As TBF’s resident film/TV buff, I wanted to share a list of new films and television series adaptations by Asian American and Pacific Islander writers and artists for AAPI Heritage Month. From the page to the big and small screen, it’s important to represent diverse characters so that audiences can relate to true-to-life circumstances. No matter the genre, readers and viewers want to see characters who look like themselves or feel acknowledged by storytellers who come from similar backgrounds. It’s all about making a connection.

Whenever I fall in love with a book, I like to visualize the characters and put a face to the name. I wonder about which actors could portray them faithfully. I believe that movies and series have the capacity to take the written story to the next level (sometimes condensing or stretching the story) and readers can then relive the moments that we loved brought to life. Sometimes the story works better on the page, I appreciate the act of giving the story new legs and adapting to a different medium for further exposure to new audiences. So, without further ado, here’s a list of current and upcoming books to screen by AAPI storytellers.

White Tiger by Aravind Adiga (Movie adaptation premiered on Netflix January 2021)
Written and directed by Ramin Bahrani starring Adarsh Gourav, Priyanka Chopra, and Rajkummar Rao

Always and Forever, Lara Jean by Jenny Han (Movie adaptation premiered on Netflix February 2021)
Directed by Michael Fimognari, written by Katie Lovejoy, starring Lana Condor and Noah Centineo

Minor Feelings by Cathy Park Hong (Upcoming TV series adaptation by A24 and Greta Lee)

Paper Girls by Brian K. Vaughan, illustrated by Cliff Chiang (Upcoming TV series on Amazon starring Ali Wong)

Interior Chinatown by Charles Yu (Upcoming TV series on Hulu)