Highland Park Independent Film Festival Celebrates the Community With Tiki-Themed Cinema Party

Highland Park Independent Film Festival Celebrates the Community With Tiki-Themed Cinema Party

Grassroots organization, HPIFF will hold its first ever Cinema Tiki Party as a countdown to announce their 9th annual film festival line-up. Celebrating the best of Northeast LA’s local, LGBTQ+, Latinx focused art, film and music, the Tiki Party will kick off the momentum on Saturday, September 10 from 5 to 10 p.m. at the Offbeat Bar on York in Los Angeles.

The free community event will wrap up the summer celebrating all things surf inspired, from live music, food and tiki craft cocktails to cinema projections and local vendors. The outside patio will be converted into a tiki bar and will host local supporting organizations including the Office of Assembly Member Wendy Carrillo, The Arroyo Arts Collective, and The Uptown Gay and Lesbian Alliance with a chance to win raffled VIP passes to the upcoming HPIFF on October 7 & 8. 

“Since our inception, we have created programming for every member of our community,” shares Co-Founder and EP, Martia De La Torre. “This event is a celebration for our Northeast Los Angeles neighborhoods.  We have become a staple here and our Tiki Cinema Party is to highlight how proud we are of the many partnerships we have formed over the years with area businesses, leaders, organizations and fellow artists. This event fulfills our three-prong mission to build community through the art of film and enrich the lives of filmmakers, students and the residents of Highland Park furthering our mantra of "film for the people"!” 

Aside from the many fruitful community partnerships, HPIFF leads a youth filmmaker mentorship program with the students of Franklin High School and Monte Vista Elementary providing a hands-on experience to finding their voice as story-tellers in the professional industry. The filmmakers at the helm of the mentorship program will be present at the Cinema Tiki Party to provide awareness of the upcoming program. Instruction will consist of film workshops, field trips to college programs and film studios and the opportunity to screen their own works alongside professional filmmakers. This year's program will guide students in the annual tradition of crafting the introduction video for all screenings during the festival. While learning the fundamentals of filmmaking, the students will also produce a docu-series revolving around their social emotional wellness, exploring their feelings around effective stress management, building and maintaining positive relationships, emotional regulation, and making responsible decisions.

“I love how HPIFF empowers my students, especially the women,” notes Yim Tam, Teacher at Franklin High School. “Many of my students are more confident after their mentorship with HPIFF and in most cases, this is the first time my students are even exposed to careers in the film industry. HPIFF helps my students grow professionally and personally. This mentorship is priceless and I look forward to working with the Highland Park Independent Film Festival for the rest of my teaching career!”

The Tiki Cinema Party will celebrate the abundance of love in the community while welcoming a Highland Park local creative to perform for the very first time in the neighborhood. Jason Lee and the R.I.P. tides are one of the most known bands in the surf community and have gained increased notoriety in recent years playing premier West Coast Tiki subculture events such as Tiki Oasis, Taboo, Tiki Highway and now, their upcoming collaboration with HPIFF. 

The Highland Park Independent Film Festival first debuted in 2014 and has since established their roots and built community through a shared love for film and authentic story-telling in their surrounding neighborhoods. With film programs and screenings designed to build community in Northeast Los Angeles, the youth mentorship program and the film festival itself, HPIFF continues to apply their core mission of cultivating independent cinema in Highland Park ahead of next year’s 10th anniversary.