Fund Short Film YOKAI: A Tribute to Heritage

Did you know, according to USC’s Annenberg Inclusion Initiative, Hollywood movies still use harmful stereotypes of the API community and only 6% of screenwriters with the WGA are AAPI.

In 2024, TAAF shared that, “nearly half of Americans can’t think of any characters or roles for Asian American actors in TV or movies.” and when they do, “it’s usually kung fu or martial artists for males and doctors for females.”

I want to help change that. My characters are not the model minority, they are not stereotypes… They are well-rounded individuals with passion and heart. Just like all humans.

Hello There! My name is Mary Tamura (creator, producer & writer) and I am raising funds to shoot a scripted short YOKAI. Yokai is the Japanese word for “strange apparition” and is a class of supernatural entities and spirits in Japanese folklore. This short is an adaptation and teaser for my pilot script of the same name.

Monsters, ghosts, spirits, and demons are always on trend but YOKAI will take this trend and have an original spin to it. Many programs on TV are western focused. This will showcase that there are crazier and interesting supernatural beings from all over the world.

YOKAI is about a Japanese American witch who gets trapped in 1942 and teams up with her grandfather to track down an evil wizard who wants to take over the world by unleashing evil monsters and spirits, but time runs out when they are placed in Japanese Internment Camps at the start of WWII.

Pictured: Berry Tamura and Thomas Shimazu! My Grandpa’s during the war. Berry was a No-No Boy and Thomas was a decorated 442nd veteran.

I was inspired to mix my love for horror and sci-fi, Japanese folklore, and my own personal history. The outcome of this was YOKAI. This is my way to give homage to my Grandparents who worked hard to get our family where it is today. With your help, YOKAI will focus on Japanese heritage and legends which in hopes can lead to me producing the full story and continue the legacy of those that came before.

Pictured: Misuye Nakamori and Michiko Nakamura! My Grandmother’s during the war. Misuye worked at the mess hall in Manzanar and later moved to Tule Lake. Michiko was able to work outside of the camps as a Nanny.

HOW WILL FUNDS BE USED:

This GoFundMe will give me and my production team the funds we need to shoot this short film, which will have a run time of approximately 10-15 minutes. Your contribution will go directly towards creating the film and will help pay for production costs for the cast, crew, post-production, craft services, film festivals, and other miscellaneous production costs. We are aiming to shoot this early next year and premiere the film sometime after.

Thank you so much for the support and taking the time to read my story and why YOKAI is so important to me and the AAPI community. Please stay tuned for more information and additional details regarding the film.

MORE ABOUT YOKAI

MORE ABOUT MARY TAMURA