Vaitafe - Running Water (1981) Photo: Visual Communications
Four films capturing the lives of the Samoan community in the US have been included in Visual Communications' Pacific Cinewaves event in Carson City.
The US is home to over 240,000 people of Samoan descent, according to the 2021 census. Samoans are the second largest Pacific peoples group in the USA, after native Hawaiians.
Archival film highlights US Samoan community
About 63,000 of Samoan origin reside in California, meaning almost one-third of the Samoan population in the US lives in California.
There are more than 50,000 Samoans in Los Angeles County which is nearly equal amount of the entire population of American Samoa.
The City of Carson is one of the main cities where Samoans settled with their families when they migrated to California.
Visual Communications is an organisation that develops and supports the voices of Asian Americans and Pacific film and media artists.
Visual Communications are holding a "Pacific Cinewaves" event which involves screening four films about the experiences of Samoan Americans, each screening is followed by a talanoa (talk). The screenings are being held at Carson library in Carson City.
The film, Come Together (2024) Photo: Visual Communications
Esperanza Bey, who is of Samoan/African American descent, works for Visual Communications as an archivist. She is working to ensure that films that connect with the US Samoan diaspora are a part of the archive's Pasifika collection.
"The best way for me to do that is by programming and making sure that the archive reaches the communities that it centres on," she said.
One of the films included in the collection, Omai Faatasi, focuses on a youth development centre of the same name in Carson City, USA. Released in 1978, the film explores the challenges facing Samoan youth in Southern California. Bay said that the films highlight parallels between the experiences of Samoan youth in the 1970s, and their experiences today.
Also in the collection is the 1980 film Vaitafe, meaning running water, directed by Takashi Fuji. Bey described the film:
"So this one is supposed to serve as a follow-up to 'OMai Faatasi', but it's a fictionalised account and it follows Vaitafe Futu, a gifted Samoan youth who travels from Samoa to Los Angeles to pursue higher education."
Samoan film, Omai Faatasi (1978) Photo: Visual Communications
Following those two short films will be Samoans in Carson filmed in 2017. It is based on an interview with June Poesi, the director of Samoan Affairs. The interview describes the waves of immigration from American Samoa to Carson.
Also featured in the collection is Come Together (2024) a film by Honestine Pa'ala Fraser, which is about a teenage girl growing up in a strict Samoan household. The main character is struggling with school but can turn things around after she joins the 'Omai Faatasi' youth group.
Bey said the first week will be screening those films and the talanoa portion will feature a talk by Tupe and Mabel Su'a, who were themselves core members of 'O mai Faatasi'.
"They reached out to us (Visual Communications) wanting the opportunity to speak on, their experience, and how it came about. They have a lot of roots in the Carson community."
The talanoa for this film will be facilitated by Bay and Nina Sosafina, a Samoan actress and singer from Long Beach, California, and the star of Come Together.
When asked about why it was vital to tell these stories from Carson City, Bey explained that Carson is a hub for the Samoan community, in Southern California.
Of the importance of these films to the Samoan community, Bay said "So not only should they let you know about the community and include the community's description, but they should be used to impact the community positively."