Story To Support Place-Based Initiatives — Written by Reanna Tong Some of San Francisco’s long and recently established cultural districts and centers gathered at Yerba Buena Center for the Arts (YBCA) on Saturday, March 13th, 2022 to create narratives centered around community preservation and thriving. …

Bay Area Artists Connecting Emotional Truths to Social Priorities for Change — Written by Bobby Shijia Lu I’ve been asking myself — What is the future? How do we get there? Attending Through the Lens: Realizing Identity & Needs Through Filmmaking this year brought me closer to the answers. On Friday, March 11th, 2022, the SF Urban Film Fest (SFUFF) and Bayview…

“There is a future with Black people, in San Francisco, in Oakland, in the Bay Area.” — Written by Reanna Tong In the middle of a large festive tent, that sat in the middle of the African American Art and Culture Complex (AAACC) Open Air Gallery, which sits in the heart of the Fillmore Western Addition, SFUFF Executive Director, Fay Darmawi, asked the audience, “How many people…

Using the Power of Narrative to Empower Minority Communities — Written by Maya Seo, Edited by Robin Abad Ocubillo “We don’t just dress up to look pretty, we dress up to do the work” Using the power of narratives in order to capture, showcase, and empower minority communities, the SF Urban Film Fest (SFUFF) alongside the YCBA brought forth the…

How Cultural and Artistic Practices Foster Urban Accountability — Written by Erica Waltemade, Edited by Robin Abad Ocubillo It was suddenly much harder to just walk into a place and photograph — now there were locked gates, door buzzers, lawyers… On Saturday, September 25th, 2021, YBCA opened its theater doors to vaccinated visitors for the first time in over…

The Cultural District Movement is Legacy and Resistance — Written by Bobby Shijia Lu, Edited by Robin Abad Ocubillo “Success in our district would mean thriving businesses and non-profit organizations in our community, it would mean decreasing the income disparity, stable housing for families, elders, students, and adults. Our working-class community, newcomers, teachers, and artists wouldn’t have the fear…

How Social Impact Entrepreneurs Can Better Leverage Transformational Narratives — Stories of transformation are core to the success and longevity of social impact startups. Often the day-to-day grind of running an organization can make it difficult for entrepreneurs to communicate the transformational value of their work to the outside world. Stories create an onramp, helping build understanding and engagement that…

Our Storytelling and Creative Strategy Services Are Designed to Invoke, Reflect, and Fulfill Community Needs — Lasting change — whether it’s within your city, your organization, or your movement — is sparked and sustained by inspired design and effective communication through stories. The SF Urban Film Fest (SFUFF) was founded on the idea that developing and sharing authentic stories is crucial to move the needle towards…

Public Health Preordained by Urban Planning — Written by Reanna Tong, Forward by Omeed Manocheri “In 1963 the Post Office Department introduced and vigorously promoted the use of the Zone Improvement Plan (ZIP) Code. The code was originally intended to allow mail sorting methods to be automated but ended up creating unimagined socio-economic benefits as an organizing…