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Causes: Arts & Culture, Media & Communications
Mission: The mission of the Center for Asian Ameircan Media (formerly NAATA) is to present stories that convey the richness and diversity of the Asian American experience. We do this by: 1) supporting and encouraging Asian American media artists; 2) providing Asian American communities opportunities to view media that illuminates personal and community viewpoints; 3) using media as a tool for learning about the historical and contemporary issues of Asian American communities; 4) using artistically excellent works to introduce diverse perspectives into an ongoing dialogue of what it means to be "American"; and 5) protecting a global vision that encourages transnational exchange through media.
Programs: The Center for Asian American Media works in five general areas of programming: Media Fund With Support from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, the Center provides production funds for Asian American film and video projects that have potential for national public television broadcast. To date we have distributed more than $3 million to nearly 300 projects. Exhibition and Festival The Center showcases the best new Asian American and Asian films from around the world through events such as the annual San Francisco International Asian American Film Festival and collaborations with local arts and cultural institutions. The Film Festival is the largest event of its kind in the nation and presents over 130 films to audiences of 25,000. Public Television The Center presents public broadcasts of Asian American works nationally and in local and regional communities across the country through specials, premieres and anthology series. Annually, our broadcasts reach millions of viewers nationwide. Past works brought to public television by the Center include the Academy Award-winning documentaries "Maya Lin: A Strong Clear Vision" by Freida Lee Mock, and "Days of Waiting" by Steven Okazaki; Emmy Award-winning "a.k.a. Don Bonus" by Spencer Nakasako and Sokly Ny; Sundance Award-winners "My America" by Renee Tajima-Pena and "Rabbit in the Moon" by Emiko Omori; and many others. Distribution The Center provides high quality works by and about Asian Americans and Asians for educational distribution and broadcast. The largest distributor of Asian American film and video in the world, the Center's collection consists of over 200 titles being preserved for future generations. The Center serves schools, libraries, universities, museums, public television stations, government agencies, community groups and corporations throughout the U.S. and a growing clientele of educational institutions, cable networks and television stations around the world. Production The Center, in collaboration with KQED and with funding from the Committee of 100 recently produced a video short "Discovering Angel Island: The Story Behind the Poems" aimed at fourth-grade students. Our next production, for the eighth-grade level, will highlight the significant contributions the Chinese laborers made in building the Transcontinental Railroad.