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Panelists

(See bios below)

Joel Quizon, Visual Communications

Justine Kaneda, filmmaker: Kintsugi

Mia Kami, filmmaker: Rooted

PJ Raval, filmmaker: Stories Within

Teresa Matsushima, filmmaker: Do You Love Me?

Tom Huang, filmmaker: Dealing With Dad

Moderated by Susan Hirata

Film can provide a communal experience; an opportunity to engage with someone else’s narrative. The panel will discuss the impact of putting personal stories to film–both on the filmmaker, the subjects of the film, and within the context of healing and representation.

“What film would my own life story inspire?”

What are the defining moments from our lives–the things that we continually process about who we are….?

Join us for this conversation!

Bios

Justine Kaneda: Justine Kaneda is a Sansei Japanese American filmmaker and performing artist passionate about the representation of diverse narratives and identities. She is a recent graduate from Stanford University where she majored in Human Biology, minored in Theater and Performance Studies, and graduated with Distinction and Phi Beta Kappa. At Stanford, Justine created her first short film “Kintsugi” for her Honors in the Arts Capstone project as a celebration of family, love, and resiliency. As an interdisciplinary artist, Justine seeks to explore the interconnection of her cultural and artistic identities in her works, in addition to the deeply intertwined relationship human beings have with the world.

Mia Kami: Mia Kami is a Tongan singer/songwriter based in Suva, Fiji. She is passionate about gender equality, indigenous sovereignty, climate change & the Pacific region. Mia attended the University of the South Pacific where she majored in Law and Politics. She channels her passions into songwriting & uses her music to tell her stories as a young Pacific woman. She believes that art is the strongest form of storytelling that connects Pacific and indigenous people to their ancestors & their descendants.

PJ Raval: Named one of Out Magazine’s “Out 100”, PJ Raval is a queer, first generation Filipino American filmmaker whose credits include TRINIDAD (Showtime), BEFORE YOU KNOW IT (PBS, Netflix), and CALL HER GANDA which broadcast on POV (PBS) in 2019 and won the 2020 NLGJA Association of LGBTQ Journalists “Excellence in Documentary Award” and was nominated for a Philippines Academy Award for Best Documentary. PJ is the director behind the community video series Stories Within, a recent Gold House Gold Futures Challenge Award recipient, is a co-founder and board president of the queer transmedia arts organization OUTsider, and is an Associate Professor at the University of Texas at Austin. He serves on the leadership team of the Asian American Documentary Network (A-Doc) and is a Soros Justice Fellow, a Guggenheim Fellow, a member of the Producers Guild of America and Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences.

Tom Huang: Tom Huang is an award-winning Writer/Director. His latest feature film, FIND ME, which he wrote and directed, won multiple festival awards, is 100% on Rotten Tomatoes with critics, and became a streaming hit on Amazon Prime. Outside Magazine named it “the Indie Adventure Film we all need,” while the Hollywood Reporter called it “touching and quirky charmer.” Tom’s current project is his feature film DEALING WITH DAD, which was selected for the prestigious Film Independent Screenwriting Lab and Fast Track Program, and is now in post production preparing for its festival run. He is also developing THE LOYAL BETRAYAL, a film noir feature set in the Manzanar Japanese Internment Camp during World War II, and a sequel for FIND ME.

Teresa Matsushima: Teresa Takaki Matsushima, was born in the Windy City, traded her snow boots for zori and grew up as a Gardena girl. A diehard Bruin, she loves snuggling her grandkids, talking story over hot green tea and arranging flowers. A retired nurse practitioner, she has served on three continents in medical missions. “Do You Love Me?,” her first film, was cathartic and helped to mend a broken heart.

Joel Quizon: Joel Quizon is a Los Angeles based/Manila roots filmmaker, arts organizer and music curator. Joel has directed short films such as the music documentary The Cotabato Sessions and has co-directed the short documentary “Union” and the 360 VR film “Walking With Grace.” Joel founded the monthly DJ gathering Diggin’ Sunday held at Historic Filipinotown, Los Angeles. He is the creator of the blog series and mix the Pinoy Groove Experience, highlighting Filipino popular music at home and abroad.  He is also the creator of the mix Disco Manila and Disco Manila 2, featuring the dance music of the late 70’s and early 80’s Philippines.