SAN FRANCISCO — The 12th annual Films of Remembrance, a showcase of films commemorating the forced relocation and incarceration of Japanese Americans in American concentration camps during World War II, will take place in-person the weekend of Feb. 25-26.
Saturday, Feb. 25, from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. at the AMC Kabuki 8, 1881 Post St. in San Francisco Japantown.
Sunday, Feb. 26, from 10:30 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. at San Jose Buddhist Church Betsuin, 640 N. Fifth St. in San Jose Japantown.
The event will feature in-person screenings and discussions with filmmakers plus a virtual streaming option. For more information and reservations, go to: https://annual.filmsofremembrance.org/2023/
• Films of Resistance, Feb. 25 at 10 a.m. in San Francisco, Feb. 26 at 10:30 a.m. in San Jose. Also available online Feb. 25 to March 12.
This program deals with forms of resistance to oppression as it relates to the wartime incarceration. Many of these stories have been long suppressed, and those resisting have been ostracized. This program gives voice to these once marginalized resisters of conscience.
“We Said, No! No!: A Story of Civil Disobedience” (2022, 74 min.)
• Rediscovering History, Feb. 25 at 11:55 a.m. in San Francisco, Feb. 26 at 12:25 p.m. in San Jose. Also available online Feb. 25 to March 12.
Multigenerational conversations between concentration camp survivors and their descendants, as well as two dramatic shorts — depicting resettlement from the camps to Chicago, and a fantasy romance between two young women set in the ruins of the Manzanar concentration camp.
“80 Years Later” (2022, 50 min.)
“Resettlement: Chicago Story” (2022, 16 min.)
“Shikata Ga Nai (It Cannot Be Helped)” (2022, 11 min.)
• Rooted in History, Feb. 25 at 2:15 p.m. in San Francisco, Feb. 26 at 2:45 p.m. in San Jose. Also available online Feb. 25 to March 12.
Three short documentaries focusing on a blooming rose, a Japanese garden and the literal digging up of history. By digging a bit deeper into layers of history, we uncover new and revealing stories about the Japanese American experience.
“Amache Rose” (2022, 29 min.)
“Hakone Gardens and Executive Order 9066” (2022, 22 min.)
“Sonzai” (2021, 32 min.)
• The Art of Activism, Feb. 25 at 4:35 p.m. in San Francisco, Feb. 26 at 5:05 p.m. in San Jose. Also available online from Feb. 25 to March 12.
In this program, ordinary citizens’ extraordinary deeds come to life. We follow the movement to create a stamp to honor the Nisei soldiers of World War II, led by three Nisei women, as well as a movement to honor the former inmates by a Santa Clara County judge. Using art to interpret the wartime eviction from Bainbridge Island, artists develop an art exhibit on the very walkway that led to their wartime exile, while an animated film brings to life a graphic novel on fellow Americans who stepped up to help Japanese Americans.
“Stamp Our Story” (2022, 19 min.)
“Honor, Recognition and Respect” (2022, 10 min.)
“Point of Departure” (2022, 10 min.)
“Those Who Helped Us” (2022, 18 min.)
• Untold Stories, Feb. 25 at 6:30 p.m. in San Francisco, Feb. 26 at 7 p.m. in San Jose. Also available online from Feb. 25 to March 12.
This program reveals the plight of Japanese Americans who “voluntary” relocated from the West Coast, only to face struggles of their own, and a dramatized short of a young Nisei given the opportunity to leave a concentration camp, only to face the cruel reality of life beyond barbed wire.
“Before They Take Us Away” (2022, 60 min.)
“When You Leave” (2022, 16 min.)
In San Francisco, the program ticket includes admission to the filmmakers reception that will follow the screening. For those who cannot attend the screening, a limited number of reception-only tickets are available.
• Life After Camp (virtual only), available Feb. 25 to March 12.
From the rare nature of Monterey citizens to publicly welcome Japanese Americans back from concentration camps, to a coming-of-age documentary of a camp survivor-turned-activist, to the heartwarming joys of senior bowlers who continued to bowl in Salt Lake City into their 90s, these films provide unique glimpses of life after camp.
“Enduring Democracy: The Monterey Petition” (2022, 67 min.)
“Namba: A Japanese American’s Incarceration and Life of Resilience” (2022, 45 min.)
“Nisei Bowl” (2019, 22 min.)