By Morf Morford
Tacoma Daily Index

Tacoma is a place of many intersections – of people, products and ideas. Our history, our identity, our destiny are all wrapped up in this mix that never stops.

Largely thanks to the Port of Tacoma and military bases, we have many strands of connection to far reaches of the earth – and many links to distant or barely known places even larger cities lack.

And these connections take different forms whether they be business, travel or encounters of all different kinds.

Even if we don’t travel or have international relationships, we can still encounter some of those cultures that have a continuing linkage – and a contributing impact – with the ever-changing face of the greater Tacoma area.

One of those ways is the annual Tacoma Sister Cities International Film Festival. For 2019, you have the opportunity to experience stories from ten of Tacoma’s Sister Cities.

Over the years Tacoma Sister Cities International Film Festival has had a variety of forums from weekly movies shown for free at the University of Puget Sound to  standard film screenings at The Grand Cinema and in 2019, returning to Tacoma’s historic Blue Mouse Theater.

This is the 17th annual Tacoma Sister Cities International Film Festival and this year, the format is one full weekend of international films and festivities.

The opening night will feature a film from Tacoma’s first sister city – Kitakyushu, Japan (a Sister City since 1959) and will take place on Thursday evening, April 25th and will feature special Japanese food and drinks.

The festival will conclude with a comedy/drama from Korea at 4 p.m. on Sunday, April 28th.

Between those two Pacific Rim films you can experience cinematic contributions from Mexico, Cuba, Russia, Croatia, Norway, Morocco, China, and France.

International book club

New in 2019 is a Tacoma Sister Cities monthly book club hosted by King’s Books (218 St. Helens Ave).

If you miss the movies, or just can’t get enough from our sister countries, beginning June 17, and continuing on the third Monday of each month, you can join a book club featuring classics or newly translated literature from each one of the countries Tacoma has an official Sister City relationship with.

To sign up for the book club, you can do it via email at hunter.ro.white@gmail.com or sign up in the lobby at the film festival.

You can bring your own books or get them from King’s Books at a 15% discount.

Either way, there is a lot to learn about the cities and countries that Tacoma has partnered with. Who knows? You just might like what you see enough to visit one of these places.

See you there!