Panel Discussion: AAPI Writers for Television
J-Sei Movie Night Goes into the Writers Room
Friday, November 11, 2022 – 6:30 pm (on Zoom)
During the pandemic and the necessary shift to online Zooming, J-Sei Movie Night has been so fortunate to be joined by talented individuals in the film and TV industry who have so generously shared their time and expertise with us via Zoom. These professionals represent a range of media know-how and artistic creativity — directors, producers, cinematographers, actors, activists, and critics — working or commenting on feature-length films, shorts, documentaries, and TV series, and they have logged on from locations near and far, including Southern California, the East Coast, Hawaii, and Japan! This month’s Movie Night will be another great addition to that lineup.
On Friday, Nov. 11, J-Sei Goes to the Movies to meet with young AAPI writers who are making their mark in television and beyond. We’ll talk about how they got their start, what they’ve been working on, and where they see Hollywood and BIPOC representation advancing in the future. Our panelists — Ashley Darnall, Franklin jin Rho, and Julie Wong — have created compelling stories for some of the most popular and groundbreaking programs on TV today (see their profiles below), and they will give us the inside scoop on their day-to-day endeavors and challenges in television writing. To provide a broader context about representation, diversity, and inclusion in media, the discussion will be moderated by Michelle Sugihara, executive director of CAPE (Coalition for Asian Pacifics in Entertainment), a nonprofit advocacy organization for Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders in the entertainment industry.
This is an exciting opportunity to hear straight from the storytellers about the TV shows and movies we love to watch. Please join us for a fun and enlightening evening!
RSVP with “Nov. Movie Night” in the subject line.
We will send Zoom information prior to the November 11 event.
Meet Our Panelists
Ashley Darnall grew up in the Chicago suburbs, the daughter of two Japanese teachers, who taught her the value of learning new languages and cultures. After college she lived in France for 3 years, where she worked as a game writer. Ashley was accepted into the 2017-2018 WB Writer’s Workshop. Her staffing credits include ABC’s WHISKEY CAVALIER, Apple’s sci-fi drama INVASION, and HBO Max’s crime series TOKYO VICE. She has developed with Justin Lin’s company Perfect Storm Entertainment as well as written a rom-com feature for Erik Feig’s company Picturestart. Most recently, Ashley wrote and produced on Netflix’s hit show COBRA KAI. Ashley speaks French and Japanese, and she is a die-hard US women’s soccer fan.
Currently a writer/producer on the upcoming Sony/Disney+ series GOOSEBUMPS, Franklin jin Rho has previously written on PACHINKO, SWAMP THING, and THE EXORCIST. Hailing from Richmond, Virginia, Franklin grew up with a passion for auteur-driven arthouse cinema that ultimately led him to the Directing Program at the AFI Conservatory. His thesis film THE MONSTER AND THE PEANUT, which played at myriad film festivals, was the recipient of a grant from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, and won the first prize Emmy® for Best Dramatic Student film in 2004 from the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences. Prior to breaking into television, Franklin was a Film Independent Project Involve Directing Fellow and a Coalition of Asian Pacifics in Entertainment (CAPE) New Writers Fellow.
Julie Wong is a Co-Executive Producer in her sixth season at ABC’s medical drama GREY’S ANATOMY. Prior to writing for television, Julie wrote speeches and crafted press conferences while serving as Deputy Mayor to L.A. Mayor Jim Hahn and leading communications for U.S. Senator Barbara Boxer, among others. She also served in multiple executive roles for Walt Disney Parks and Resorts where she was involved with major initiatives including the opening of Shanghai Disneyland and the announcement of Star Wars lands coming to Disneyland and Walt Disney World. Julie participated in the CAPE New Writers Fellowship and the CBS Writers Mentoring Program, and holds a degree in government from Claremont McKenna College and a Master of Public Policy from Harvard University.
Michelle K. Sugihara is the Executive Director of CAPE (Coalition of Asian Pacifics in Entertainment), the pioneering non-profit professional organization creating systemic change in Hollywood from the writers’ room to the boardroom to the living room. She is a fourth generation Japanese American born and raised in Honolulu, Hawaii. She graduated with honors from Claremont McKenna College with a dual major in Economics and Psychology and a minor in Asian American Studies, followed by a law degree from UCLA. Prior to joining CAPE, she was an entertainment attorney, film producer, and adjunct professor for the Claremont Colleges’ Intercollegiate Department of Asian American Studies.A prolific public speaker, Sugihara speaks across the country on Asian Representation in Media; Women in Entertainment; Diversity and Inclusion; Leadership; and other topics. She is also an associate member of Cold Tofu, the nation’s premier Asian American comedy improv and sketch group. She teaches “Improv for Lawyers” and has performed improv internationally.
Sugihara’s community involvement includes her roles as founding member of the Asian Pacific American Friends of the Theater, leadership team member of Time’s Up Women of Color, #GoldOpen co-lead, former Co-Chair of the Multicultural Bar Alliance of Southern California, member of PBS-SoCal Asian Pacific Islander Community Council, former VP of OCA-Greater Los Angeles, past president of the Asian Pacific American Bar Association of Los Angeles County, past member of Asian Americans Advancing Justice – Los Angeles’s Executive Advisory Council, and past board member of the Japanese American Bar Association. Sugihara is a recipient of the KTLA 5 AAPI Visionaries Award, the prestigious National Asian Pacific American Bar Association’s Best Lawyers Under 40 award, and the Los Angeles County Bar Association, Real Property Section’s Outstanding Young Lawyer award. She was named a “Rising Star” in Los Angeles Magazine’s Super Lawyer Rising Star section for seven years, an honor bestowed on only 2.5 percent of attorneys in the state each year.
J-Sei Movie Night Bento – November 11
For movie night, you can order specially made obento from My Friend Yuji for pickup on Friday, November 11 in conjunction with Movie Night. Here are Chef Yuji’s mouth-watering offerings:
- Seafood Pasta: Penne pasta, shrimp, clams and a cheesy tomato miso pasta sauce $22
- Kabocha Korroke Donburi: Kabocha and bacon croquette, Yuzu cabbage salada and koshihikari rice $18
Click on the button below to place your order. Pick up your meal at the selected pick-up time at J-Sei on Friday, November 11th. Please remember to wear a mask and observe social distance protocol. Thank you!
To order: When you click on the button above, it will take you directly to a pop-up order form on the My Friend Yuji webpage, where you first select a pickup time. In the next window, click anywhere inside the box frame to open another pop-up and select the number of bento you want to order, then click on “Add item” to close the pop-up. Click the “View order” bar at the bottom to confirm your order and click “Continue to payment” to sign in and pay for your order.
Support J-Sei At the Movies
Thanks to you, J-Sei At the Movies will soon be celebrating its Fifth Year anniversary! We look forward to more creative programming with educational and inspiring Japanese and Japanese American films. We are especially grateful for the up close and personal chats with filmmakers as we learn so much from the exchange.
We love having a growing and enthusiastic audience. We welcome any donations to help us offset costs for Movie Night. Thanks for considering this.
Pork & Vegetables: Llano Seco Pork and vegetables panko-fried and marinated in tare over Koshihikari rice with cabbage and pickles – $18
The author of one of the largest bodies of Asian American-themed works, Philip Kan Gotanda has over the last four decades brought stories of Asians in the United States to mainstream American theater as well as to Europe and Asia. He has specialized in investigating the Japanese American family, writing a cycle of works in theater, film, song, and opera that chronicle Japanese America from the early 1900s to the present. Mr. Gotanda is an inaugural recipient of the Dramatists Guild 2021 Playwrights Legacy Initiative, a two-year award acknowledging his body of work in American Theater.
