Watase Media Arts Center
The award-winning Frank H. Watase Media Arts Center produces documentaries, exhibition media, and video life histories in support of JANM’s mission and work.
Nobuko Miyamoto: A Song in Movement
The story of a changing community told through one of its most beloved storytellers.
Featured Productions
WAKAJI MATSUMOTO—AN ARTIST IN TWO WORLDS: LOS ANGELES AND HIROSHIMA, 1917–1944
(2022 / 3 minutes each)
Sincerely Miné Okubo
(2021)
Rhythm and Rice
(2020 / 8 minutes)
Masters of Modern Design
- The Art of the Japanese American Experience
(2019 / 56 minutes) - Kay Sekimachi
(2019 / 8 minutes)
Kaiju vs Heroes
- In the Clutches of Kaiju
(2018 / 7 minutes) - Nagata 360: A Collecting Mind
(2018 / 4 minutes)
Our Man in Tokyo (The Ballad of Shin Miyata)
(2018 / 18 minutes)
Upcoming Screenings
Nobuko Miyamoto: A Song in Movement in Tokyo
Experience this new sweeping documentary from JANM’s Frank H. Watase Media Arts Center and PBS SoCal that follows the life of visionary artist-activist Nobuko Miyamoto and her work that changed Asian America forever. The film is being shown at various film festivals and events around the world. Featuring rare archival footage, it tells the story of a changing community through one of its most beloved storytellers as she reflects on decades of groundbreaking cultural work and a life that has bridged coasts, industries, families, and history.
About the Frank H. Watase Media Arts Center
The Frank H. Watase Media Arts Center is committed to promoting thoughtful exploration, understanding and appreciation of America’s pluralistic society through an innovative program of media documentation and preservation, production and presentation. By integrating theory and technology with community service and collaborating with peoples and institutions in diverse communities and regions, the Media Arts Center works to advance JANM’s role as a leading international institution.
Life History Interviews
Part of the Media Arts Center’s work is recording video life history interviews with second and third generation Japanese Americans, in an effort to preserve the memories of those who experienced unjust incarceration during World War II and its aftermath. The recordings are made available to family members and researchers, and for the purpose of building a collective archive at the Japanese American National Museum.
If you would like to recommend an individual for recording, please contact us at mac@janm.org.