Family Fundamentals

A documentary about Forbidden City, a San Francisco Chinese-American nightclub open from the 1930s to the 1960s.

Sewing Woman chronicles the bittersweet journey of one woman's determination to survive: from an arranged marriage in old China to working class comforts in modern America.

A riveting journey into the minds of men whose contempt for homosexuals led them to murder. Attacked in 1977 by gay bashers on the streets of San Francisco, filmmaker Arthur Dong confronts murderers of gay men face-to-face in his film. He asks them directly: “Why did you do it?”

A historical account of military policy regarding homosexuality during World War II. The documentary includes interviews with several homosexual WWII veterans.

A short film based as a poem written by filmmaker Arthur Dong in 1969 and marks his debut as an artist whose work continues to delve into the politics and human tragedy of social injustice. Public explores a child's reactions to social mores and violence to skewer the hypocrisy of oppressive norms.

This unique four-part series presents a multi-faceted history of the gay and lesbian civil rights movement, from Stonewall to the present.

Hollywood Chinese is a captivating look at cinema history through the lens of the Chinese American experience. Directed by triple Sundance award-winning filmmaker, Arthur Dong, this documentary is a voyage through a century of cinematic delights, intrigues, and treasures. It weaves together a wondrous portrait of actors, directors, writers, and movie icons who have defined American feature films, from the silent era to the current new wave of Asian American cinema. At once entertaining and enlightening, Hollywood Chinese reveals long-untold stories behind the Asian faces that have graced the silver screen, and weaves a rich and complicated tapestry, one marked by unforgettable performances and groundbreaking films, but also by a tangled history of race and representation.

Lotus is a traditional Chinese woman with bound feet who must decide whether or not to bind her daughter Joy's feet. Her strict, but loving, mother-in-law insists that Joy's feet be bound in order to guarantee her a secure future. Lotus, for the first time in her life, does not blindly obey. She is further influenced by her good friend, Coral, a colorful performer with a traveling Cantonese opera troupe who openly challenges the outlawed custom. In the end, Lotus makes a decision which will change her daughter's life forever.

When Dr. Haing S. Ngor was forced into labor camps by the Khmer Rouge, little did he know he would escape years of torture and recreate his experiences in a film that would win him an Academy Award®. "The Killing Fields of Dr. Haing S. Ngor" tells the dramatic story about arguably the most recognizable survivor of the Cambodian genocide, a man who became a worldwide ambassador for justice in his homeland, only to be murdered in a Los Angeles Chinatown alley - a case still muddled with conspiracy theories. Through an inspired blend of original animation and rare archival material - anchored by Ngor's richly layered autobiography - the years encapsulating the Khmer Rouge's tyrannical rule over Cambodia are experienced though a politically charged transnational journey of loss and reconciliation.

In 1936, Leo Lew immigrated to America, the “land of golden mountains,” from his native southern China. He came seeking fortune but discovered instead a mission closer to his heart — passing on the deep-rooted traditions of Cantonese folk music to new generations of Chinese Americans.

Documentary covers the early struggle for LGBTQ equal rights, from the repressive 1950s to the 1969 Stonewall riots.

Documentary on the Los Angeles-based media arts group, Visual Communications. The one-hour film chronicles their first twenty years, 1970-1990, of producing media by and about Asian Pacific Americans.