NOTE THIS EVENT HAS ALREADY OCCURRED
Date(s): Monday, May 11, 2026
Time: 6:30pm-7:30pm
Venue: Downtown Branch of AADL
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Join AADL as they screen three new films by Michigan AAPI filmmakers: Na Forest Lim’s In Love and Struggle, Toko Shiiki’s and Paloma Núñez-Regueiro’s Dynamic List of Indelible Marks, and Kristine Patnugot’s A Union of Two: A Pre-martial Law Manila Love Story.
In Love & Struggle celebrates Detroit’s enduring spirit of freedom dreaming, inspired by the visionary philosophy of James and Grace Lee Boggs. Through meaningful conversations at the Boggs Center, it illuminates the city’s rich history of grassroots activism and ongoing community transformation—showing the reality and everyday practice of a quiet revolution in action.
The short art film Dynamic List of Indelible Marks taps into collective memory to bring awareness of the possibility of history repeating itself, in hopes of creating a better future through civil participation.
A Union of Two: A Pre-martial Law Manila Love Story is the filmmaker’s parents’ love story told through 16mm family footage and voiceover recorded when she lived with them during Covid quarantine.
The screening is followed by a Q+A with the filmmakers.
Na Forest Lim (they/them) is an autistic, queer, and trans artist, film director, and photojournalist who practices sustainable poetic living across Seoul and Detroit, both of which are their homes and sources of inspiration. As the founder of radical play, Na crafts narratives alongside Detroit and Seoul QTBIPOC artists. Their films have been celebrated at numerous international festivals, including LA Black Film Fest, Black Alphabet Film Festival, and Queer World Film Festival. A 2024 Kresge Arts Fellow in Film Directing, Na dedicates their work to archiving art, documenting creative journeys, and uplifting community voices—embodying a vision of storytelling rooted in care, authenticity, and reciprocity.
Born and raised in Japan, Toko Shiiki spent most of her life in Tokyo before moving to Michigan in 2005. Toko’s pursuit of using photography as a narrative medium inspired her to explore documentary filmmaking, where she delights in meeting fascinating people and sharing their stories with the world. She exhibits her work nationally and internationally, and has earned multiple awards like The International Photography Awards. In 2023, PBS distributed Shiiki’s short documentary, “A Thousand Pebbles on the Ground,” which earned an Emmy nomination at the 55th Annual NATAS Central Great Lakes Chapter Regional Emmy® Awards.
Paloma Núñez-Regueiro is a Mexican printmaker, installation artist, and art activist born in Lima, Peru, to a Mexican mother and a Chinese-Peruvian father. At age 9, the family fled to Mexico due to the guerrilla war. She discovered printmaking at the Facultad de Artes Plásticas in Xalapa, Veracruz, where she embraced this politically charged medium. She earned a BFA from the Rochester Institute of Technology in 2000. Her artistic journey continued through moves to Argentina and Mexico, where she drew inspiration from various Latin American artists. Now based in Ann Arbor, Michigan, she is a resident artist at Ypsi Alloy Studios. Her work reflects her migration experiences, otherness, and identity as a woman of color.
Kristine Patnugot is a Manila-born, Detroit-grown writer/producer. As a creator/writer of the VH1 series TRANSform Me and producer/writer of the documentary, Style Exposed: Born Male, Living Female for the Style Network, Kristine’s work helped open the doors for transgender women of color on mainstream television, with TRANSform Me earning a GLAAD nomination for Outstanding Reality Program. Kristine’s work has been shown at film festivals and includes work in documentary, television, and commercials for HBO, PBS, CBS, A&E, National Geographic, Discovery and others. She is committed to developing new voices, increasing access for and amplifying the stories of women, immigrant, BIPOC and LGBTQIA+ folx.
These short films are unrated. This event is part of the KYLYN AAPI Arts & Culture Festival.
For Teens & Adults. Held in Lower Level Program Room
- Date(s): Monday, May 11, 2026
- Time: 6:30pm-7:30pm
- Cost: Free
- Event Website
- Organizer: Ann Arbor District Library
- Organizer Phone: Not Provided
- Organizer Email: Not Provided
Venue: Downtown Branch of AADL
Address: 343 South Fifth Avenue, Ann Arbor
Please double check event information with the event organizer as events can be cancelled, details can change after they are added to our calendar, or we can make mistakes.
