Chinatown Storytelling Festival 2026

Upcoming Festival Programs

Just Concluded Programs

Screenings at DCTV’s Firehouse Cinema

In our third year of Chinatown Storytelling Festival, Think!Chinatown is excited to return to DCTV’s Firehouse Cinema to present “Through the Years with Think!Chinatown”.

Through the Years with Think!Chinatown

Sunday, August 9th w/ Q&A at 3:30PM

Tuesday, August 11th at 7:00PM

Curated by Think!Chinatown,“Chinatown Storytelling Festival: Through the Years with Think!Chinatown” showcases Think!Chinatown’s history of storytelling projects as the organization is reaching its 10 year anniversary. To mark this milestone, we’ll be pulling treasures from Think!Chinatown’s archives and premier a new animated short. Join us for this special retrospective on Think!Chinatown’s decade-long work.

• Everyday Chinatown with a special premiere… Feather Duster! Also screening Penzi & Red White Blue Bag

• Art of Storytelling - Stories from our community members accompanied by animated illustrations by Asian American artists

  • Here to Stay Jan Lee tells the story of his grandfather’s journey to the U.S. from China, and of his own childhood in Chinatown, NYC.

  • Music is  Here In Our Lives Chinese musician Zhang Jingtai, following his love for music from China to Manhattan’s Chinatown.

  • What I Wanted Most Artist Christina Chung brings the story of our Chinatown neighbors, Yan Ping Zhong and Ying Wu, to life.

  • Rocking the Boat (Art of Storytelling) features pioneering advocate Yee Ling Poon, following her time with Asian Americans for Equality (AAFE) and the Basement Workshop.

• She Says - a dance film telling the story of two women from two eras featuring dancer and choreographer, Mei-Yin Ng.

• An Ode to our Generations -  Inspired by the incredible work and foundation laid by Basement Workshop and the Yellow Pearl art publication 50 years ago, we brought together friends and artists across generations for this series. Featuring musician/artivist Nobuko Miyamoto, artist Arlan Huang, and musician treya lam.

Thank you to our partner and neighbor, Firehouse: DCTV’s Cinema for Documentary Film.

Thank you to our partners and friends for bringing this Chinatown Storytelling Festival to life with us: Chinatown Records, UNASSIMILATED and our next generation of storytellers.

Chinatown Storytelling Festival is a celebration of Think!Chinatown’s newly produced storytelling projects, as well as a deep dive across archives of short films about Chinatown. Chinatown Storytelling Festival aims to foster the creation and viewership of projects featuring our under-told stories.

Think!Chinatown is a creative placekeeping non-profit here to create intergenerational spaces of art, joy, belonging and connection in Manhattan’s Chinatown. At the intersection of arts, storytelling and neighborhood engagement, T!C works to grow community agency in our own neighborhood’s built environment as well as the narrative of our own stories. T!C is the team behind Chinatown Nights (fka Chinatown Night Market), Chinatown Arts Festival, Chinatown Block Party, Chinatown Storytelling Festival. Their home is the Think!Chinatown Studio, at 1 Pike Street, where you can find exhibitions, cultural and food workshops, small performances and talks.

Chinatown Storytelling Festival is held on the unceded land of the Lenape peoples. Think!Chinatown’s cultural activities are supported, in part, with public funds from the New York City Dept of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council and by the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of the Office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature. Additional leadership support for Think!Chinatown is generously provided by the Andrew Mellon Foundation. T!C is also grateful for funding from Mosaic Fund Network and many individual friends.