Seattle Cherry Blossom & Japanese Cultural Festival

• Jeff Chiba Stearns: filmmaker
• personal website: meditatingbunny.com
• Facebook: facebook.com/chibastearns
• Mixed Match Project: mixedmatchproject.com
• One Big Hapa Family: onebighapafamily.com

Jeff Chiba Stearns is an animator and documentary filmmaker best known for his feature length documentaries, One Big Hapa Family (2010) and Mixed Match (2016) . Stearns, who is of Japanese and European heritage, has been an international spokesperson on mixed-race identity since his 2005 short animated film “What Are You Anyways?”. Born in Kelowna, BC, Stearns studied Film Animation at the Emily Carr University of Art and Design, graduating in 2001, and soon after founded Meditating Bunny Studio Inc. in Vancouver. Since then, Stearns’ short animations, such as Yellow Sticky Notes (2007), and feature documentaries have been screened and broadcast around the world in hundreds of film festivals and various major networks, and have won dozens of awards and accolades, including a Webby Award and an Emmy® nomination.

Stearns describes his animation style as “Hapanimation”, a blend of Japanese and North American styles. Stearns has published articles and lectured around the world about multiracial identity, cultural awareness, filmmaking, animation, and film distribution. He is also a co-founder of the annual Hapa-palooza Festival in Vancouver.

Mixed Match Documentary Screenings

• Friday, April 20th
• 3:15pm - 5:00pm
• Armory, loft 4

• Saturday, April 21st
• 2:00pm - 3:45pm
• Armory, loft 3

• Sunday, April 22nd
• 3:00pm - 4:00pm
• Seattle Center Pavilion

One Big Hapa Family / What Are You Anyways? Screenings

• Friday, April 20th
• 1:30pm - 3:05pm
• Armory, loft 4

• Sunday, April 22nd
• 1:15pm - 2:55pm
• Armory, loft 3

Posters of Jeff's award-winning films, One Big Hapa Family and Mixed Match

• Paul Kikuchi: interdisciplinary artist and musician
• personal website: http://www.paulkikuchi.com
• featured work: 9066 documentary

Interdisciplinary artist and musician Paul Kikuchi will give a brief overview of his work and will present excerpts from a new film, featuring archival footage from Japanese American concentration camps during World War 2. He will lead a discussion with students that focuses on civil liberties, empathy, and activism.

Paul's Event Schedule

• 9066 Documentary by Paul Kikuchi
• Friday, April 20th
• 11:15am
• Seattle Center Pavilion

• 9066 Documentary by Paul Kikuchi with Q&A
• Sunday, April 22nd
• 1:30pm - 2:00pm
• Seattle Center Pavilion

• Hapa Hafu Heritage Art Forum
• Sunday, April 22nd
• 2:00pm - 3:00pm
• Seattle Center Pavilion

Sampling of Paul's musical works

• Tamiko Thiel: visual artist
• personal website: tamikothiel.com
• featured work | Brush the Sky: tamikothiel.com/brushthesky

Tamiko Thiel is a visual artist exploring the interplay of place, space, the body and cultural identity. She works in a variety of media ranging from supercomputers to digital prints and videos, to interactive 3d virtual reality worlds and augmented reality.

Tamiko's Event Schedule

• Hapa Hafu Heritage Art Expo
• All weekend long
• Seattle Center Pavilion

Stills from Tamiko's augmented reality series, Brush the Sky, and a panel discussion on the intersection of computing, design, and art at the Museum of Modern Art.

• Ramon Isao: writer and film producer
• more information via South Seattle Emerald: southseattleemerald.com
• works and profile via Artist Trust: http://artisttrust.org

Ramon Isao is a recipient of the Tim McGinnis Award for Fiction, as well as fellowships from Artist Trust and Jack Straw Cultural Center. His writing appears in The Iowa Review, City Arts Magazine, Ninth Letter, and American Reader. His screenplay credits include Zombies of Mass Destruction and Junk (in which he co-stars). He holds an MFA from Columbia University, and he teaches writing courses at Hugo House.

Pronounced Rah-MOAN e-SOW.

Ramon's Event Schedule

• Hapa Hafu Heritage by Ramon Isao, with Lisle Wilkerson and Kathy Lusher
• Saturday, April 21st
• 3:30pm - 4:00pm
• Seattle Center Pavilion

• Hapa Hafu Heritage Art Forum
• Sunday, April 22nd
• 2:00pm - 3:00pm
• Seattle Center Pavilion

• Gabrielle Nomura Gainor: dancer, storyteller, and arts leader
• website: gabriellenomura.com
• featured performance: Farewell Shikata Ga Nai

Since receiving degrees in dance and journalism from Western Washington University in 2010, Gabrielle's involvement in the arts has ranged from working professionally as an arts journalist, co-founding and directing a Seattle-based dance troupe, and receiving grants for her own choreography. At Seattle Opera, she has helped the company garner a national reputation for outstanding social media content, and has also served as a cultural and community adviser. During Madame Butterfly for example, she created programming, blogs, program articles and curated a lobby exhibit surrounding Asian Pacific Islander representation. Gabrielle challenges the Eurocentric views in opera and dance, while empowering intersectional artists and storytellers.

Gabrielle's Event Schedule

• Hapa Hafu Heritage Art Forum
• Sunday, April 22nd
• 2:00pm - 3:00pm
• Seattle Center Pavilion

• Farewell Shikata Ga Nai: excerpt
• Sunday, April 22nd
• 3:30pm - 3:40pm
• Armory stage

Stills and video excerpt of Gabrielle's piece, Farewell Shikata Ga Nai.

• Rob Thompson: graphic designer and illustrator
• portfolio: behance.net/kiyan802c3ee
• featured work: The Peach Boy

Rob is a graphic and web designer specializing in vector-based art. He has experience in a wide range of disciplines, including book layout, infographics, illustration, and logo design. His personal works show his fascination with mythology and culture, and how iconic figures are interpreted in the modern day.

Rob's Event Schedule

• Hapa Hafu Heritage Art Expo
• All weekend long
• Seattle Center Pavilion

Prints from The Peach Boy series.