Media Arts Center San Diego promotes access to film and video as tools for community self-expression and social change and supports the professional development of media artists. It endorses the inclusion of underrepresented communities in the media arts field and the portrayal of accurate images of these communities by mainstream media and promotes community access to and use of media technology.

The organization’s annual film festival introduces San Diego audiences to contemporary US-Latino and Latin American cinema that is otherwise unavailable. Showcases for Gay and Lesbian films and filmmakers, Jewish-Latino filmmakers, women filmmakers, a youth media showcase, and others address film artists and audiences that often are often marginalized. Educational-, creative-, and production-oriented programs reach underserved youth, and residents while providing MACSD with opportunities for community-based collaborations and the ability to fulfill our mission. In three categories—Now Showing; Education & Learning; and Create & Produce—our programs have evolved over the years to remain relevant to changes in technology as well as in audience needs and desires.