This programme is preceded by FILE NO. 2304.
USA202460 minEnglishToronto PremiereAvailable Online, Documentary, History
Through the lens of directors Tadashi Nakamura and Quyên Nguyen-Le, this compelling documentary captures the bold journey of visionary artist-activist Nobuko Miyamoto. From her upbringing in a Japanese American internment camp to her breakthrough as a performer in films and on Broadway, Miyamoto reflects on how her personal encounters with racial injustice inspired her blending of artistic endeavours with Asian American advocacy. Her thoughtfully created music, dances, and theatre productions carry on to bridge cultural divides and facilitate mutual support among BIPOC communities.
Interweaving intimate interviews and rare archival materials with evocative cinematography, Nakamura and Nguyen-Le tell the remarkable story of Miyamoto not only as a resilient community “artivist," but also as a loving friend, partner, and mother. This heartfelt recount is timely, encouraging the audience to reinforce collective resistance and solidarity amidst ongoing systemic racial oppression.
– Steffi Ng
OFFICIAL SELECTION
Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival, 2024
CAAMFest San Francisco, 2024
AWARDS
Best Documentary, CAAMFest San Francisco, 2024
Quyên Nguyen-Le, Tadashi Nakamura
Tadashi Nakamura is an Emmy-award winning filmmaker and the director of the Watase Media Arts Center, a production company of the Japanese American National Museum.
Quyên Nguyen-Le (they/them) is a Daytime Emmy-nominated queer Vietnamese filmmaker born to refugee parents where Chumash and Tongva lands meet (San Fernando Valley, Los Ángeles).
This programme is preceded by FILE NO. 2304.
19 Nov, 2024 7:00 pm
Innis Town HallGA
Ticketing is required for this presentation, but tickets are free. Limit 2 tickets. This event will have open seating – sit anywhere in the venue that isn’t specifically reserved.
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This film is scheduled to be presented fully captioned (all dialogue subtitled + sound cues indicated). Wheelchair spaces and step-free seating is available for this screening – click below to book accessible seats.
Join us for a Q&A immediately after the screening with directors Tadashi Nakamura and Quyên Nguyen-Le modated by Vidhya Elango.
Vidhya Elango
Moderator
Vidhya Elango is a researcher and cultural worker living in Toronto. Her interests include diaspora, place-making, language, and their intersections. Currently, she is the Heritage Manager — Exhibition and Research at the Japanese Canadian Cultural Centre in Toronto.
Layla is a struggling Palestinian drag queen who often finds creative ways to make ends meet, surrounded by a small, supportive group of close friends within the North London queer scene. A stuffy corporate event performance goes terribly wrong, making Layla and their outrageous antics go viral, and they meet the seemingly-dull-in-comparison marketing executive Max. Despite their very different worlds, a transformative love affair ensues, much to the annoyance of their close friends, who are highly skeptical of how healthy or affirming this relationship could possibly be.
This programme invites audiences into a storytelling dialogue between imagineNATIVE and Reel Asian on the solidarity between Indigenous and settler Asian people. Tenacious and confrontational, this collection transports resilience from the past and into the present.
Trivial or not, these short films push and push ... and push. Is it provocation, retaliation, or sheer determination? Regardless of the answer, how far might you be willing to go?
Founded in Toronto in 1997, Reel Asian is Canada’s largest pan-Asian film festival and a year-round cultural organization dedicated to championing Asian and Asian diasporic artists and storytellers. What began as a grassroots film festival has grown into a national platform supporting filmmakers and audiences through screenings, education, industry initiatives, artist development, and community programming presented across Toronto, the GTA, and online across Canada.
401 Richmond Street West, The Commons (Suite 448)
Toronto, Ontario, M5V 3A8 Canada
(416) 703 – 9333
info@reelasian.com
Charitable number: 870021383RR0001
