Re-Take Oakland filmmaker Jenn Lee Smith is a co-executive producer on the film Sara Bareilles: Good Grief, which will open in cinemas across the United States on September 2. The film will screen in New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Miami and more than 35 other cities following its premiere at this year’s Tribeca Festival.

Sara Bareilles: Good Grief is a feature documentary chronicling the making of Sara Bareilles’ first new album in seven years. The album is her most intimate one yet, born of profound personal loss and grief.

PARAMITA, directed by Re-Take Oakland filmmaker Kirthi Nath was featured on KPFA Radio’s Women’s Magazine – Buddhism, Spirituality and healing from Racism, Sexism, Suffering on August 10, 2026 before their film event, Cinema as Prayer: A Night of Queer South Asian Films.

Kirthi Nath (PARAMITA) and Lata Mani (Longing Suite) were in conversation with Lisa Dettmer about their films and the ways spirituality lives inside both the films and their filmmaking practices. This radio program also features Lisa in conversation with Dr. Rima Vesely-Flad, author of The Fire Inside: The Dharma of James Baldwin and Audre Lorde, exploring Baldwin and Lorde through a Dharmic lens.

PARAMITA bears witness to Prajna Choudhury’s 25-year journey of coming out to her traditional Bangladeshi mother. Told with intimacy and tenderness, the film invites us into a meditative experience as Prajna connects with Buddhist practice and nature as gateways for intergenerational healing.

Longing Suite is a lyrical exploration of awakening to the feminine Divine. Building on a cycle of poems written by Mani in the 1990s, the film traces the arc of a heart-mind-body awakening to the sacred in all that exists.

PARAMITA, directed by Re-Take Oakland filmmaker Kirthi Nath is screening in Cinema as Prayer: A Night of Queer South Asian Films on August 19.

Cinema as Prayer: A Night of Queer South Asian Films is a special one-night-only film event featuring PARAMITA by Kirthi Nath and Longing Suite by Lata Mani and Nicolás Grandi. These two poetic films move through longing, belonging and spiritual transformation, opening a space for reflection, healing and connection.

PARAMITA bears witness to Prajna Choudhury’s 25-year journey of coming out to her traditional Bangladeshi mother. Told with intimacy and tenderness, the film invites us into a meditative experience as Prajna connects with Buddhist practice and nature as gateways for intergenerational healing.

Longing Suite is a lyrical exploration of awakening to the feminine Divine. Building on a cycle of poems written by Mani in the 1990s, the film traces the arc of a heart-mind-body awakening to the sacred in all that exists.

Together, these intimate, spiritual films invite us to experience cinema as prayer.

The screening will be followed by a conversation and Q&A with the filmmakers, moderated by Madeleine Lim, Executive and Artistic Director of QWOCMAP (Queer Women of Color Media Arts Project).

Wednesday, August 19, 2026
6:15 PM
Rialto Cinemas Elmwood, 2966 College Avenue, Berkeley
ADA-accessible theatre

Finding Má, directed by For Us, By Us fellow Thanh Tran, was selected for Catapult Film Fund & True/False Film Fest’s 2026 Rough Cut Retreat. Five feature documentary films in the rough cut stage were selected for this immersive mentorship experience.

Finding Má is a documentary about an Amerasian Vietnamese and Black family shattered by the foster care and prison systems who reunite to heal old wounds and rebuild their family, starting with finding their houseless mom.

Yu & Me, produced by For Us, By Us fellow, Chad Santo Tomas, will have its New York Premiere at AAIFF on August 7. The film recently had its Bay Area Premiere at SF DocFest and has screened at Mountainfilm Festival, HAAPIFEST, International Queer Women of Color Film Festival, Asian American Showcase, and DisOrient Film Festival.

Yu & Me is a documentary short that explores the aftermath of a fire that destroys a beloved Chinatown bookstore. Faced with the loss of her dream, its hyper-independent owner, Lucy, learns that community is necessary for survival.

Marin City: Then, Now & Next, directed by Re-Take Oakland filmmaker A.K. Sandhu, had a special community screening on Juneteenth celebrating the history, resilience, and future of Black Marin City.

The event featured back-to-back screenings of Marin City Then & Now (1992), the original documentary by filmmaker and community activist Oshalla D. Marcus, alongside its companion piece, Marin City: Then, Now & Next (2026). Together, they tell a story that spans generations.