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A recent article published here at Civil Beat Honolulu criticized the programming and operations of the Hawaiʻi International Film Festival (HIFF), arguing that it was “not living up to its potential.”

I research Asian Pacific film culture at Auckland University of Technology in Aotearoa New Zealand and have taught graduate courses on film festivals in Australia since 2020.

In my view, HIFF is one of the most interesting film festivals in the world.

Putting On A Pacific Festival Is Difficult

Film festivals are complex events to plan and operate.

Building a program of more than 200 films requires sifting through thousands of submissions, following major international premieres, selecting films to meet the needs and interests of thousands of audience members with unique tastes, negotiating with distributors, securing theater space, and inviting and supporting international filmmakers from around the world — all before the first film screens on opening night.

Running an event of this scale is costly and requires a network of partners, sponsors, and donors, each with different needs that the festival must address. The largest film festivals in the world are backed by major corporate sponsors or sizable endowments, dwarfing smaller regional festivals like HIFF.

Covid-19 posed new challenges for film festivals worldwide, with many cutting back on programming or collapsing altogether.

While these challenges are not unique to HIFF, running a film festival on a Pacific island amplifies them. Film festivals require large teams of skilled specialists, and many staff, from projectionists to transportation coordinators, are recruited from other festivals.

Hawaii’s high cost of living and geographic isolation make these challenges more expensive and complex to manage.

A Different Kind Of Festival

The previous article claimed that HIFF “pales in comparison to … Sundance, South by Southwest, Tribeca, and even Telluride,” but this is an unhelpful comparison. Just as we value diversity in representation, diversity in film festivals is also beneficial.

For a festival of its size, HIFF attracts remarkable international talent. Living legends such as Wong Kar-wai, Hirokazu Koreeda, and Roger Deakins have attended over the past decade, and for emerging film students and critics, HIFF provides almost unparalleled access to filmmakers through its extensive Q&A and educational programs.

These conversations don’t happen elsewhere and reflect the extraordinary (and sometimes chaotic) intimacy of HIFF. For many filmmakers, HIFF is more casual and inclusive than the high-pressure, hierarchical environments typical of the international film festival circuit.

HIFF Punches Above Its Weight

HIFF has an international reputation for strong and original programming — particularly in Asian, Asian American, and Pacific island filmmaking.

Launched as a project of the East-West Center in 1981, HIFF showcased Asian cinema before most North American festivals. Film critic Roger Ebert saw HIFF as a key gateway for Asian-Pacific films to the rest of the world and attended annually before his passing in 2013, rubbing shoulders with legendary writers like Donald Richie and Susan Sontag.

Through my recent research, I found a photograph of Zhang Yimou enthusiastically playing table tennis between screenings in 1995, a reminder of HIFFʻs role as an early champion of China’s fifth generation of filmmakers.

This programming isn’t without flaws. HIFF has historically struggled to center local narrative filmmaking in its program.

However, since 2017, HIFF has renewed its focus on local, Indigenous, and Pacific Islander filmmaking, becoming one of the few places where international audiences can see independent Hawaiian cinema. This is highlighted by the festival’s recent success in securing financing for the production of  an anthology film directed by eight Kanaka Maoli filmmakers.

As a film scholar and historian, I’m deeply impressed by the emerging generation of local filmmakers in Hawaii, and HIFF plays a vital role in bringing their work to international attention.

Invest In Local Cinema

Although I disagree with many points raised in the original article, we agree on one thing: HIFF has the potential to become an even stronger champion of local cinema in Hawaii.

More than through criticism, film festivals can drift into crisis through community apathy. We take institutions for granted and forget how much care and attention goes into keeping them alive. Difficult conversations are essential for remembering our priorities and striving to improve.

If we want more from HIFF, we must support it by attending, discussing, contributing our time and resources, and advocating for it with our representatives. Supporting HIFF doesn’t mean unconditional agreement, but it does require investment in a shared future.

HIFF has the potential to become even better, but we all have a part to play in making that happen.