3 Rd I South Asian Independent Film

WHO is 3rd i Films?

• We are the oldest South Asian media arts organization in the US, promoting diverse images of South Asians and catalyzing change through independent film since 2000.

 

• We host the premiere annual South Asian Film Festival in the U.S., growing from a 1 day event to a 6-day festival with 6,000 attendees, reaching over 55,000 filmgoers since our inception.

 

• We have screened more than 350 films from art-house classics to documentary films, from innovative and experimental visions to next-level Bollywood: 3rd i Films showcases films from India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Tibet, Bhutan, Afghanistan and the global South Asian Diaspora.

 

• We present diverse programs throughout the year, including 3rd i’s Green Eye, 3rd i’s Queer Eye, and youth focused programs.

 

 

WHY support 3rd i Films?

3rd i Celebrates:

• Women – in front of and behind the camera
• Diversity – the many faces of South Asian cinema
• Youth – the voices of South Asian youth in action
• Artists – on a local, national and international level providing a platform so their films can reach the public
• South Asian Heritage & Culture – through cinema, both contemporary and classic

 

3rd i Promotes:

• Education - monthly lectures and films for university students and the public, focused on specific topics like the environment, women in film, and the history of South Asian cinema.

 

• Dialogue and community building through film - 3rd i exposes audiences to high quality South Asian film and builds a better understanding of South Asians within a global framework.

 

• South Asian Leadership – 3rd i Co-Directors have education and experience in film and non-profit management and were recipients of KQED and Union Bank’s Local Heroes Award for 2012.

 

3rd i Provides Impact:

• By providing well rounded images of South Asians and a forum for discussion  3rd i helps to ensure South Asians are better understood and an important piece of the fabric of the U.S.

 

• By reaching Over 200,000 South Asians in the Bay Area (part of the 1.7m South Asians in the U.S.) and diverse non-South Asian communities 

 

• By collaborating with over 50 organizations locally and nationally

 

3rd i Makes News:

• “The 3rd i Film Festival is really one of a kind, offering up the best of South Asian film, not as some paean to political correctness, but truly as a tribute to great cinema rooted in the subcontinent and its diaspora.” - Sandip Roy, Editor/Radio Host, New American Media

 

• “3rd i has exposed the Indian American audience to a whole new funny, sexy and fantastic world of South Asian film. They are the only resource for the latest in cutting-edge and hard-to-find cinema and they are one of the Bay Area’s great artistic treasures!” - Lisa Tsering Entertainment Editor, India-West

 

 

 

Catalyzing Change through Film

The San Francisco Bay Area is home to an estimated 200,000 residents of South Asian descent and to the nation’s second-largest South Asian community, a majority of whom are immigrants. 3rd i’s monthly screenings and annual festival discussions bring together the diverse South Asian American communities, addressing the need to be understood, to feel accepted and to interact. Creating an environment that promotes self-expression, discussion and understanding is crucial in a world filled with intolerance and prejudice; 3rd i strives to create such an environment.

 

2016 marks the 14th year of 3rd i’s annual film festival.  To support its long-term success, 3rd i is raising funds to:

• expand programming and partnerships to reach a broader audience

• promote sustainable fundraising for organizational longevity  

• strengthen organizational infrastructure and staffing