Special Screening & Director's Talk: Live Your Dream: The Taylor Anderson Story & Stories of Courage During the Great Japan Earthquake & TsunamiNEW

Opening Remarks by Ambassador Ichiro Fujisaki, Co-Chairman of the Taylor Anderson Memorial Fund. Director's Talk and Q&A Session after Screening. Meet & Greet follows Director's Talk (Foods & Drinks are served.)

About the Movie
This film is a story about Taylor Anderson and all the young people who travel the world trying to make a difference. Taylor was an extraordinary American who dedicated herself to teaching Japanese children, living her dream right up to the events of March 11, 2011. The earthquake and tsunami in Japan was a disaster that no one could have expected.

From the Director
In my 21 years of working on Japan-based projects, I had witnessed earthquakes, but never the devastation of a tsunami. Taylor's story came to me via the internet as stories from the areas that were affected began to be shared. I had met JET teachers in the course of my previous film work, so I knew the dedication and the hard work that goes into being an assistant English teacher, but there was something special about Taylor's story that touched me.  A passion and zest for the people of Ishinomaki where she was based, that not all teachers feel while in Japan. I began to seek a way to reach out to Taylor's family and share my interest. I am so humbled to have their consent to tell Taylor's story.

Regge Life
An award winning filmmaker and founder of Global Film Network Inc. He first went to Japan as a Creative Artist Fellow via a program administered by the National Endowment of the Arts and Bunka-cho. He spent six months observing the work of renown filmmaker Yamada Yoji on productions of TORA SAN #43 and MUSUKO. He later returned to Japan to produce his first feature length documentary, STRUGGLE AND SUCCESS: The African American Experience in Japan. This was followed by DOUBLES: Japan and America's Intercultural Children and finally AFTER AMERICA...AFTER JAPAN. The films have been seen on NHK, PBS in the US and on various public television outlets worldwide. LIVE YOUR DREAM: The Taylor Anderson Story is is fourth film and he is now completing his first dramatic feature film COCKTAIL PARTY, based on the Akutagawa Prize winning novel by Oshiro Tatsuhiro.

He has served as a Commissioner with the Japan US Friendship Commission and as a Governor for the Japanese American National Museum. Through his work in Japan he has been the recipient of a Fulbright Journalism Fellowship, 2 Japan Foundation research fellowships, numerous grants from the Center for Global Partnership, Toyota and Mitsubishi along with an Usiba Memorial fellowship. He was awarded a special grant from Okinawa Ginko for his work bridging the cultures of the US military base and the Okinawan community and has been named a Sony Innovator.

Admission
Free

Reservation is not required.

Date
Wednesday, March 11 @ 7:00PM

Venue
The Japan Foundation, Los Angeles, Auditorium, (5700 Wilshire Blvd. #100, Los Angeles, CA 90036)  Street parking is available near JFLA.   Click Here for Parking Info
(NO PARKING VALIDATIONS PROVIDED)