A consequence of our globalizing world is a growing population of multiracial people. This series, titled HAPA, highlights these diverse identities. HAPA means "half," "mixed," or "part," in Hawaiian.
I decided to start with mixed Asian America; this is a topic I wanted to further dissect as the first multiracial person in my bloodline.
When I started this project, I asked participants to meet in a location of significance. They brought objects meaningful to their identities. Our conversations have taken outrageous directions. A blood-drawing pact between Japanese sisters protecting their politically outspoken father. A daughter born out of concubinage. Ghosts. MySpace creeping leading to an engagement. Escaping slave trades...
These are the seeds which have led me down the labyrinth of directing my first film. Part talk (and experimental) therapy, part community building, part historical analysis -- we are in production.
