The annual Independent South Asian Film Festival, fondly referred to as ISAFF, is Tasveer's most extensive production. It is a five-day extravaganza that takes place every September or October. It has been in existence since 2004. Every year, we have new theme and new website design.
ISAFF creates a lively, stimulating, and focused environment for conversation, education, and exploration of issues that face South Asia and its Diaspora. Through a series of film screenings, panel discussions, workshops, and cultural programming, our goal is to involve audiences not just with the film and video works presented, but to create a prolonged space where the social, political, personal, and international issues that form the core subjects of those works can be discussed and understood.
Below are the websites of our past festivals:
Seattle's 1st Independent South Asian Film Festival, honors the concept of "one," celebrating the oneness of South Asia through an uncensored, uncut series of screenings and forums embracing South Asia's multitude of traditions, cultures, histories, and people, around the world.
The 2nd Independent South Asian Film Festival brings to Seattle the urban hum of Karachi, lush mountains of Bhutan, Asian vibes from London, and far reaching corners of South Asia. ISAFF pushes the edges with its challenging and distinctive films, forums, and festivities - designing a new frame for South Asia.
Tasveer has received its first funding for the 3rd Independent South Asian Film Festival (ISAFF). Social Justice Fund, formally known as ATR, awarded its cultural grant to Tasveer in January. Since the first funding came from Social Justice Fund, our theme for this year’s festival will be social justice.
Tasveer has received its primary funding for the 4th Independent South Asian Film Festival (ISAFF) from the City of Seattle Department of Neighborhoods Neighborhood Matching Fund. Because of this generous grant, our festival this year will be free! Join us as we look at the present state of women’s rights in Afghanistan, interfaith dialogue in Pakistan, a hijra of India celebrating her life, a bioscopewallah’s sojourn in India, a man’s solitary journey to a remote Tibet summit, and many other thought-provoking and inspiring stories.
Tasveer has received its primary funding for the 5th Independent South Asian Film Festival (ISAFF) from the Pride Foundation and 4 Culture. This year we've triumphed in our efforts to bring you an extraordinary festival with more programs than ever before. We have several films, which will be premiering in Seattle such as the humorous feature films Donkey in Lahore and Kissing Cousins, along with re-screenings of striking films such as the international film festival favorites Before the Rains by Santosh Sivan and A Jihad for Love by Parvez Sharma. But ISAFF is not just about screening of films! It is about creating a safe, courageous and outspoken space for all types of people to come together and talk about the personal and the political. In addition to post-film discussions, we also have programs specifically designed for dialogue, such as the critical panel on gender and sexuality with independent filmmakers, and the famed presentation Queering Bollywood, which looks at alternative sexualities in popular Indian cinema.
