Finding Her Beat Documentary: Women in Taiko

Thank you so much for joining us, we just checked out the trailer for finding her beat. I mean, this is a powerful incredible documentary for all you involved? How does it feel to get to the other side after a serious period of uncertainty like a miracle. Yeah, like a thousand Miracles strung in a line. Yeah. Like it has a life of its own and we just have to hang on. Yes. Yes. We all signed up for a very big journey. And we didn’t know where we were going, but we hoped we’d get there. And you did and as filmmakers, you know what Drew you into the story as far as I mean?

Were you I mean were you kind of aware of Taiko at first? Did you watch documentary. Did, you know, each other before like what made you decide, okay, you know what I want to go full bore and make an actual documentary about this? Well, so Jen and I’ve been friends for over 20 years. And so she brought the idea to me that, you know, she was doing this amazing concert. We were having lunch and you know, could I film it for you know, archival purposes that kind of thing. And I was like, oh my gosh. Yeah. And I was like, this is a film this is more than anything and you know, it runs on all of those themes of what it is to be somebody who’s been marginalized and say, you know what?

I’m just going to take the stage myself. I’m not going to wait to be invited anymore. And I love the spirit of that. And so I turned to Carrie and said, Carrie. Do you want to work with me on this and luckily Carrie agreed, you know, there’s something that’s happening in front of the camera where all these amazing film. I mean directors of their own Taiko groups have come together. And they’ve never had a chance to meet each other before they’ve never had a chance to perform together before and then the same thing was happening with the filmmaking side where there was a commitment to make sure that the diversity that was in front of the camera also happened on the production side.

And so most of the people 98 or 95 something like that of the people behind the camera on the production side are either Asian women non-binary queer or a combo pack. Well that’s incredible. I absolutely love that. And now obviously you started kind of doing all this, you know, prior to covet and everything, but does it feel kind of ironic at just how topical this film is not just the fact that it’s an incredible story, but also the fact that, you know, given the time we’re in North America with women’s rights being under attack with the stop Asian hate movement and everything else. I mean, it’s just it seems just even more topical than it would have been a couple years ago.

Yeah. Like Megan said it was something when a project has a life of its own and Don you talked about this too where the things that we’re feeling other people are feeling and we get that reflected back and forth, you know, and so that conversation becomes more interesting more intimate and more impactful. And so I do feel like there’s so many aspects of this story that like connect to people whether you’re Asian or not whether you’re a Taiko player or not, but it’s this idea of the folks in the margins coming forward and it’s this idea of empowering ourselves and redefining what power looks like and honestly to see for me personally to just see a screen filled with powerful Asian women like that alone is worth my ticket.

I would see that a hundred times. So, I’m just thrilled to be a part of pro of a project that can do that. And the other thing. That’s amazing. Is that we’ve had so many people stand up at the screening. We just had our world premiere at Mill Valley and I can’t tell you there have been countless men who have cried and have said, thank you so much for making this film. So, hey, I’m wanna. I’m one of them. It’s not just for women. No. Yeah, I think we’re humans. Yeah, I think since the last couple of years. Our whole country the whole world is done with cartoon shots of who we are as people and the beauty of this film is that we’re showing the reality of powerful Asian women.

That’s actually what we are and playing these huge massive drums and to Jen’s point that everybody’s kind of able to appreciate and like we’re ready to have this for sure. Now I gotta ask y’all what’s harder Taiko and setting up that whole event or filming a documentary about Taiko and all your Journeys, I think they’re both both. Endeavors of impossibility that are fueled by pure passion. And determination and just people who are willing to keep taking that next step forward like you often say, you don’t know where your destination is, but you’re just willing to keep going forward on that journey. And I think that all of us have felt that in whatever role we participated in this project and I’m just glad that we came out into the light and has such a beautiful thing to celebrate because you never know you never know what’s going to happen.

No, and I would say epic journey. It’s been epic both of these the film making the film and the technical project have been epic and you just throw yourself in and you do your self-care and you recover after away from the camera. What did all of you learn about yourselves? I want to jump in there quick because I feel like one of the biggest lessons for me is Jen just pulled me into the camera. It’s for me from Jen or, you know, how to ask how to you know, so many times. I won’t ask for things that I want because I’m like, oh, I’m sure that’s an imposition blah blah blah and or I’m scared that somebody will say no and this film.

I’ve really been able to take that next step and be like no, I’m gonna ask and I’ll keep asking and it’s amazing. How many times when you ask people actually say. Yes. And so that’s really a big lesson for me in this film and I’m starting to ignore your question, but I think that the other thing. Is that, you know, we’ve had amazing support for instance somebody suggested that we get help from Skywalker or Skywalker Studios to help our sound mix become deeper and better and more powerful. And so we’ve, you know, been helped and reached out to by amazing people and we couldn’t have anticipated the level of support in fact, this weekend we’re in five six six festivals around the country that is amazing.

Well, what’s also amazing, too is gathering. I mean, so many talented people under one setting the documentary did cover that and we don’t want to get too much into it give too much away, but you know, I understand we saw with so many talented people different backgrounds and walks of life and Egos and everything. How hard was it to kind of gather everybody and get everybody on the same page. Beyond what we saw on the camera. Yeah, well, I would say that. It was both a privilege and the biggest challenge of My Life. In that idea that you know, each one of these artists was a Visionary a leader in their own, right?

Used to Leading the show used to like doing things their way and you get all of them in the room for the first time and say, well, we’re gonna try and do something together and follow me. And so every single person had to come into this project with a great deal of Faith. Really putting themselves out there and putting faith in one another that we’re going to come up and create something more amazing than. I could have done on my own faith in all of us. Yeah, exactly. And I think that’s both terrifying and empowering and exciting and electric when you feel it happening. But when it’s when you’re in the crunch periods of the process, then it feels like terrifying and like you’re heading towards a cliff.

But yeah, I think it was a great risk. And I think it was a great gift for everyone involved? No doubt. Yeah, the film is done in a cinema verite style. And so we really wanted to take the audience on a journey and without the use of conventional interviews. And so to that end, we always had two cameras on every scene and our final scene. We had five cameras on this scene. And so I think from me that was something new that I had never experienced as a Director of Photography before to have that kind of support. And so the support level was high at every stage and for each one of us.

I think yeah, I would also say that to your question. How do we get on the same page, I would say more like when I was in Japan I learned about National Treasures who are people who devote their lives to an art form. And instead of all of us getting on the same page. We were like a book and Jen got us bound. But like yeah, again. We are a collective and there’s a way. Maybe that there’s a feminine energy or a way of being in the world where it’s about a collective and it’s about us? And even though we don’t get along or like each other all the time we’re in a book.

I like that. Yeah, for me one more thing. I just wanted to say is that. It’s this idea of the unicorn. Each of each one of these artists that I that we worked with is sort of this unicorn of someone who like blazed a trail and made something amazing happen in their life, but they never got a chance to talk to each other or to, you know, to work together. So this was like a first time Gathering of the unicorns, right? So it was magical in that. But beyond that is this idea that behind every single one of these people is just a stage full of other people who are ready and willing to step forward too.

So, you know, I caution everybody when whenever you have a unicorn to both appreciate them, but use them as a proof of concept the proof of concept that’s not just one, but that there’s a whole crew of people waiting behind them and you just have to make a little bit more room where do you see Taiko kind of going from here. Not just for what you’re working on, but just on a worldwide level. Well on a worldwide level. It’s just becoming more and more popular like it’s on every continent now practice there’s European Taiko groups. There’s Brazilian Taiko groups Australia Scotland, you know, it’s everywhere.

And it’s growing which is fantastic and the I would say almost two-thirds of Taiko players are now women worldwide, but now that we have participation what we really want is equity. And so it’s this idea of yeah, we get to participate, but we also want to get paid. So that’s yeah. Paid and booked and you know, promoted and so it’s about sort of that next level of stepping through the next barrier and the next barrier. I would also say that when you come into Taiko. You’re a beginner then you’re a performer then you’re an ambassador and then you become a steward of the art form.

And it’s time to teach the Next Generation how to be big how to produce yourself how to stand in your complete spiritual power on stage and we are wanting to teach the Next Generation with this film in other ways and finally is that if you’ve heard of Taiko drum if you’ve been in a space with a real live Taiko drama. You feel it in your chest and it’s there’s a healing empowering vibration of Taiko that is undeniable and I think that’s something that the world needs more of today like the world would be so better. If we could all like hit it like a drama every day.

So I think you can also ignore that healing aspect. Of the practice as well. I love that you said that because it’s on a personal note. I’m big on mindfulness and meditation and everything else and just even just watching a documentary through my television. It just like I got fat, you know, I kind of I kind of felt that. So I can only imagine live it’s probably spectacular. So you should see it live. Yep. Oh. Yeah. Definitely definitely we’re having a lot of post screening performances of the local Taiko groups and that’s part of Jen’s desire to lift up the local Taiko groups and bring them an opportunity to have a gig a paid gig to perform and to show people.

So I think that it’s already making an impact and in Japan we’re certainly already making an impact even though we haven’t screened there yet because one of the when we were filming in Japan. Diego said that the one woman who I filmed at the kodo in Sado Island. She said, oh, it will be very difficult for her in the future to be on stage and two years later kodo was who’s been a great supporter of the film and a great leader has now put Women’s Center Stage as well. So, I think we’re already making an impact. I love the title fun. I love the title finding her beat who came up with that, you know, it was originally her beat because that was the name of the concert and then I have to say it was a colleague we brought it to this group called film fatales, which is a bunch of female directors and said watch the film and then we had this conversation about like the title is still not working still not working and I will say it was Jan Selby.

Yeah, Jan giving her a promise she said finding her beat and I was like, oh my God. That’s perfect. You’re a genius in chiako Kojima also said. I love that title because it’s such a hopeful message for Taiko in the future? Yeah, well said, you’ve all dropped a lot of gems tremendous Insight. We don’t want to give too much of the documentary away, but if we are stuck in an elevator I’m just a stranger and I ask you, why should people watch Finding her beat. What would you say I would say that it’s a wonderful story about women. Redefining power in their own terms claiming center stage and it’s uplifting and energizing and we could all use some of that right now, but she said.

I would also say just go get your hair blown back by the Star Wars Skywalker sound when watching Masters on stage who’ve been waiting for 30 years to be there. I think Stein of a good film is if it makes you laugh and it makes you cry and I think we’re rocking it on both of those well done ball involved. Thank you so much for your time. It was a pleasure to check it out can’t wait to see it again sometime in New York City, of course, it’s making its way through the film festival circuit. Before we let y’all go, where can we find you all online and where can we find finding her beat next findingherbeat.com and we’re on Facebook and Instagram and you know, we’re posting our adventures as we go.

Next up, is Austin Austin Texas for the sound unseen film festival in Minneapolis for the sand on scene Festival doc NYC and Dolores cucolores more to come in Hawaii Film Festival. Yeah, it’s fantastic. There’s a great Buzz. We’re so thrilled for the support we’re getting and we can’t wait to keep keep going.