Oakland Double Feature with Breathin': The Eddy Zheng Story - Oct. 28th

Mele Murals will be screening with Breathin': the Eddy Zheng Story on FRIDAY, OCT. 28th at Eastside Arts Alliance in Oakland. This event is free and will feature Q&A with Prime and myself, along with Eddy Zheng and Ben Wang the Director of Breathin'.


Friday, October 28, 2016 at 5:00p
EASTSIDE ARTS ALLIANCE
2277 International Blvd.
Oakland, CA 94606

Mele Murals Los Angeles Premiere Featuring Paula Fuga!

I'm extremely excited to announce the LA Premiere of MELE MURALS on Friday, August 5, 2015 at the Japanese American Cultural and Community Center (JACCC) in Little Tokyo.

There will be many special guests including Paula Fuga, one of my favorite vocalist from Hawai'i:


Prime and Estria - the artists featured in the film, and the filmmaking team from ʻŌiwi TV will be in attendance for Q&A following the screening.

Friday, August 5, 2016 at 6:30p
Japanese American Cultural and Community Center

244 S San Pedro St, Los Angeles, CA 90012

6:30p - VIP Garden Concert with Paula Fuga (VIP ticket holders only)

8:00p - Film Screening

9:30p - Q&A with filmmakers and featured artists Estria and Prime

Purchase tickets HERE
$40 VIP, $20 General

Special $15/ticket for groups of 10+.

Topless Kickstarter Video!

We are more than halfway through the Mele Murals Kickstarter campaign and doing whatever it takes to reach our goal! Please help push us over the top! Check out this fun video we shot the day of our World Premiere in March:

Mele Murals - Festival Premiere Night from Oiwi TV on Vimeo.

Shouts out to Mele Murals DP Justyn Ah Chong for conceptualizing and creating this video!

Mele Murals World Premiere

Cinematographer Justyn Ah Chong, me, Executive Producer Keoni Lee, Associate Producer Aina Paikai

We did it! The sold-out World Premiere of Mele Murals at the Oakland Museum of California was exactly what we had envisioned! We were privileged to have our premiere at CAAMFest which has been supporting my work since my first film.

A huge thank you to everyone who came out. The strength of our communities were on full display that night and left me grateful and inspired. The event started with live paintings by Prime and Estria - the artists featured in the film - and ended with performances by Bambu, Geo and Sabzi.

The premiere was part of Friday Nights @ OMCA featuring Off The Grid food trucks.

Prime and Estria (the artists featured in the film) doing what they do best.

Me and the rents!

Cast and crew.

Prometheus Brown and Bambu performed at The Bar after the screening.

Impromptu Blue Scholars set! Sabzi produced the score for Mele Murals.

The Mele Murals 'Ohana in San Francisco's Japantown after the second sold-out screening.

#ProtectMaunaKea

Last year I had the great opportunity of filming in Waimea on the Big Island of Hawai'i. There I got to witness the true meaning of Aloha ʻĀina in action as the people and land continuosly protect and provide for each other. Many of the friends I made during that trip are now engaged in a battle to protect their Mauna Kea. All week people have been protesting the start of construction for the $1.4 billion Thirty Meter Telescope (TMT) on the peak of Mauna Kea. Mauna Kea is one of the most sacred places for the Hawaiian people and this telescope will further its desecration.

This footage is from an upcoming documentary on artists Estria Miyashiro and John "Prime" Hina and their Mele Murals project. Uncle Kalani Flores and Auntie Pua Case explain the sacredness and importance of Mauna Kea to a group of students from Kanu o ka 'Āina Learning ʻOhana (KALO) and the Mele Murals staff.

Editor: Tadashi Nakamura
Camera: Justyn Ah Chong & ʻĀina Paikai
Music: Misty Mountain by Humble Soul

Budokan of Los Angeles Video

I had the pleasure of making this video for The Budokan of Los Angeles, a massive project headed by the Little Tokyo Service Center. Nine years ago I made a similar video for the campaign as this gym in Little Tokyo has been something that the community has been organizing around for over 20 years.

Please watch and help spread the word about this epic community effort.

JANM screening of Life on Four Strings with Jake

Photo by J.K. Yamamoto/Rafu Shimpo

The Japanese American National Museum, Angry Asian Man, First Pond Ent. and Visual Communications hosted a fun screening of Life on Four Strings. This was the first time Jake and I did a public Q&A session in LA and as expected, it got a little goofy. It had been a while since we talked about the film so we shared a lot of funny behind-the-scene stories. You can read a very detailed write-up about the event in the Rafu Shimpo.

Jake treated the crowd to an intimate performance.

My first (and best) Xmas gift! The Mike & Mike aloha shirt 
that they made for Jake when he was on their show.

Holiday screening of Life on Four Strings in LA with Jake!

A very special Los Angeles screening of Life on Four Strings featuring a guest appearance and performance by Jake Shimabukuro himself on Dec. 21st! The show starts at 3p so it's a perfect event for all ages.

Japanese American Historical Society of Southern California's Final Program - Oct. 25

Excited to participate in the Japanese American Historical Society of So. California's last public program on Saturday, October 25th in Torrance, CA. JAHSSC and Iku Kiriyama have been one of the biggest supporters of my films from day one.

The event will focus on "the future of Japanese American community engagement and activism" as different pairs of community members will pose questions to each other. The pairs will be:
Professors Glenn Omatsu & Allan Aquino
Community organizers Kristin Fukushima & Evelyn Yoshimura
Me & my mom Karen Ishizuka

The event is being organized by Traci Akemi Kato-kiriyama and her mom Iku and will be emceed by Sean Miura and Kathy Masaoka.

Yuri Kochiyama Tribute Video

I had the honor of creating the tribute video for the Yuri Kochiyama memorials held in Oakland, LA and NY. Family and friends provided the photos and Blue Scholars provided the track. Yuri was a hero of mine and a great family friend, as are all members of the Kochiyama family. Her passion and commitment to the liberation of all peoples continues to inspire my work. 

Day of Remembrance at Tufts

I have the honor of participating in this year's Day or Remembrance program at Tufts University on Monday 2/24 at 6p. I will be showing my film Pilgrimage. Please stop by if you're in the area!

Remembering the Atomic and Troy Cafe

Nancy Sekizawa holding up a photo of the Atomic Cafe, a restaurant run by her parents until she took it over.

I'm currently working with the Little Tokyo Service Center and filmmaker Akira Boch on a short documentary on two small cafes in Little Tokyo that had a legendary impact on LA's music scene, the Atomic Cafe and the Troy Cafe.  The famous brick building that housed both businesses will be demolished this year and a metro station will be built in it's place.

Both KPCC and LA Weekly have recently ran short pieces that layout the main elements of the Atomic and Troy Cafe story. 

The interviews for the project have been fun so far.  Listening to stories about LA's punk scene in the 80's and the Chicano arts scene of the 90's have expanded my appreciation for Little Tokyo as a cultural hub for the arts.

Nancy Sekizawa as Atomic Nancy back in the day.

Went all the way to NYC to interview Sean Carrillo, who ran the Troy Cafe with his wife Bibbe Hansen.

Musician Maceo Hernandez talking about growing up in Little Tokyo and his memories at the Atomic and Troy Cafe.  As a kid I always thought Maceo Hernandez was the coolest guy in the community. 

Musician Quetzal Flores talking about the Troy Cafe where his band Quetzal performed for the first time.

Classroom-In-Residence at the Hammer

I made this video for an amazing arts education pilot program Classroom-In-Residence at the Hammer (CIR@H) developed by UCLA's School of the Arts & Architecture and the Hammer Museum. I was lucky to be able to witness the transformation of some of the students in just a week.

This was my first collaboration with Form follows Function, cinematography by the talented Maya Santos!

I also got to reunite with my dude Miles Senzaki and his partner Dan Marschak of Well Versed Productions who created the music at Grandma's Dojo!

More info about CIR@H: Classroom-in-Residence at the Hammer is an innovative pilot project, designed to strengthen and advance student and teacher learning through a unique weeklong, immersive experience at the UCLA Hammer Museum.

Developed by the Visual and Performing Arts Education Program (VAPAE) in UCLA's School of the Arts and Architecture, in collaboration with the Hammer Museum and the UCLA Community School (UCS), this ground-­‐breaking project provides a collaborative, multi-‐faceted, co‐cognitive learning experience, with an emphasis on arts­‐integration, for 60 sixth‐grade pupils, 2 UCS classroom teachers, UCLA undergraduates, graduates and faculty, along with Hammer Museum educators, curators, artists, and staff.
More info at: www.arts.ucla.edu/vapae     www.hammer.ucla.edu

Director/Editor: Tadashi Nakamura
Cinematographer:  Maya Santos
Location Sound: Rani De Leon
Music:  Miles Senzaki & Dan Marschak
Sound Mix:  Jon Oh
Colorist:  Kyle Peters

A Song For Ourselves Mixtape is back online!

DJ Phatrick recently uploaded the mixtape he produced for A Song For Ourselves back in 2009. It's been a minute since I listened to it, almost forgot how classic it is!

Features songs from Chris Iijima, with his groupmates Nobuko Miyamoto & Charlie Chin interlaced with the music of Kiwi, Bambu, & the Blue Scholars. It also features exclusive Chris Iijima remixes produced by Fatgums, Will Bracy, and Miles Senzaki.

Like, download and BUMP!

My path to becoming a filmmaker

October is American Archives Month (who knew) and Visual Communications is participating in a series of events in celebration of it. Each week this month they will feature "Asian Pacific Americans who have made their mark on their communities and history". I was honored that they asked me to participate in project. Here is my response to the prompt "How did you choose your path to becoming a filmmaker?"

Also, that's pops in the above photo!

Free Outdoor Screening of Life on Four Strings in Seattle - 8/24

I've always heard that Seattle in the summer is amazing. The Seattle Asian American Film Festival has partnered with Seattle Parks to present a FREE summer film series OUTDOORS at Hing Hay Park. Life on Four Strings will be screened on Saturday August 24th at 8p. It sounds like it will be a great International District community event.

More info HERE

Life on Four Strings wins at the Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Fest!

Photo by Steve Lam

Just when I thought the Los Angeles premiere of Life on Four Strings couldn't have gone better, it did.  We won both the Audience Award for Best Documentary and the Best Editor Award at the Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Fest (LAAPFF)!  While I do love me some awards, the best part about the LAAPFF screening was being able to finally show the film to a hometown crowd of family and friends.  Big hugs and thank you to everyone who came out to support that night!

Check out some of the highlights from last week's amazing Hawai'i premiere on Jake's latest webisode...

Trilogy to screen at Toronto night market on 7/22

Reel Asian is programing a series of outdoor film screenings at the T&T Waterfront Night Market in Toronto this weekend. They will be screening all three of my films (Yellow Brotherhood, Pilgrimage, A Song For Ourselves) on Sunday, July 22. Sounds like a great summer event, totally wish I could be there for it.

SFIAAFF Screening at The Castro - 03/14/12

The screening of the Jake Shimabukuro film at the San Francisco International Asian American Film Festival was a huge success. 1,300 people packed the Castro Theater on a rainy night. The film played well but the highlight of the night was when Jake was joined on stage with his mother Carol and his brother Bruce. Below are some of the highlights of the night (including me lookin hella uncomfortable in front of the camera) shot and edited by Alex Ferrari:






My Dad enjoyed the red carpet treatment.


The Boss Don Young, producer of the film.


My mom, Jake's brother Bruce and Jake's mom Carol


Had a great time all week causing trouble with my 808 folks. Lehu from Paliku/Oiwi TV with Amber, Leanne and Micky from Pacific Islanders in Communications who all helped make the film happen.




Auntie Carol AKA The Karaoke Queen doing her thing backed up by he sons. Best moment of the night!

Photos from CAAM's Facebook