To continue celebrating Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander (AANHPI) Heritage Month beyond the month of May, The Asian American Foundation (TAAF) debuted its third annual television special, TAAF Heritage Heroes, comprised of five short films profiling everyday people making a difference in and for AANHPI communities.
This year’s heroes include trailblazers in entrepreneurship and leaders in the fight against anti-Asian hate in New York, Los Angeles, Oakland, Houston, and Seattle.
In a world rid of hate, there is only vision, joy, empathy, solidarity, and love. In Heritage Heroes 2024, TAAF imagines and explores these themes in a series of films that center its opposing forces to highlight the courage, creativity and resilience of our AANHPI communities. Helmed by rising AANHPI Directors and crew, each film celebrates AANHPI communities not only in front of the camera, but behind it.
According to a Geena Davis Institute on Gender in Media study, 95.1% of Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islanders (AANHPIs) working in the entertainment industry agree that AANHPI representation behind-the-scenes is inadequate. To build a world where AANHPIs truly belong and prosper we need to ensure diverse stories and storytellers are at the forefront in entertainment, media, and journalism – telling our own stories with authenticity, depth and nuance.
TAAF Heritage Heroes reinforces our dedication to narrative change by supporting, uplifting and developing future AANHPI creatives and executives who tell these stories.
This year’s strategy focused on shining a light on individuals who are beacons of hope in the fight against AANHPI hate.
Five AANHPI filmmakers were each paired with a community leader or entrepreneur to create a series of five short films, which debuted as standalone installments:
This year’s strategy not only continues to validate TAAF’s commitment to narrative change, but also spotlights another core pillar of our work - Anti-Hate.
TAAF has a Anti-Hate National Network which is a community of national, regional, and local organizations that leverages each other’s existing skills, expertise, and community connections to strengthen infrastructure and build a safer America for AANHPIs. We’re proud to feature some of our partners in these films to highlight how they are supporting and increasing the resilience of their local communities.
For the third consecutive year, TAAF was honored to partner with AAPI-owned production company Enfranchisement Productions, and creative collective FutureFriends to create the special.
This year, we were proud to be able to release TAAF Heritage Heroes via Amazon’s Prime Video platform, making the content available to Prime’s 200M+ subscribers and leveraging Amazon’s powerful marketing reach.
TAAF launched in 2021 in response to the historic rise in anti-Asian hate. While the immediacy of our work calls on supporting survivors and communities impacted by hate incidents, TAAF’s long-term objective to fight hate is to create belonging.
This can only be achieved by ensuring AANHPI representation in classrooms, boardrooms, newsrooms and casting rooms. In order to create a safer, more inclusive future for all, we need to continue telling stories that celebrate our diversity and depict AANHPIs in our full humanity.
TAAF Heritage Heroes helps us get closer to achieving this inclusive future by increasing storytelling opportunities for AANHPI creatives and pairing them with inspiring yet largely unsung heroes across the U.S. This year’s films also increased visibility of the incredible work AANHPI community organizations are doing on the ground across the country.
From inspiring success stories to overcoming challenges and advocating for change, this year’s heroes play pivotal roles in shaping history and enhancing our collective tapestry. TAAF is proud to launch an annual television special that ensures AANHPI stories are celebrated beyond the month of May. Through TAAF Heritage Heroes, we honor the resilience and achievements of our vibrant community.
