Established as an art form, short films serve as the calling card for rising directors, actors, and producers. Although not without an excessive cost, these films are often simple to make, requiring only one setting and a small team. The lifecycle of a short film however is for lack of better words, short. They don't often get the opportunity to be presented on the silver screen. Making it to local and sometimes international film festivals after which they’re quickly forgotten. However, there is often still a lot to learn and pick up from these shorts and their creators, and the Legacy Lounge offers a space for artists to not only share but also collaborate and network to fund their next project.
Bringing together local artists from all backgrounds Legacy Lounge with host Jamila Brown create a platform for people to showcase their work, receive feedback, and build an audience for themselves. This month, we invited the cast of Mosiac Street, Yuki Matsuzaki, Kota Ishijima, and Ema Grace, to discuss the impact the film has on the industry and why there is a need for more diversity in filmmaking. Mosaic Street, itself doesn’t serve as a full film, instead, it acts as a proof of concept—a single scene that shows the potential for future projects. In this case displays the true diversity of Japanese ethnicity both in Japan and in America.
The Need for Diverse Actors
Throughout the evening the cast shared their frustrations with the film industry and their approach to incorporating diverse actors on the big screen. When it comes to displaying minorities on the big screen, filmmakers often resort to using stereotypes to get their ideas across. American Hollywood has been called out several times for the lack of diversity within the industry, while Japanese filmmakers have often fallen under the radar. While some films such as “Black in Japan” and “” have created some buzz about diversity within the nation, those films largely come from non-Japannese filmmakers. Japanese filmmakers often rely heavily on stereotypes when showcasing minorities within their projects. Foreigners in general are often portrayed as loud, obnoxious jesters with very little to no understanding of the Japanese language or culture.
Yuki, both a veteran of American Hollywood and the Japanese film industry, presents a unique perspective for both cultures. “In America, I’m often asked if I’m really Japanese because of my height and curly hair. When casting directors are looking for Asian or Japanese actors they often want us to fight into an East Asian stereotype; short stature, non-muscular, straight black hair, etc. Making it hard for Japanese and Japanese-Americans to take on different roles.” Taking his experiences as an actor, he was able to channel that energy into the production of Mosiac Street, which presents an alternate reality in which there isn’t a rigid separation of race, Japanese speakers and English speakers, and even sexuality. There are no throwaway lines explaining Takenori-san’s very obvious feminine appearance and masculine name or Wakaba-san’s native Japanese. It all exists as is and is merely accepted for what it is.
It’s a perfect example of showing rather than telling and allows the audience to draw their own conclusions about life within the film and the possibility of life within their own reality.
How to Incorporate More Diversity in Filmmaking
Both Grace and Kota are in unique situations as actors based in Japan. Kota identifies as openly transgender while Grace is biracial Black and Japanese, they have their own struggles separate from each other but ultimately have one goal—equity and inclusion. As a young actress, Ema has accomplished being the first biracial Black and Japanese actress to have a Japanese leading role in a live-action film (double check). A huge step forward for diversity in filmmaking in Japan, but still a long road ahead. At the end of the night, Kota leaves us with a bit of a takeaway about her hopes for inclusion. “When I say people often disregard my transness, they often cast me in roles as like a mom or something but nothing that actually shows my background. I want to play roles that are intentionally written as a trans-character. It doesn’t have to be specifically about being trans, but being trans is a part of that character’s story.”
Mosaic Street and its cast show us a world full of diversity and how it doesn’t have to take away from the story. There are diverse actors ready to step up and fulfill these roles but, diversity is often considered an afterthought in the filmmaking process, leaving very little room for new interpretation. Perhaps it needs to be one of the first things on our mind when the first words are being typed across the screen, or better yet before we even fully develop our idea.
Watch Mosiac Street Here