TWO FILMS. ONE MANILATOWN LEGACY.
Image of Two Films. One Manilatown Legacy. postcard
For the first time, experience two generations of Manilatown and International Hotel history together on the big screen—beginning with Curtis Choy’s landmark documentary “The Fall of the I-Hotel” and continuing with the premiere of our new documentary, “Manilatown Manang”.
And we are especially excited that filmmaker Curtis Choy and
I-Hotel Tenant Defender Jeanette Lazam will be there with us in person!
🎬 1 PM — THE FALL OF THE I-HOTEL
San Francisco Premiere — Newly Enhanced & Restored
Curtis Choy’s landmark documentary chronicles the decade-long struggle to save San Francisco’s International Hotel and the historic August 4, 1977 eviction of its elderly Filipino and Chinese tenants. Following the screening, join us for a community conversation with Curtis Choy and co-producers of the newly enhanced edition, moderated by Caroline Ocampo.
🎬 3 PM — MANILATOWN MANANG
PREMIERE
Meet Jeanette Gandionco Lazam—artist, activist, and one of the few women who lived inside the International Hotel as a Tenant Defender during the historic anti-eviction struggle. In The Fall of the I-Hotel, we see Jeanette as a young activist during the final moments of the I-Hotel struggle. In Manilatown Manang, we meet her again decades later and discover the remarkable life of activism, art, community, and perseverance that followed. Following the premiere, Jeanette Lazam will join members of the film’s creative team for a community conversation, also moderated by Caroline Ocampo.
📅 SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 7, 2026
📍 SFMOMA — Phyllis Wattis Theater
151 Third Street, San Francisco
🎟️ FREE — ADVANCE RSVP REQUIRED
We believe this history should be accessible to everyone, so FREE Community RSVP tickets are available. For those who are able, you may also choose a Support Manilatown ticket to help sustain our ongoing arts, culture, and historic preservation work. Both ticket options provide the same admission.
RESERVE YOUR FREE TICKETS
Come experience this history with us—and help us celebrate the people who fought for the International Hotel and the generations who continue carrying its legacy forward.
Two films. Two generations. One continuing story.
Caroline Ocampo - Moderator
Caroline Ocampo is an arts and culture consultant, curator, and marketing strategist with more than 30 years of experience developing multicultural and communications programs. Her work bridges arts, culture, media, and community, with a focus on elevating diverse voices and connecting cultural stories with broader audiences. A longtime media professional, Caroline co-produced the longest-running Filipino American radio program in the U.S. on KVTO with her father, ethnic media pioneer and veteran broadcaster Ness Ocampo. She also anchored Philippine News Update on Manila, Manila on KTSF Channel 26. Caroline holds a Master in International Arts & Culture Management, with academic backgrounds in Communications and International Relations. She has also completed leadership and marketing programs at Yale School of Management and the Wharton School. She currently directs marketing and curates for Manilatown Heritage Foundation, developing projects and exhibitions that preserve and amplify its history, legacy, and contemporary voices.
Curtis Choy — Filmmaker, The Fall of the I-Hotel
Curtis Choy is a pioneering Chinese American independent filmmaker, producer, and film worker whose career spans more than five decades. He directed Dupont Guy: The Schiz of Grant Avenue, The Fall of the I-Hotel, and What's Wrong with Frank Chin?, while contributing to numerous independent and PBS documentaries, commercials, and feature films as a production sound mixer. His sound recording credits include The Joy Luck Club, Better Luck Tomorrow, and the Academy Award-winning Breathing Lessons. Choy’s landmark 1983 documentary The Fall of the I-Hotel remains an essential work of Asian American cinema, preserving the struggle to save San Francisco’s International Hotel and the community of Manilatown. On November 7, Choy returns to San Francisco for the SFMOMA premiere of the newly enhanced and restored film.
Victor Zapanta - Co Executive Producer, The Fall of the I-Hotel Enhancement
Victor Zapanta is a Los Angeles-based designer. He first saw The Fall of the I-Hotel as a student at UC Davis. The film sparked his political awakening and set him on a lifelong pursuit of consciousness and activism. His grandfather was among the wave of Filipinos who came to the U.S. after World War II, and watching the film, Victor saw his own family in those being displaced. Returning to the film as a producer is a deeply meaningful continuation of that connection.
Erik Anderson,- Associate Producer, The Fall of the I-Hotel Enhancement
Erik Anderson is a New York–based Filipino American artist, designer, filmmaker, and musician whose multidisciplinary practice centers on storytelling across visual media, sound, and space, with an interest in preserving, documenting, and celebrating the Filipino diaspora. As co-founder of Barrio Bounce, he explores underground music and culture
across Filipino and wider Southeast Asian communities. He served as Associate Producer on the restoration of Curtis Choy’s The Fall of the I-Hotel. Through Studio B212, his multisensory storytelling and design practice, he works across physical and digital environments to explore new forms of creative expression. His current film work includes an
experimental documentary examining musical tradition, cultural memory, and diasporic identity.
Jeanette Gandionco Lazam - Documentary Subject, Manilatown Manang
Born in 1949, Jeanette entered this world four years after WWII ended, at the dawn of the nuclear age, with the development of the hydrogen bomb, the use of the term "The Iron Curtain" describing the Soviet Union and its Eastern European allies, and the establishment of Communist China. Born in New York City, she is the second child of Pilar and Francisco Lazam. From the moment she opened her eyes her world was shaped by the major political and social events of the 1950s to the beginning of the 1980s. Some of those events were demonstrations from the East to the West Coast for Racial Equality and Justice during the Civil Rights era, for the passage of the Equal Rights Amendment for Women, the passage of the first Domestic Partners Statue in the City and County of San Francisco, the strike at San Francisco State College for the passage of a Department of Ethnic Studies, for the return of Civil Liberties and Democracy against the Marcos Dictatorship 1970 - 1982, and as a tenant/defender against the evictions of International Hotel residents.
Esperanza Catubig, Co-Producer, Manilatown Manang
A native of San Francisco, ESPERANZA CATUBIG is an actor, producer, a credentialed Montessori educator and Mom. In her first short film, Nico's Sampaguita, directed by Aaron Woolfolk, she starred, co-wrote, produced and was accepted to twelve film festivals and won a Vancouver Award. Manilatown Manang directed by Caroline Cabading is Esperanza's first documentary as a co-producer. Her mission as a producer is to celebrate the beauty of the San Francisco Bay Area, featuring untold stories about women, created by women, especially of Filipino descent. In the last decade, she has supported numerous women filmmakers who have moved on to produce award-winning films in Los Angeles and in the SF/Bay Area. www.esperanzacatubig.squarespace.com. Esperanza is currently producing a documentary, We Have MET...in San Francisco directed by Jessica Sison, sponsored by Sentro Filipino. This is her third collaboration with Jessica.
Jessica Sison - Editor, Manilatown Manang
Jessica Sison is an award-winning filmmaker, editor, producer, director, and post-production consultant with more than 20 years of experience in documentary, narrative, broadcast, commercial, educational, and corporate media. She specializes in documentaries and narrative films inspired by true events. Her award-winning directorial debut, “Kuna Ni Nanang (My Mother Said),” follows her then 99-year-old grandmother as she confronts mortality and has screened at more than 50 film festivals, including Tribeca, Hawaii International, Athens International, Ashland Independent, Breckenridge, and Slamdance (courtesy of LUNAFEST). Her broadcast credits include Showtime, PBS, Oxygen, the WB, and The Filipino Channel. Jessica continues to collaborate with other filmmakers, including Pulitzer Prize-winning photographer Kim Komenich on "Revolution Revisited" and producer Esperanza Catubig on the upcoming feature documentary “We Have MET…in San Francisco.” "Manilatown Manang" reflects her enduring passion for telling true stories rooted in community, identity, and resilience.
Co-produced by the Manilatown Heritage Foundation and SOMA Pilipinas in partnership with the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, with additional support from the San Francisco Arts Commission. This special double-feature is part of DEKADA, marking ten years of community building, cultural preservation, and placemaking in SOMA Pilipinas, the City and State-recognized Filipino Cultural Heritage District.
🌺 About Manilatown Heritage Foundation
The Manilatown Heritage Foundation safeguards and activates the living cultural legacy of San Francisco’s Historic Manilatown and the International Hotel through arts, education, and community programs. For more information about the Manilatown Heritage Foundation, please visit www.manilatown.org or contact us at mhf@manilatown.org