Ema Ryan Yamazaki, Award-Winning Documentary Filmmaker

In episode 6 of Hibiku Kotoba, Oscar-nominated and award-winning documentary filmmaker Ema Ryan Yamazaki joins Kathleen on the podcast. Together they talk about Ema's origin story as a filmmaker, her menteeship with Sam Pollard, and all three of her feature films along with her Oscar-nominated "Instruments of a Beating Heart. Ema's decision to go back to Japan and create documentary films about Japanese society is to share to the world her experiences as a Japanese person and to showcase the nuances of living in a country where culture is deeply instilled in every part of its society. For aspiring documentary filmmakers, this episode is definitely worth listening to as she shares her insight and advice for those who also want to be a documentary filmmaker.

You can watch her Oscar-nominated short film "Instruments of a Beating Heart" on the NYT Opinions YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DRW0auOiqm4

What is Hibiku Kotoba?

Hibiku Kotoba is a brand new podcast series we are launching this Fall! With a new podcast we hope to outreach through a new medium to an ever growing community. When translated, Hibiku Kotoba means “Resonating Words” and we hope that this podcast will reach you, family and friends and spark conversations that will bring ideas and people together from all backgrounds.

Kathleen Wong – a former J-Sei staff – will be the host and producer of the show. She will be interviewing local AANHPI leaders, creatives, innovators and more, and will cover topics from art to health and culture to advocacy. Along the way, she hopes to gain insights and perspective from the people she interviews and share new things along the way. Join us on this brand new adventure!

J-Sei is a Japanese-American, multi-generational and multi-cultural organization with its roots in Nikkei values and culture located in the East Bay. Visit the website: https://j-sei.org/