This year is big and we are going big. 2021 marks VAFF’s 25th year of continuous programming. Eyes will be on us and your films too.
We plan to go ‘hybrid’ this year. That means an online festival Canada-wide for 7 days and live screenings and presentations in Vancouver for 4 days. The festival runs from November 4 – 14.
Note: Any updates to the format of this year’s festival will be announced by early September.
VAFF is the longest running pan-Asian diaspora film festival in Canada. It was founded in 1995 and debuted in September 1997. Since then, tens of thousands of film lovers have experienced a diverse selection of North American-Asian and international films, in English and in other languages.
Vancouver Asian Film Festival (VAFF) is dedicated to promoting and celebrating the diversity and depth of Asian culture and identity in film and media, and to help North American Asian actors and filmmakers more authentically and more powerfully define and express themselves on screen.
Each year VAFF attracts close to 5,000 audience members over its four-day festival and year-round events. It also reaches many more through word of mouth, pre-festival events, and traditional and social media throughout the year.
Through its annual film festival and many other programs and events hosted in Vancouver, VAFF’s mission is to be the “go-to” forum for the public and the film industry to engage in and support the rise of Asian influence in film and media in the world. VAFF envisions a world where North American Asian actors and filmmakers have the resources and opportunities to shape mainstream culture in a powerful and positive way.
VAFF is entirely organized and produced by a group of dedicated volunteers, and is made possible by generous financial support from corporate sponsors, public funders and private donors.
We plan to go ‘Hybrid’ this year! That means an online festival Canada-wide for 7 days and live screenings and presentations in Vancouver for 4 days. The festival will run from November 4 – 14.
Programming at the ten-day November festival includes 10-13 film programs incorporating feature length and short films and videos (dramatic narrative, documentary, experimental and animation) featuring an Artist/Concept Spotlight, International Spotlight, International and Canadian Shorts, Q & A sessions, the VAFF Industry series including panel discussions and networking, and gala events.
Featured programming from last year:
VAFF25 information will be announced in Fall 2021.
Being the platform where a number of successful Asian filmmakers first showcased their work, VAFF’s international visiting artists have included Justin Lin (Fast & Furious, 2009), Quentin Lee (White Frog, 2012), Benson Lee (Seoul Searching, 2015), Evan Jackson Leong (Linsanity, 2013), Jessica Yu (Grey’s Anatomy), Tze Chun (Gotham), and Freida Lee Mock (Return with Honor, 1998), as well as Canadian filmmakers Julia Kwan (Everything Will Be, 2014), Mina Shum (Meditation Park, 2017), Ann Marie Fleming (Window Horses, 2017), Ben Lu (Blood and Water), Phil Planta (Beyond Redemption, 2016), and Jeff Chiba Stearns (Mixed Match, 2016). Attending performers have included Edison Chen (Infernal Affairs II, 2003), Tzi Ma (Arrival, 2016), Anastasia Lin (Miss World Canada 2015), Agam Darshi (Dirk Gently’s Holistic Detective Agency, 2017), Sarita Choudhury (The Hunger Games, 2014), and Rizwan Manji (The Dictator, 2012).
Our juried awards offer excellent opportunities to build your film career. Awards we presented last year:
Shorts
Features
Audience ‘People’s Choice’ Awards
Outstanding Contribution: Diversity in Film
Available awards include juried awards for Best Canadian Short and Best Canadian Feature, presented by Telefilm Canada; juried awards for Best Director for Canadian Short and Best Director for Canadian Feature, presented by the Directors’ Guild of Canada—British Columbia; juried awards for Best Cinematography for Canadian Short and Best Cinematography for Canadian Feature; audience-voted People’s Choice Awards for best Overall Feature, Overall Short, Overall Performance.
We have a minimum prize fund of $2,500 CAD (get it – 25th anniversary!) for:
We will continue to update our prize fund as we move closer to the festival.
See the VAFF 2021 Open Call Guidelines for more details.
Open Call Period: March 15, 2021 – June 5, 2021 (11:59 PM PST)
Open call submissions received after the Open Call Period will not be considered for the 2021 festival. NO EXCEPTIONS.
Submissions can be made through FilmFreeway.
VAFF is also committed to paying screening fees to films from Canadian/Canadian resident directors part of the official selection of the 25th Vancouver Asian Film Festival. Eligible filmmakers will be notified of our fee structure if successfully selected. All fees will be paid post-festival. Please note we cannot pay fees for productions with filmmakers who are not citizens or permanent residents of Canada that are not based in Canada.
See the VAFF 2021 Open Call Guidelines for more details.
Note:
Please specify how your submission meets our eligibility criteria above, in your submission notes/cover letter.
Accepted film categories (submissions outside these categories will not be considered):
See the VAFF 2021 Open Call Guidelines for more details.
The Open Call Submission Period is from March 15 to June 5, 2021.
Note:
Please specify how your submission meets our eligibility criteria above, in your submission notes/cover letter.
See the VAFF 2021 Open Call Guidelines for more details.
Acceptable exhibition formats are as follows:
Accepted film categories (submissions outside these categories will not be considered):
See the VAFF 2021 Open Call Guidelines
See the VAFF 2021 Open Call Guidelines for more details.
VAFF proudly accepts entries via FilmFreeway.com, the world’s best online submission platform. FilmFreeway offers free HD online screeners, unlimited video storage, digital press kits, and more.
