Tadashi "Tad" Nakamura (born c. 1980) is an American documentary filmmaker. He is noted for films about the Asian-American and Japanese-American communities in the United States.

His 2013 film, Jake Shimabukuro: Life on Four Strings, received a 2013 Gotham Award.

Education

Nakamura graduated with a bachelor's degree in Asian-American studies from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) in 2003.[1] He received his MFA in Social Documentation from the University of California, Santa Cruz (UCSC)[2] in 2008.

Career

Nakamura's films focus on the Japanese American experience. Three of his films, Yellow Brotherhood, Pilgrimage, and A Song for Ourselves, form a documentary trilogy about Asian Americans and the importance of community. His films are frequently shown at film festivals, where they have won numerous awards.[3]

His 2013 film, Jake Shimabukuro: Life on Four Strings, is a full-length documentary about Jake Shimabukuro, a Japanese American ukulele virtuoso and composer from Hawaii. The film won the 2013 Gotham Audience Award for Independent Films.[4]

Personal life

Nakamura is a fourth generation Japanese American, born and raised in Los Angeles. His father, Robert A. Nakamura, is also a filmmaker and is sometimes referred to as "the Godfather of Asian American media".[5][6] His mother is the author and filmmaker Karen L. Ishizuka.[1]

Filmography

  • Yellow Brotherhood (2003)[7]
  • Pilgrimage (2007)[4]
  • A Song for Ourselves (2009)[4]
  • Jake Shimabukuro: Life on Four Strings (2012)[4]
  • Mele Murals (2016)[8]
  • Atomic Café: The Noisiest Corner in J-Town (2020)[9]

References

  1. 1 2 "Tadashi Nakamura '03". University of California - Los Angeles. May 22, 2015.
  2. ↑ McNulty, Jennifer (January 13, 2008). "Graduate student's film featured at Sundance Film Festival". University of California - Santa Cruz.
  3. ↑ "Tadashi Nakamura Awards". Internet Movie Database.
  4. 1 2 3 4 "Japanese American Filmmaker Tadashi Nakamura Wins Gotham Independent Film Award". Pacific Citizen. January 17, 2014.
  5. ↑ "JANM Announces Honorees and Theme for 2016 Annual Gala Dinner". Japanese American National Museum. Retrieved 5 November 2016.
  6. ↑ "Tribute Reel to Robert Nakamura: Godfather of Asian American Media". Center for Asian American Media. 24 May 2012. Retrieved 5 November 2016.
  7. ↑ Yellow Brotherhood: A Film (DVD). Los Angeles, Calif.: Center for EthnoCommunications of the UCLA Asian American Studies Center. 2003. OCLC 66916886.
  8. ↑ Wang, Frances Kai-Hwa (May 25, 2016). "'Mele Murals' Explores Native Hawaiian Identity through Urban Street Art". NBC News. Retrieved 2021-02-19.
  9. ↑ "Q&A with Makers of 'Atomic Café' Documentary". Rafu Shimpo. 2020-09-19. Retrieved 2021-02-19.

Further reading

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