2026 Festival Applications
What to expect for the 50th Powell Street Festival
2026 marks the 50th Anniversary of the Powell Street Festival, honouring five decades of Japanese Canadian (JC) creativity, resilience, and community connection. Join us on BC day long weekend, August 1st and 2nd in Oppenheimer Park! Â
This milestone year celebrates the past, present, and future through curated programs that blend festival nostalgia with new projects supported by the Japanese Canadian Legacies Society (JCLS), while highlighting emerging voices shaping the next generation of JC culture. While new opportunities are limited, we encourage artists and community members to apply this year and to stay connected for future opportunities—your creativity and vision remain essential to celebrating and shaping the future of JC arts and culture. You will find all festival applications on this page!
Food booth and vendors apply here!
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Community Booths are intended for organizations within the Japanese Canadian and/or Downtown Eastside communities.
We are looking to prioritize opportunities for artists whose work engages with Japanese Canadian histories, identities, or creative practices.Â
New Application Streams for Programming:
Performance
Presentation
Refers to a traditional performance such as dance, music, circus, theatre, martial arts demonstrations, interdisciplinary, etc. Most performances will take place on an outdoor stage and must be 25 minutes in duration. Theatre, interdisciplinary, as well as some dance and music performances may take place in the Firehall Arts Centre and may range from 30-90 minutes depending on the content. Check out an example here!
There are two types of presentations: project presentation or an art installation. Â
Project presentations are an opportunity for people to showcase their JCLS-funded project. Accepted applicants will be required to bring a presentation board (e.g. tri-fold poster board), other relevant materials, and prepare a 15-20 minute presentation. Â
Art installations refer to an interactive installation that can be visited by festival-goers throughout the weekend. May include a brief artist talk. Check out an example here!
Workshop
Literary
Screening
Refers to participatory events led by the applicant. In the past this has included a writing workshop, healing circle, etc. Must be between 1-2.5 hours in duration and will take place in a classroom at the Vancouver Japanese Language School. Check out an example here! Â
Refers to readings by the author(s) of a book, or a participatory roundtable reading of a text. Must be between 30-60 minutes in duration and will take place in a classroom or the Tatami room in the Vancouver Japanese Language School. Check out an example here!
Refers to video/film screenings to be held at the Firehall Arts Centre. May also include a post-screening moderated talkback with artists. Â
Short films (15 minutes or less) will be considered for a curated event that showcases multiple short films and ends with a talkback with the artists. Find an example here!
Frequently Asked Questions
As mentioned, we are collaborating with the JCLS to showcase the amazing work our community has done in the past few years. We ask if your program has been funded by a JCLS fund for internal records only, and your answer will not be used to determine selections.Â
Because PSF is a historic place-based festival, we first and foremost prioritize artists and content related to Paueru gai, Vancouver, and British Columbia. The programming committee takes into account artist identity and program content as it relates to the JC community, identity, and experience.Â
Applicants who are not directly connected to the PSF community or Japanese diaspora will not be accepted.Â
Applications Open: January 22ndÂ
Applications Close: March 1stÂ
All applicants will be notified in AprilÂ
We’re using this year to develop standard artist rates and are in the process of creating internal standard artist fees for our festival programming based on our budget, national standard rates, and discussion with other arts and cultural societies. We hope to be able to share our standard rates in 2027. Thank you for your patience this year!Â
 If you have any further questions that aren’t answered on this page, please reach out to programs@powellstreetfestival.comÂ