Saturday, Feb. 15, 2025

AdvertiseDonateSubmit
NewsSportsArtsOpinionThe QuadPhotoVideoIllustrationsCartoonsGraphicsThe StackPRIMEEnterpriseInteractivesPodcastsGamesClassifiedsPrint issues

IN THE NEWS:

Black History Month 2025

From Tokyo to LA, alumnus Akiyo Fujimura bridges Japanese cinema and Hollywood

Members of the Coalition of Asian Pacifics in Entertainment smile and pose with Destin Daniel Cretton, director of “Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings.” Tokyo-born UCLA alumnus Akiyo Fujimura joins five other directors in the inaugural Beyond JAPAN -FILMMAKER- program, connecting Japanese creators with Hollywood. Best known for her debut film “Eriko, Pretended,” she continues blending Japanese storytelling with American film techniques. (Courtesy of Hao Feng)

By Eleanor Meyers

Nov. 19, 2024 9:21 p.m.

This post was updated Jan. 7 at 8:27 p.m.

Akiyo Fujimura is stretching her film repertoire beyond Japan to the landscape of the Hollywood movie industry.

In October, Tokyo-born alumnus Fujimura joined a cohort of six directors participating in the inaugural year of the Beyond JAPAN -FILMMAKER- program, an initiative produced in collaboration between the Coalition of Asian Pacifics in Entertainment and the Japan External Trade Organization. The program received 90 applicants, and following a two-part screening and interview process, CAPE selected rising directors and producers from Japan with the intention of introducing them to the Hollywood film scene. For Fujimura, whose debut feature film “Eriko, Pretended” released in theaters globally and is now available for streaming on Amazon Prime Video and Apple TV+, this project has allowed her to engage with American film techniques while still cultivating Japanese-influenced films, she said.

“During the program, I had an opportunity to … visit film sets and studios to learn about the Hollywood filmmaking process,” Fujimura said. “I’ve gotten advice on my projects, and I’ve learned how to introduce myself attractively when meeting other filmmakers. It has been very meaningful.”

 

[Related: UCLA alumnus Kristin Hanggi presents emotional, complex musical about family]

Fujimura said her interest in moviemaking started as early as childhood, influenced by her father’s studies in film as well as when her mother enrolled her in youth theater. With time, she said she realized her passion lies behind the camera, especially upon working on a film set as a teenager alongside the actress and singer Erika Sawajiri. Once she graduated from university, Fujimura said her career began to take flight while assistant directing at Toho Studios, one of Japan’s most acclaimed film studios.

Today, the global success of her piece, “Eriko, Pretended,” as well as her directorial contribution to producer Hirokazu Koreeda’s omnibus film, “Ten Years Japan,” introduced her to the broader realms of the entertainment industry, Fujimura said. Attending the Busan International Film Festival in 2018, the young director met several accomplished filmmakers, although her limited English speaking skills hindered her from valuable networking opportunities, she added. Fujimura said as her success in moviemaking progressed, so did the struggles of this language barrier, especially once she discovered that funding for original films is much more easily accessed through international companies rather than Japanese investors, she added. To further expand both her film experience and bilingualism, she said she made the decision to relocate to the United States in 2022.

In an effort to encourage this global exchange of film and entertainment, CAPE’s head of programs, Rhian Moore, said the Coalition continually pioneers programs that support worldwide storytellers like Fujimura who want to participate in the Hollywood side of the industry. Moore said that as the world’s longest-running organization supporting Asian and Pacific Islanders in entertainment, it is crucial to recognize the global influence of American films on how cultures and communities are perceived and portrayed on screen. A massive part of this narrative change, she said, revolves around empowering international filmmakers and allowing them to tell their stories.

For Fujimura, she said her storytelling journey in the U.S. began with the UCLA Extension program, at which she spent five quarters enrolled in various film courses, two of which were taught by Bijon Imtiaz and Nancy Hendrickson, respectively. She said their courses, Film and Television X 476.95: “Directing Workshop I: Composition and Movement” and Film and Television X 476.95B: “Directing Workshop II: Storytelling,” were challenging yet insightful, requiring her to create a film in only three months. Thanks to their advice, Fujimura said, she was able to reflect on what she wanted to express through film. Their diverse uses of Japanese and international film examples in class made it especially enjoyable, she added.

Although the Japanese film industry is slowly progressing, the working conditions for crews on set are notoriously difficult, often requiring 20-hour shifts with no days off for over six months at a time, Fujimura said. She added that she discovered that in the U.S. there is a stronger awareness of working conditions, and the energy on set is much more positive. Her course with Hendrickson taught her to use verbs rather than adjectives when explaining her ideas with actors, she said, which allows for a more collaborative, creative experience on set.

Since graduating from the extension program in April 2023, Fujimura said her next step has been participating in the Beyond JAPAN -FILMMAKER- program, which is tailored around bolstering Japanese films and TV series on the international market. Fujimura said she intends to use her time in the program to springboard into her next movie, a coming-of-age film.

“The strength and caliber that the training UCLA provides is definitely evident and important in creating a professional career in Hollywood,” said Michelle Sugihara, CAPE’s executive director and CEO.

Sugihara, who has worked with the organization since 2015, said with all the global platforms and services that enable access to different types of entertainment from countries around the world, people are able to broaden their worldview and understand each other better. Sugihara added that CAPE has worked with writers who now staff every major network and streaming service, many of whom went through the UCLA program.

[Related: UCLA alumnus Haleyann Hart brings heart both on and off stage]

At a school like UCLA, which is so highly regarded and whose alumni go on to do different things in every corner of the world, Sugihara said it is important that audiences have access to their stories and first-person portrayals. This focus on increasing AAPI representation allows for rising filmmakers to create media that expresses nuance and humanizes their communities within the Hollywood entertainment industry, Sugihara added.

“Through our (CAPE’s) cultural consulting and the opportunities coming our way for talent referrals, we’ve seen a bit of an international shift,” Moore said. “Being able to partner with JETRO on a program like this (Beyond JAPAN -FILMMAKER-) reflects these international collaborations.”

Share this story:FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Eleanor Meyers
COMMENTS
Featured Classifieds
More classifieds »
Related Posts