The Bay Area Arab Film Festival is marking its 30th anniversary with a programme celebrating the diversity, complexity and creative perspectives of Arab cinema and its global diaspora. Recognised as the largest festival of its kind outside the Arab world, the event runs until 14 November, with screenings taking place across San Francisco and Oakland.
The anniversary edition of the film festival kicked off with a special mention for Egyptian film producer Mohamed Hefzy, who was the first recipient of the AFMI Luminary Award for Cultural Impact. Hefzy won the award for his work on El Sett, a biopic that tells the story of famous Egyptian singer Umm Kulthum, considered one of the most prominent voices of Arabic music.
The film festival has a similar history. Launched in 1996 by a group of Arab women living in the Bay Area, the film festival was created to address the lack of representation of Arab communities and families in movies at the time.
Executive director Serge Bakalian recalled that the founders initially relied on grassroots fundraising and approached venues to secure screening spaces. Three decades later, their initiative has developed into a major platform for filmmakers and stories from across the Middle East and North Africa.
This year's programme features productions spanning several genres and perspectives, with screenings at AMC Kabuki, the Roxy and the Castro in San Francisco. Among the highlights is Spices and Lies, the debut feature by French-Algerian filmmaker Amine Adjina, which will receive an outdoor screening at the Proxy in Hayes Valley.
For the festival's organisers, the programme also reflects an evolving approach to representation. While positivity once served as a guiding principle, Bakalian said the festival now emphasises authenticity, encouraging filmmakers to present more nuanced accounts of their societies.
He noted that meaningful representation should extend beyond positive portrayals, making room for difficult subjects, social contradictions and critical perspectives on governments and communities.
The 2026 selection brings together filmmakers and stories connected to Sudan, Jordan, Morocco, Qatar, Kuwait and Palestine, highlighting the breadth of creative voices emerging from the region and its diaspora.
The festival will close on 14 November at Oakland's Parkway Theatre with a screening of Only Rebels Win, directed by Lebanese filmmaker Danielle Arbid.
For the wider film industry, the milestone underscores the role of independent film festivals in creating international visibility for regional storytelling, supporting diasporic filmmakers and broadening the range of narratives reaching global audiences.
