Aug 14 – Aug 16, 2026
Films at the Gate 2026 in Boston Chinatown
ACDC's 20th Films at the Gate runs free August 14-16, 2026 at Auntie Kay and Uncle Frank Chin Park with outdoor Chinese-language and kung fu screenings, live performances, and youth-led programming.
This event has ended
Films at the Gate returned Friday through Sunday, August 14–16, 2026 at Auntie Kay and Uncle Frank Chin Park on the Rose Kennedy Greenway, at John F. Fitzgerald Surface Road and Beach Street. Asian Community Development Corporation hosted the free outdoor evenings, typically about 5:30 to 10:00 p.m., with screenings, live performances, and community activities.
The 2026 lineup paired kung fu classics with community programming: Ang Lee's Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (Friday), Yuen Woo-ping's Blades of the Guardians (Saturday, rated R), and Tsui Hark's Once Upon a Time in China II (Sunday). The 20th anniversary also marked curator Jean Lukitsh's final year programming the series.
A-VOYCE, ACDC's youth leadership program, plans and staffs the festival each summer. The series revives Chinatown's old movie-house tradition after neighborhood theaters closed in the video-rental era. Bring a blanket; harbor breeze picks up after sunset even in August.
Who this was for: Chinatown families who want free outdoor cinema with lion-dance energy nearby, kung fu fans, and teens who helped program the weekend. Rated R on Saturday means plan accordingly for younger kids.
Same Chinatown stretch already held August Moon Festival on August 9. Quincy August Moon Festival followed Sunday, August 16 if you wanted a South Shore street day after the Sunday screening.
Orange Line Chinatown is steps away; pack layers for grass seating on the Greenway. Weather cancellations post on asiancdc.org/fatg day-of.
Our take: pick one night if you cannot do all three. Friday's Crouching Tiger is the crowd-pleaser; Sunday closes the trilogy if you are already in town for Quincy the next morning.
When: August 14–16, 2026 (about 5:30–10:00 p.m. nightly)
Where: Auntie Kay and Uncle Frank Chin Park, Chinatown Gate / Greenway, Boston, MA
Confirm lineup and weather notes on asiancdc.org/fatg.
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