Filmmakers in Focus: Carved in Silence

Posted on 15 March 2025

Carved in Silence reveals the previously untold story of the Exclusion Era – its genesis, its reality, and its consequences.  Focusing on the detention of Chinese immigrants at Angel Island Immigration Station in San Francisco Bay, the documentary combines interviews with historical footage and dramatic re-enactments to translate the impact of public policies into human terms.

Please join us in a screening of this film followed by Q&A with local filmmaker Felicia Lowe.

Felicia Lowe is an award-winning media producer, director, and writer with 50 years of production experience. Her documentaries: Chinese Couplets, Carved in Silence, Chinatown and China: Land of My Father reveal the unique experiences of Chinese in America while underscoring our common humanity. 

Her works have been broadcast on PBS and are used in classrooms worldwide. A past board president of the Angel Island Immigration Foundation and descendant of Angel Island detainees, she is gratified to have played a role in the preservation and restoration of this important National Historic Landmark. 

Winner of a CINE Golden Eagle, Chris Plaque, National Educational Film and Video Association Honorable Mention. Broadcast on PBS, International Channel.

Please note: On July 31, at 6:30 in Council Chambers, San Rafael artist Evri Kwong will return to present his just finished work on window shade entitled: Angel Island Is The Ellis Island Of The West Coast, NOT! His talk will be particularly poignant if you view the film beforehand.

Testimonials:

“Carved in Silence is a beautifully crafted film that rings the story of Angel Island, a repressed part of the United States’ past to public view. After seeing it, audiences will want to talk, to deal with the ongoing issues, and re-dedicate efforts for more justice.”
~Professor John Kuo Wei Tchen, Director, A/P/A Institute, New York University

“Felicia Lowe’s powerfully understated Carved in Silence calls attention to the blatantly racist ordeal to which Chinese attempting to emigrate to America were routinely subjected in the wake of the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882, enforced through 1943 – the only time in U.S. history a group of people were almost entirely excluded from entry solely on the basis of race.”
~ Kevin Thomas, Los Angeles Times