Welcome to the First International Film Festival on Aging, presented by the Pacific Institute and the AgeSong Senior Communities, February 20–22, 2009. The first event of its kind to be held in California, the Festival features films that celebrate the unique joys and challenges of aging and address archaic preconceptions about growing older. For three days, filmgoers can enjoy documentary, feature, experimental, animated and short films from around the world at theaters in San Francisco and Emeryville.

The work our organizations do advocates for a humanistic society that accepts and celebrates the richness of our Elders. The films in our Festival help to challenge and change the outdated notion that our twilight years are years of decline, and presents alternative views that illustrate that these years can also be vibrant and rewarding.

We invite you to join us for this exciting event.

In any discussion of later life, the word, "meaning" eventually emerges. We have opportunities to create and recreate what it means to grow old. Each of us gets older every day. Does aging have a purpose? Does it contain the potential for self–completion? How can we grow old well?

Life is a challenge, no matter the age. In the later years, there are changes in relationships and the experiences of physical aging. Despite these challenges, we can make sense of the events of later life through artistic depictions of older adults — those who have adapted with creativity, courage, and growth.

Everyone, no matter the age, will be enriched and entertained, as the festival offers the opportunity to see potential in older years, and the tools to appreciate and transform one's journeys through later life...