VC Connect #21: Kith and Kin
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Welcome to VC CONNECT, an online destination through which just some of the hundreds of films and media productions created by Visual Communications can be found for your enjoyment. Featured films include some of our VC Classics, as well as films made in the Digital Histories production program for older adults and the Armed With a Camera Fellowship for Emerging Artists. Click here to watch the complete showcase.
Kith and Kin
Whether it be a nuclear family or individuals banded together to memorialize the good times, the need for “family” is strong within the Asian American & Pacific Islander community. So it is in this set of intimate portraits of people whose bonds are unshakeable, created by our Armed With a Camera and Digital Histories filmmakers.
Thank you to the following sponsors for their ongoing support of the Armed With a Camera Fellowship: Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, Final Draft, Flash Cuts, Los Angeles County Department of Arts & Culture, SAGindie, Sony Pictures Entertainment, West One Music Group, and Writers Guild of America West.
Thank you to the following sponsors for their ongoing support of the Digital Histories program: Sony Pictures Entertainment, West One Music Group, Keiro, Union Bank, and Aratani Foundation.
Funding for VC CONNECT has been provided by California Humanities and the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) as part of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act economic stabilization plan of 2020.
If you’ve been enjoying these VC-produced films, please consider making a donation so that we can continue supporting our artists! Click here to learn more.
6 WEDDINGS AND A DRESS (2014) by Steve Nagano
Chiyomi Ogawa first wore her wedding dress in the shadow of Manzanar, a Japanese American concentration camp. The dress was then worn by five other women. This is their story.
A FAMILY HULA LEGACY (2013) by Arlene Maala
Kapua Hollands shares her hula beginnings, a family legacy, and the Hawaiian culture that she passes on to her students.
BREAKING HAPPINESS: A JAPANESE AMERICAN FAMILY’S STRUGGLE WITH A RARE DISEASE (2015) by Larry Furukawa
The comfortable life of a Japanese American family in Orange County is suddenly disrupted when a mysterious and seemingly incurable disease strikes the family.
BUDDHAHEAD BREAKFAST CLUB (2019) by George Wada
Bound together by their shared youth growing up in Los Angeles during the Japanese American internment camp and Vietnam War era, older sanseis gather for breakfast as an alternative to meeting at funerals.
FOR THE LOVE OF UNICORNS (2014) by Genevieve Erin O’Brien
When a young girl who loves unicorns goes to the carnival and realizes it doesn't have a real unicorn, she learns about the importance of speaking out and organizing with a community of people whose unicorns look different, but who all dance together under a glittery rainbow.
LAST NIGHT (2013) by Mukesh Vidyasagar
An elderly woman grieving over her recently deceased husband prepares for his burial by laying his body on a block of ice, but discovers that this is no ordinary block of ice, and this is no ordinary night.
NOTE TO SELF (2018) by Carol Shubin
With a demanding schedule and mounting stresses, Casey struggles to balance responsibilities while finding joy. Reflecting on her childhood memories, she discovers that happiness is a choice and it’s the simple things that keep her grounded. This film is a reminder to never lose your inner child.
U-SPACE (2015) by Jeannie Wong
Meet Brad, Jason, and U-Space — their dream space come true — where all kinds of people get together over music, coffee, and ukuleles.
