Calling all AAPI dance artists & enthusiats...LET'S GATHER!
AADF Gatherings are an ongoing series of networking and social events for AAPI dance artists of all genres and roles - choreographers, performers, teachers, educators, students, presenters, and advocates of ballet, jazz, tap, modern, contemporary, hip hop, cultural dance forms, etc. Gatherings provide dance artists and AADF friends/volunteers the opportunity to come together, make connections, share stories and experiences, learn from one another, and develop shared resources in a community rich setting.
Each AADF Gathering focuses on a different activity, topic, or need. Sometimes we learn, sometimes we play, and sometimes we give back, but always in community
UPCOMING GATHERINGS
AADF2026 November Gathering
AADF is co-presenting two films at the San Diego Asian Film Festival (SDAFF), and we've got a limited number of discounted tickets ($12)!
If you'd like to join us for either of these two films, please do the following:
- Fill out and submit the ticket request form - AADF SDAFF Nov Gathering Ticket Request Form
- Submit payment for tickets via Venmo or Zelle (tiltshiftdance) - $12/ticket.
First Come, First Served:
Deadline to get your discounted ticket is Wednesday, November 4th. However, we suggest you get your tickets early before we sell out.
Location:
Ultrastar Cinemas Mission Valley
7510 Hazard Center Dr. #100
San Diego, CA 92108
The Gymnasts of Fisherman Colony
Friday, November 6th @ 6:20 pm
Official Selection, 2026 Tribeca Film Festival
Official Selection, 2026 DMZ International Documentary Film Festival
Teenagers Kiran, Anwara, and Sonia train on a girls gymnastics team in Machar Colony, a majority-Bengali fishing settlement considered one of the poorest areas in Karachi. After the girls’ school founder (and human rights lawyer) Tahera Hasan recruits an initially reluctant male coach, the teens must fight for their chance to prove themselves to a country that doesn’t formally recognize their existence.
That there is a girls gymnastics program in “Fisherman Colony” is itself a miracle. Being a girl in Pakistan often means leaving school by the 5th grade and getting married by age 18. And, being Bengali in Pakistan usually means a lack of official ID in spite of birthright citizenship laws, limiting work, school, healthcare, and of course, the chance to compete on the national team.
But, seeing the boys train, a group of girls asked if they could too. As Kiran leads by example and Sonia emerges as a leading gymnast of the region, the girls must change fate for themselves and the people around her. Executive produced by Malala Yousafzai, Mariska Hargitay, and Trish Adlesic, Emmy-winning director Habiba Nosheen’s coming-of-age story of girlhood and defiance shows that gymnastics is not only an after-school activity; it is a way for girls like Sonia, Kiran, and Anwara to take up space, become documented, support their families, be themselves, and find belonging—one somersault at a time.
– Kyraalessandra Reyes
The Specials
Saturday, November 7th @ 8:50 pm
Official Selection, 2026 Fantasia International Film Festival
1. Kill Honjo.
2. No betrayal.
3. Attend dance practice.
4. Keep confidential.
When a gig to kill a yakuza boss requires a dance competition, an unlikely group of hitmen must work together, battle a K-pop cover group, and learn how to dance from a 10-year-old orphan. Fight (and dance) choreographies are aplenty in this playful parody of yakuza films. Apathetic assassins experience tearful dance trauma and renowned crooked uncles still bop to oldies city pop.
An intergenerational banger, THE SPECIALS not only highlights the evolution of dance in Japan but also budding friendships among the different generation of characters, done expertly by bad guy acting regulars Shiina Kippei, Ozawa Hitoshi, and Ishibashi Renji, running parallel with contemporary idols Sakuma Daisuke of Snow Man and Nakamoto Yuta of NCT 127.
Between an impressive ramen dance routine and an elementary school principal held at gunpoint, this yakuza dance flick will have viewers playing Iyo Matsumoto’s “Sentimental Journey” on repeat and be reminded of what’s important in life: passion, joy, and heart.
– Alissa Tu
PREVIOUS GATHERINGS
AADF2026 April Gathering
The Road to Sydney - SDAFF Spring Showcase
Friday, April 24th | 7:00pm
Ultrastar Cinemas Mission Valley
7510 Hazard Center Dr. #100, San Diego, CA 92108
In April, we gathered at the San Diego Asian Film Festival Spring Showcase for the screening of The Road to Sydney. Watch the recap video to see all the new friends we made!
Selected as the festival's opening night film, The Road to Sydney is an emotional documentary about master choreographer Sydney Loyola, chronicling her journey from the Philippines to the San Francisco Bay area as a trans artist. San Diego filmmakers Benito Bautista and Emma Francisco bring us a cinematic film filled with beautiful choreography, while delving into the intersection of culture, family, and trans queerness.
🏆2026 Pinoy Rebyu Award, Best Feature Documentary, 2026 DisOrient Asian American Film Festival
AADF was a co-presenter of The Road to Sydney.
AADF2026 March Gathering
Community Photoshoot Sessions
Sunday, March 29th
11am-3pm
Drip Creative Studio
5111 Santa Fe Street, Ste DEF, San Diego, CA 92109
We teamed up with Drip Creative Studio to host mini photoshoot sessions in their Studio Sol room, offering headshots, and dance/movement shots to our San Diego dance and movement community. Check out the fun in our recap video!
Photographer - HANA TOBIAS
Hana is a professional photographer, experienced in capturing both portrait and dance/movement. She has photographed multiple events around San Diego, including AADF2025! Check out Hana's website and portfolio - https://www.hanatobias.com/
Studio space and lighting were generously donated by DRIP Creative Studio, so that all proceeds could pay for the photographer.
AADF2025 December Gathering
Saturday, December 6th
4pm-6pm
transcenDANCE
5700 El Cajon Blvd, San Diego, CA 92115
Come join us for our first AADF Gathering! Meet AADF’s co-directors Joyce Lien Kushner and grace shinhae jun, learn about 2026 happenings, and meet fellow AAPI dance artists.
Schedule of Events:
- Drinks, snacks & mingling
- Greetings & purpose of AADF Gatherings
- Ice breaker activity
- Low down of all the exciting AADF2026 events & projects:
- AADF2026 Winter Symposium
- AADF2026 Residency, Internship & Fellowship program
- AADF2026 Festival
- Volunteer opportunities & ways to get involved
- Community Suggestions - an opportunity to tell us what you'd like to get out of AADF Gatherings. We've got some ideas, but we want to hear from you!
Our 2026 Partners & Sponsors
