"There’s a Lane for Us Here" dives into the history and legacy of Denver’s Little Saigon Business District, where Vietnamese and Southeast Asian refugees rebuilt a sense of home through businesses, traditions, and commemorative spaces. As the first, immigrant generation ages and longtime businesses face uncertainty, the next generation is left to wrestle with what it means to carry forward memory, identity, and belonging.
The film explores the tension between preservation and change and permanence and impermanence. The idea of "forever" isn't only about permanence in stone and concrete, but about the act of remembering, of carrying history forward through stories, traditions, and the next generation. With urban redevelopment and the refugee generation aging, we ask, how do we ensure their memories live on as the next generation takes the lead?