The Academy Museum, 6067 Wilshire Blvd. in Los Angeles, will honor the Day of Remembrance with a screening of short films at its Ted Mann Theater on Thursday, Feb. 19, at 7 p.m.
On Feb. 19, 1942, President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed Executive Order 9066, authorizing the forced removal and incarceration of 125,000 Japanese Americans — most of them U.S. citizens — into 10 concentration camps in desolate locations across the country. 2026 marks the 50th anniversary of the rescinding of E.O. 9066, officially enacted by President Gerald Ford on Feb. 19, 1976.
Working in partnership with the Short Films Branch of the Academy, this program offers a collection of animated, documentary and narrative works that explore what it’s like when your country questions you; how families endure; and how a community survives.
Academy Museum film programming generously funded by the Richard Roth Foundation.
In person: Academy Museum Director and President Amy Homma and Academy Governor Chris Tashima.
The following films will be shown:
- “Days of Waiting ” ( 1 9 9 1 , 2 8 minutes), directed by Steven Okazaki. This Academy Award-winning documentary tells the story of artist Estelle Peck Ishigo, who accompanied her Nisei husband to Heart Mountain. She documented life in the camp and during the postwar resettlement.
- “Minoru: Memory of Exile” (1992, 19 minutes), directed by Michael Fukushima. This animated documentary about the incarceration of Japanese Canadians is based on the experiences of the film-maker’s father, who was sent with his family to camps in the interior of British Columbia.
- “Day of Independence” (2003, 27 minutes), directed by Chris Tashima. With Derek Mio, Marcus Toji, Alan Muraoka, Keiko Kawashima. Drama about a young baseball player and his family dealing with life in camp.
- “Resettlement: Chicago Story” (2023, 16 minutes), directed by Reina Higashitani. With Lynn Masako Cheng, Natsuko Aoike, Toshio Hirano, Marika Engelhardt. This drama follows the Yamamoto family as they adjust to life in postwar Chicago after being released from camp.
Tickets start at $5. For more information, go to www.academymuseum.org.