It has been two years since the last Universe Multicultural Film Festival, and changes have taken place all over the world. The Universe Multicultural Film Festival, a brand of ethnic film celebration for nearly two decades, has withstood the impact of the pandemic and the global economic downturn. After two online and postponed events during the pandemic, it finally returned to the beautiful California coast as scheduled in April 2022. As always, the enthusiastic California sunshine welcomes filmmakers from all over the world to reunite and celebrate here. This is an important moment for the festival committee and everyone who has participated in the Universe Multicultural Film Festival.

This year, a total of 54 projects from 18 countries have been shortlisted for the Universe Multicultural Film Festival, including 14 screenplays, 7 feature films, 15 short films, and so on. The two-year pandemic has brought a lot of inconvenience to international travel, but there are still many filmmakers who can travel thousands of miles from the United Kingdom, the east coast of the United States, and California to the film festival.

As a relatively simplified film festival model in the later stage of the pandemic. Despite the suspension of many seminars and live activities, the organizing committee did its best to arrange various post-screening seminars, which were welcomed by filmmakers from all over the world. Among them, a documentary about the journey of children of divorced families who were mentally abused by Dr. Petra Deeter, a famous Hollywood filmmaker and activist, held Q&A after screening. Altitude Not Attitude, a documentary on local real events in Los Angeles, and The Disappearance of Mrs. Wu, a drama shot by famous Asian female director Anna Chi in Hollywood, starring Lisa Lu and Archie Kao, also held onsite Q&A. 

Although the Universe Multicultural Film Festival, which resumed activities in the first year after the pandemic, has been streamlined in scale, the content of the festival and the quality of the participating films have remained as high-level as ever, and have been recognized by more and more industry elites and professionals.

Tibetan Horse, a national-themed feature film produced by Maeya Group and shot with the assistance of Maeya Film, has also carried out grand promotion and publicity activities with the support of the platform of Universe Multicultural Film Festival. Tibetan Horse is still under intense shooting in China, with the Hollywood professional team of Maeya Film providing remote guidance and joint work. After the completion of the future shooting, the post-production work will be finished in Hollywood, and the Maeya Group will be in charge of marketing and promotion. The Universe Multicultural Film Festival is the best publicity platform for Tibetan Horse. Maeya Films also hope that through this film festival, more people will know about the filmmakers who have devoted themselves to ethnic films and their unremitting efforts to promote national culture.

A total of 18 awards were announced at the festival, which were won by works from 11 countries and regions. Wonderful music and dance performances were arranged on the scene of the award ceremony. Latin American pop singer Dana Compos performed live to set off the atmosphere, and the award show was officially kicked off by the famous Hollywood singer Leon Jones performing National Anthem. During this period, Las Estrellas Ballet Folklorico, a Mexican dance troupe from Long Beach, performed a Mexican cultural dance for the audience and guests, while young pianist Siyuan Liu performed piano. Popular idol Ruxanda Calistru sang two original songs, pushing the atmosphere of the scene to its peak.

The most special attendee this year is Douglas Smith, who is responsible for awarding the Grand Jury Awards. He won the Best Visual Effects Award at the 1997 Academy Awards for "Independence Day" and the 53rd Taiwan Golden Horse Award for "Mojin - The Lost Legend.".  It even beamed up a Star Trek nemesis, as Bill Blair, legendary action actor and long time Star Trek villain was one of the hosts and presenters. The participation of Mr. Smith and Mr.Blair fully illustrates the status of the Universe Multicultural Film Festival in the eyes of Hollywood professionals. Their involvement reflects the consistent pursuit of high-standard and high-quality activities at the Universe Multicultural Film Festival, ensuring that every filmmaker, guest, and fan who comes to participate in the festival can communicate with top Hollywood celebrities to discuss and exchange experiences in filming.

Due to the pleasurable engagements and thrilling cinema, Universe Multicultural Film Festival always passes in the blink of an eye. After the award ceremony, Ms.Tang, Chairwoman of Maeya Group and Executive Director of the Universe Multicultural Film Festival, warmly invited VIP guests to her residence for the After Party. The After Party of the Film Festival is a high-end event that only invited guests can attend. It is the best social occasion for award-winning filmmakers to celebrate their achievements and discuss upcoming projects.

The Universe Multicultural Film Festival hopes that every filmmaker who spares no effort to promote ethnic culture and film culture can enjoy their own moment of glory here, and move towards a higher and bigger stage. Every year, the Universe Multicultural Film Festival leaves unforgettable memories for the attendees. At present, the documentary short of the festival is also under intense editing and production, and it is believed that it will be seen by the public in the near future. Friends who are interested in participating in the 2023 Universe Multicultural Film Festival please seize the opportunity. You may be the one who will receive applause on the stage next year!

Official website: http://umfilms.org/

The opening submission date is May 1, 2022 for the 2023 UMFF

Film Freeway: https://filmfreeway.com/UniverseMulticulturalFilmFestival