PIC turns 35!
LEADING FUNDER OF PACIFIC ISLANDER FILMS CELEBRATES 35TH YEAR AND REMAINS STEELY EYED ABOUT ITS FUTURE
(Honolulu)—Pacific Islanders in Communications (PIC) today announced its 35th anniversary. Since 1991, PIC has played a crucial role amplifying Pacific voices in media, reflecting America's diversity and preserving unique cultures. The organization’s creation was over 20 years in the making and involved numerous media luminaries including its first board Chair—Martha Carrell. PIC’s impact on the industry includes:
Funding: Investing $7.3M toward the completion of 159 independent films. (On average 10 films per year for the past 15 years.)
Career Development Programs: Founding the PIC Media Makers Summit and being a partner within the international Indigenous Cinema Alliance (ICA).
Distribution: Contributing more than 200 hours of media content to the national public media system. This includes Whale Rider (2002), which was the highest watched film on PBS Sunday night at the time; Kapameahu (2020), which is the first Native Hawaiian animated short to make the Oscars short list; In Football We Trust (2016), an Emmy Award-winning feature film funded by PIC; Family Ingredients (2016), an Emmy Award-winning series co-produced by PIC; Every Day in Kaimuki (2022) the first feature film directed by a Kanaka Maoli filmmaker to premiere at Sundance; and The Land Has Eyes (2004), a PIC-funded film that is the first feature-length film to come out of Rotuma.
“PIC and I personally are the direct beneficiaries of our founders’ vision and commitment to ensure that Pasifika media creators not only have a voice but a real tangible presence in our country’s media landscape”, said Cheryl Hirasa, Executive Director of PIC. “We’ve come a long way and we intend to go much further.”
“I am so grateful to the inspired individuals in 1991 who envisioned a public media landscape that included programs by and about Pacific Islanders. Since that time, PIC has excelled in fostering and amplifying Pacific Islander voices through documentaries, narrative films, and short programs”, said Janel Quirante. “With the loss of federal funding for public media, PIC’s work to support Pacific Islander filmmakers is more essential than ever, to bring their powerful stories to national and global audiences, and to encourage dialogue across diverse cultures, ethnicities, and regions. Here’s to the next 35 years!”
"Without PIC, we would not have been able to tell our story to the degree of quality that we were able to do so. And these films need to reach a certain benchmark in order to get into festivals like Sundance, said Alika Tengan (director of the first Native Hawaiian feature-length film to premiere at Sundance). “Their support for artists like myself or any Pasifika artist across Moananuiākea is more critical now than ever before."
Stay tuned for announcements about the several activities and events throughout the year.
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Media Contact
Dwight Langhum
dlanghum@langhummitchell.com
202.546.9170
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