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Event
Films of Remembrance, presented by the Nichi Bei Foundation
The Nichi Bei Foundation Presents
2015 Films of Remembrance
WHEN: Saturday, February 21, 2015, 10:30 a.m. to 8 p.m.
WHERE: New People Cinema, 1746 Post St., San Francisco's Japantown
A one-day film event commemorating the signing of Executive Order 9066, which set the wheels in motion to forcibly relocate some 120,000 persons of Japanese ancestry into American concentration camps during World War II.
Screenings Discussion with Filmmakers DVD Sales
LIMITED SEATING! ORDER BY FEB. 14!
ADMISSION: $8 per film or $30 for all five film screenings*
($6 per film or $25 for all films for Nichi Bei Foundation members)
$20 for Reception with Filmmakers (8 to 10:30 p.m.)
*All-day passes limited to the first 50.
Tickets will be sent to you by Brown Paper Tickets. A small processing fee will apply. Nichi Bei Foundation membership rates apply to those subscribed to the Nichi Bei Weekly, and membership will be verified at the door.
Film Schedule:
10:30 a.m. "Hidden Legacy: Japanese Traditional Performing Arts in the World War II Internment Camps" (2014, 57 min.) by Shirley Muramoto. Preceded by rare live performance of the biwa by Molly Kyokuto Kimura. http://jcalegacy.com/
"Hidden Legacy" unveils Japanese traditional arts that continued while Japanese Americans were imprisoned during World War II. Through historical footage and interviews with artists who were incarcerated comes the story of how Japanese cultural arts were maintained at a time when the War Relocation Authority pushed for assimilation and Americanization.The artists interviewed, all American-born, practiced Japanese arts before, during, and after the war. Social activists in their own way, the master teachers continued to teach the classical music, dance and drama they loved in the recesses of the barracks. They helped to build cultural pride and self-esteem, and to draw attention away from the bleak surroundings while imprisoned in the desert.Instilled from her mother who studied koto while incarcerated at Tule Lake, Shirley Kazuyo Muramoto has performed koto for more than 50 years, and taught koto for more than 35 years. Filmmaker Shirley Muramoto will be in attendance, following the rare performance of the biwa by Molly Kyokuto Kimura.
12:30 p.m. "Nisei Stories of Wartime Japan" (2010, 62 min.) by Mary McDonald and Thomas McDonald Mazawa, with discussion of Nisei stuck in Japan during WWII. www.niseistories.com
Somewhat forgotten are the experiences of American citizens of Japanese ancestry who were in Japan during the Second World War. Thousands of them were in Japan in 1941 and unable to return to the United States until after the War. This film allows a few of them to relate their experiences in their own words.This documentary reveals the reasons that these Americans were in Japan, often related to social customs and political conditions in the 1930s and early 1940s. It details struggles with food shortages, bombing raids, conscription into the Japanese military and survival that affected everyone in Japan at that time. Interviewees recall coming home to families who had been forcibly relocated and returning to a much-changed postwar United States. Filmmakers Mary McDonald and Thomas McDonald Mazawa, a mother-son duo, were drawn to this topic from family stories and compelled to document first-hand this little known history. Filmmakers Mary McDonald and Thomas McDonald Mazawa will be in attendance, as well as those who were stuck in Japan during the War.
2:45 p.m. "The Legacy of Heart Mountain" (2014, 53 min.) Emmy Award-winning film by David Ono and Jeff MacIntyre. http://www.heartmountainfilm.com/
Heart Mountain is a spectacular and beautiful backdrop to a story of triumph and tragedy. Most vivid, however, are the stories from people who once called Heart Mountain "home." From heartwarming to heart breaking, their experience of life in an American concentration camp reminds us of the fragility of freedom. At the heart of the film are striking photos taken by George and Frank Hirahara, who developed photos in a secret dark room under their barrack.Since 1996, David Ono has been the co-anchor for ABC7 Eyewitness News in Los Angeles. Jeff MacIntyre is TV Producer/ owner of Content Media Group. Together, the two have traveled the world covering important events, telling stories that matter, and earning 25 Emmy Awards. Filmmaker David Ono will be in attendance.
4:30 p.m. "Under the Blood Red Sun" (2014, 98 min.) by Tim Savage, a feature adaptation of the popular young adult novel by Graham Salisbury. http://underthebloodredsun.com/
Based on actual events, "Under the Blood-Red Sun," an adaptation of the popular young-adult novel by Graham Salisbury, is an unforgettable story of friendship, courage and survival. Set on the island of Oahu in 1941, during the days following Japan's surprise attack on Pearl Harbor, the film opens with 13-year old Tomikazu (Tomi) Nakaji and his best friend Billy Davis playing baseball near their homes in Hawai'i. When Tomi looks up at the sky, he recognizes the blood-red sun emblem on the amber fighter planes, signaling a Japanese surprise attack at Pearl Harbor.His father and grandfather, both Japanese Americans, are arrested and taken to confinement sites. His mother loses her job. Although Tomi feels frightened and ashamed of his native land, he is quickly forced to become the man of the family.Directed by Tim Savage, the film is produced by Dana Hankins and features an award-winning cast, including Kyler Sakamoto, Kalama Epstein, Chris Tashima, Dann Seki, Autumn Ogawa, Mina Kohara, Wil Kahele, Bryce Moore, Benen Weir, Shiro Kawai, Marco Lopez, Aidan James, Howard Bishop, Tom Holowach, Lisa Barnes and Greg Suenaga. Academy Award-winning director/actor Chris Tashima and producer Dana Hankins will discuss the film.
6:45 p.m. "Hatsumi: One Grandmother's Journey Through the Japanese Canadian Internment" (2012, 55 min.) by Chris Hope. http://hatsumifilm.com/thefilm
The film chronicles the journey of discovery for Nancy Okura and her grandson as they travel through the locations of the Japanese Canadian incarceration, and she tells the story of her experience for the first time. Through intergenerational and intercultural interaction, the film presents the vivid first-hand story of a Japanese Canadian woman whose life was irreversibly changed by political factors beyond her control.
After celebrating his grandmother's 80th birthday in Toronto, filmmaker Chris Hope offers to take her on a trip back to the west coast locations of her wartime forced relocation if she will agree to put shikata ga nai ("it can't be helped") aside to tell her story. Captured on film, Nancy's story comes to life in vivid detail, leading grandmother and grandson though the Japanese Canadian incarceration, across Canada and, unexpectedly, around the world.Chris Hope practices at Cassels, Brock & Blackwell LLP in Toronto, Canada in the areas of business, copyright and entertainment law.Filmmaker Chris Hope will be in attendance.
Presented by the Nichi Bei Foundation
Funding by: Wayne Maeda Educational Fund
Gold Sponsors:
SF JACL Chapter Logo
Berkeley JACL logo
Silver Sponsors:
Florin JACL
Union Bank
California Bank & Trust
More Info:
www.nichibei.org/films-of-remembrance
e-mail: programs@nichibeifoundation.org
Call: (415) 294-4651
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LocationNew People Cinema (View)
1746 Post Street
San Francisco, CA 94115
United States
Categories
| Dog Friendly: No |
| Non-Smoking: No |
| Wheelchair Accessible: Yes! |
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