Q&A with director Uttera Singh! A vibrant dark comedy with nuanced and deeply engaging social commentary, PINCH, directed and written by Uttera Singh, is a confident debut feature that shouldn’t be missed. With saturated color, swinging rhythm, and sharp emotional edges, the film dives into the generational fault lines of truth, trauma, and tradition—all through […]
Q&A with director Nistha Jain and Priya Satia! Nishtha Jain’s (3rd i Fest alumna GULABI GANG, THE GOLDEN THREAD) immersive and stirring documentary captures the unwavering resolve of ordinary people with extraordinary courage, chronicling the revolutionary standoff between Indian Sikh and Punjabi farmers and the Modi government. In November 2020, Gurbaz Sangha, a young farmer […]
CACTUS PEARS (Sabar Bonda), written and directed by Rohan Parashuram Kanawade, is gorgeously shot in picturesque vignettes in open landscapes and small villages, with a poetic and open-hearted narrative that skews predictable tropes. Kanawade’s debut feature follows two men navigating societal pressures in a rural community in Western India (Maharashtra). The story centers on Anand, […]
A vibrant, endearing and upbeat coming-of-age film, BOONG, written and directed by Lakshmipriya Devi, is about a young schoolboy who, along with the help of a friend, aims to reunite his divided family. Adventurous and mischievous schoolboy Boong and his friend Raju don’t see long distances and state borders as significant obstacles. At least not […]
Q&A with director Lawrence Valin! The gripping and exuberant crime thriller LITTLE JAFFNA, directed by Lawrence Valin (3rd i Fest Alumnus for THE LOYAL MAN short film, 2020), is layered with nuanced sociopolitical underpinnings. This stunning film is an impressive debut feature that explores identity and belonging within the Tamil Community in Paris, France. Set […]
Filmmaker in person! FREE – seating is limited. Register for free tickets In this documentary in Kolkata, India, where marriage is considered the ultimate feminine career fulfillment, four young Muslim women challenge stereotypes by learning to box with one of India's first female boxing coaches. As they train, the women negotiate poverty, battle tradition and learn […]
FREE! No advance ticketing required. Doors open at 7:30 pm. Open Screening is a forum for independent filmmakers to show their work. ATA’s free community film/video show welcomes short format work (15 min or less) from all genres. Entries must be received by 7:00 pm on show night, cued and labeled, to be considered. Space is […]
Witty, charming and delightful, 7 Days, directed by Roshan Sethi (A Nice Indian Boy, 2024), is a feel-good romantic comedy.
3rd i presents two films from local storytellers, filmmakers Kirthi Nath and Priyanka Suryaneni. Both of the films illuminate and explore the theme of “belonging” as they each chronicle the life of a visionary individual in their Buddhist spirituality, mindfulness and personal transformation.
GIRLS WILL BE GIRLS is a brilliant, richly layered romantic film that has won countless awards. Directed by Shuchi Talati, it masterfully explores the subtle complexities of a 16-year-old girl's coming-of-age desires and sexual awakening. Set in the 1990s, the film finds 16-year-old Mira at her strict private boarding school atop a Himalayan mountainscape in […]
Musician/composer Robin Sukhadia in person! From light comedy to dark wit, this year’s kaleidoscope of cinematic offerings brings filmmakers into conversation together from South Asia to California and throughout the Diaspora. With genres that range from music videos to documentaries, and from comedy to dramatic narratives, this year’s edition tackles stories of immigration, relationships, identity, […]
Filmmakers Ambarien Alqadar and Shankey Srinivasan in person! Preceded by short film DOS MUJERES Filmed over nearly a decade, Ambarien Alqadar’s LAND OF DREAMS is an intimate portrait of Virender Rana, a taxi driver from India, who is chasing his dream in America. The documentary follows Virender’s journey of coming to America as he finds […]
Click above for FREE tickets! Join Robin Sukhadia for a special presentation! Robin Sukhadia will present an engaging exploration of two landmark films that have captured the hearts and minds of audiences around the world: LAGAAN and RRR. Set against the turbulent backdrop of colonial India, these Academy Award nominated/winning films offer strikingly different takes […]
Pavia Sidhu in person! San Francisco Premiere Director Tarsem Singh’s DEAR JASSI revolves around a 19-year-old woman from a wealthy family in Canada. Jassi (Pavia Sidhu) visits relatives in the Punjab and falls in love with Mithu (Yugam Sood), a handsome and enterprising young man from a working-class family. This Romeo-and-Juliet tale, based on a […]
Director Shalini Ushadevi in person! US Premiere NOW AND FOREVER (ENNENNUM), directed by Shalini Ushadevi, is a unique, nuanced, and thought-provoking sci-fi feature from South India. In an alternate dystopian present, a married couple in the state of Kerala discusses whether or not to become immortal by taking a new high-cost implant. The couple decides […]
Hypnotic, meditative, and almost spiritually evocative of the human condition, ALL WE IMAGINE AS LIGHT, directed by Payal Kapadia (A NIGHT OF KNOWING NOTHING, 3rd i’s Film Fest 2023), is a glorious Cannes Film Festival award winner that should not be missed. The feature begins with a dreamlike ode to the thriving, cosmopolitan, and diverse […]
Sharp, satirical, and highly popular sociopolitical Indian cartoonist Rachita Taneja is the subject of DRAWING A LINE, a documentary directed by Sama Pana, which premiered at the renowned Hot Docs Festival and won Best Documentary Series at Canneseries 2023. It wonderfully explores Rachita’s inner world and her creative expression as she confronts persecution and censorship […]
3rd i's 22nd annual SF International South Asian Film Festival presents groundbreaking cinema from India, Pakistan, France, UK, Canada, and the USA. Features take brave risks exploring issues, from class and religion between genders to complicated bonds between mothers and daughters. Documentaries offer up Voices from the Margins and an expansive view of the immigrant […]
Q&A with director Fawzia Mirza! Vibrant, fun, and romantic, with the colors and spirit that evoke Bollywood musicals, THE QUEEN OF MY DREAMS, directed and written by 3rd i alumna Fawzia Mirza (NOOR & LAYLA, SIGNATURE MOVES), is a luminous film about the complicated and intertwined bonds between mothers and daughters. Queer Pakistani grad student […]
