of AARW's work (first film festival held in 1983, and most recent in 1999), the organization has also provided leadership in building pan-Asian community and identity through coalition-building, organizing, and advocacy on numerous land development, media and civil rights issues. Anne Marie Booth has been AARW's director since 1998, and on staff for 6 years.

Abraham Ferrer is the Exhibitions Director at VC, a Los Angeles-based Asian Pacific American media arts center. For the past 13 years, he has served as the co-director of the Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film & Video Festival. He has also programmed screening series in collaboration with various community arts organizations and institutions, served as a program consultant for international film festivals and written extensively on issues relevant to the development of Asian American cinema.

Ben Kim is a co-programmer of the Chicago Asian American Showcase, and a co-founder of its presenting organization, the non-profit FAAIM. The Showcase, entering its fifth year in April 2000, is held at the Film Center of the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. Ben Kim's partners are Sooyoung Park and William Shin, who play in the alternative rock band Seam. Seam's music video "Inching Toward Juarez" is showing at this year's SFIAAFF. Ben works full time as Associate Editor of the Illinois Entertainer, a monthly music magazine based in Chicago.