Special Film Screenings
SAAFF has a long history of hosting advance screenings and special film events that amplify Asian American stories while building engaged, values-aligned audiences. Our decades-long track record demonstrates how sponsorships with SAAFF extend beyond visibility, creating lasting cultural impact and authentic community connection.
These are select films we’ve partnered on for advance and special screenings in recent years, bringing audiences early access to major releases while creating meaningful community engagement around Asian American stories.
Following an advance screening of The Paper Tigers, SAAFF hosted a post-film Q&A with the filmmaker and cast. These screenings often go beyond the film itself, with custom backdrops, special merchandise, and interactive moments that bring the community together and make each event memorable.
Special Screening & Filmmaker Q&A: The Paper Tigers
A Legacy of Advance Screenings: The Joy Luck Club (1994)
In 1994, Seattle Asian American Film Festival hosted the first Seattle screening of The Joy Luck Club, marking one of our earliest partnerships with a major Hollywood release. Documented by the International Examiner, the event included a preview screening and community panel discussion that brought together filmmakers, scholars, and local audiences to engage with Asian American stories on screen.
This early screening reflects a long-standing commitment that continues today: connecting our community to groundbreaking films before wide release, fostering dialogue, and elevating Asian American voices in mainstream cinema. Our history of advance screenings spans decades and remains a core part of how we build cultural visibility and audience engagement beyond the festival itself.
A 1994 International Examiner article documents SAAFF’s first Seattle advance screening of The Joy Luck Club.
Note: The following text is a word-for-word transcription of an article published in the International Examiner in 1994.
Group seeks community support for Asian American film festival in May
Organizers hope sneak preview and panel discussion of “The Joy Luck Club” will raise interest in festival
By Carina A. Del Rosario
Examiner Staff
Local audiences will get a sneak preview of “The Joy Luck Club,” based on Amy Tan’s best-selling novel, Sept. 18 at the Preview Theater located at 1020 John Street.
Organizers for the 1994 Seattle Asian American Film Festival are offering free screening tickets to the local Asian community in hopes of getting them more involved with the upcoming festival. The four-day festival is slated for the first weekend next May and will be held at the Seattle Art Museum.
According to Bill Blauvelt, festival organizer, the panel discussion after “The Joy Luck Club” will also serve a more educational purpose. “We want to get people discussing Asian films in general and we want Asians to be more conscious patrons of film.”
Panel participants include Blauvelt, Asian American studies professors Shawn Wong and Tracye Lai, and University of Washington graduate student Traise Yamamoto.
A debate will most likely arise around the “Joy Luck Club” itself. According to Mike Wilson, a SAAFF organizer, the book’s success in the mainstream has had some Asian American critics regarding Tan’s work as a “white-wash,” one that does not represent an “authentic” Asian American experience. The panelists chosen represent different views on this particular subject and Wilson said he is “expecting a whole spectrum of response.”
It has been over six years since Seattle has had an Asian American Film Festival
It has been over six years since Seattle has had an Asian American Film Festival, although New York and San Francisco have had internationally-recognized annual festivals since the mid-’70s.
Blauvelt, who helped organize Seattle’s 1985 and 1987 festivals, said that most of the previous organizers were filmmakers like himself. “After the festivals, a lot of those involved went on to make films or to work in the industry. A lot of people also just got burnt out after the last one. People get older and they have more responsibilities. They need to make money, and festivals generally lose money.”
Blauvelt credits Emily Wong, a former associate director of the Examiner, for organizing the 1994 festival. He added that a whole new generation has grown up during a time when there was nothing promoting Asian American filmmakers. “This younger generation has a lot more enthusiasm. They want to see this happen, especially with the rise of Asian American film since the late 1980s.”
Festival organizers are now meeting to secure financing for the event and to finalize the program. For more information regarding the “The Joy Luck Club” screening and fund raising, contact Emily Wong at [redacted].