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  • Oblivious Nerd Girl
  • Short Flags Documentary
  • Oblivious Interviews
  • Podcasts
  • About Me
  • ebooks
  • Contact
  • Store

Oblivious Interviews

Oblivious meets Tani Ikeda

11/18/2015

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In 2007 I was starting my 2nd and final year of grad school. It was also the year I met Tani Ikeda. If memory serves me right, Tani was one of Tuesday Night Cafe's first interns.  Since then Tani has gone on to found imMEDIAte Justice, a non-profit agency that puts cameras in the hands of girls and women to tell their own stories. Tani is also an amazingly talented director and photographer. 

For Sexual Assault Awareness month this past April, Tani created #SurvivorLoveLetter.  A truly inspiring campaign and practice in self love for all those who are survivors of sexual assault. Tani's father wrote her a letter and it was so touching and beautiful that it brought me and others to tears. 

Tani is rad. She is doing amazing things and I can't wait for you all to check out her Oblivious Interview!

Oblivious meets Tani Ikeda. 
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Name:
​Tani Ikeda

Affiliations (arts org, fun things you do, etc) :
Filmmaker, imMEDIAte Justice nonprofit founder, novice surfer

What's the one word you are guilty of using too much?
I'm guilty of being incredibly enthusiastic in emails and tend to over use words like "Amazing!" But I do in fact think a lot of things are amazing. . .  

How did you end up doing what you are doing now?
I grew up in a political Seattle community of activists and artists. In high school, I wrote my senior thesis about Asian-American women and how we are negatively affected by the media. The conclusion of my essay was, "I know that no one in Hollywood is going to create strong, positive stories about Asian-American women, so I'm going to do it myself!" It was at that point that a lot of my ideas and political framework started to build, and I realized some kind of revolution was necessary. That's how I decided I wanted to become a filmmaker. 

Which member of the Wu-Tang Clan best describes your personality?
Ha. Maybe RZA because he keeps pushing his creative vision forward and isn't afraid to work in different artistic mediums. 

Dogs or Cats, who wins? Why?
I've had both dogs and cats so don't make me choose! It would be like picking a favorite child. If you asked me that question when I was younger I would have told you I was a bunny person. I went through a phase when I was 7 where I only ate carrots and used to sign my name in cursive with a small rabbit attached to the end of my last name. 
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What is the best part of any given day for you?
I love coming home to my adorable little pitbull Yuki and partner. We become one big pile of cuddles! Also, my favorite time of day is night. I love doing creative work late at night because people stop needing your immediate attention and you can just sit with your thoughts. I've always been a night owl. 

In a zombie apocalypse who would you want on your survival team?
I would want my whole Fam to be on my team. We would definitely hit up costco to get supplies, drive up to the mountains where the zombies would freeze or at least be slower moving targets in the snow, and spend a lot of time telling stories next to a fire in a cabin. Strong and smart people are good assets to have around, but I think if you are actually going to survive a zombie apocalypse you need people who can make you laugh and feel human again.      

What is the last thing you searched for on google? Pizza Rat

If you could talk to your high school self, what would say?
I would tell my high school self to remember that it will all get better from here.     

What is the best thing or meal you ever ate? 
The one thing that I love is dried mangos. I fiend for them on my period and gobble them up like candy. I even would ask for dried mangos for Christmas as a kid and once got bunches of them in my stocking! 

What is a memorable project that you are working on or have worked on? 
I just got back from shooting a documentary in Japan about 80-year-old Ama free divers. I got to scuba dive with them underwater and ate fresh abalone with them on the beach. They rode around town on motorcycles and are the coolest gang of grandmas I've ever met.   
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Oblivious meets Alice Wong

11/9/2015

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I watch a lot of tv. Thankfully there are other nerds out there who watch tv too. We've found each other on twitter and it makes me feel like I'm not alone when I'm consuming massive amounts of pop culture. Alice Wong aka @SFdirewolf live tweets and covers several tv shows for @NerdsOfColor. Whenever I'm watching The Walking Dead I use the AMC hashtags as well as the Nerds of Color hashtags. I'm looking forward to this fall so I can rejoin the Nerds of Color pop culture conversations! 

Beyond pop culture talk and tweets, Alice is founded the Disability Visibility Project which works with StoryCorps to take down the oral histories of folks of various backgrounds with disabilities. Many thanks to Alice for doing this Oblivious Interview!

Oblivious meets Alice Wong
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Name(s)
Alice Wong, a.k.a. @SFdirewolf

Affiliations (arts org, fun things you do, etc) :
Founder/Project Coordinator of the Disability Visibility Project, Volunteer, 18millionrising.org, Contributor/Live-Tweeter, The Nerds of Color.

What's the one word you are guilty of using too much?
Problematic

How did you end up doing what you are doing now?
One thing just fell into another...funny how that happens! In terms of my social media life, being on Twitter led me to all sorts of opportunities. The folks at 18MR noticed my tweets on the Asian American vote in the 2012 election, through 18MR and Facebook friends, I got involved with The Nerds of Color, sharing various stories about POC culture and that led me to live-tweeting for them with some of my favorite shows such as Game of Thrones and The Walking Dead and so on and so forth...
  
Which member of the Wu-Tang Clan best describes your personality?
Ol' Dirty Bastard...purely because I love the name

Dogs or Cats, who wins? Why?
Cats--always cats. Cats have a wider range of personality compared to dogs. Cats can be as affectionate and needy as dogs, BUT they can be as selfish, asshole-y, and smug like any other human. Also, cats don't need humans, unlike dogs.

What is the best part of any given day for you?

The first long sip of my hot coffee w/ milk and sugar.



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In a zombie apocalypse who would you want on your survival team?
A Boy Scout/MacGyver type, a paramedic, a hunter, an empathetic/caregiver type to keep us connected and nurtured, a construction worker, and a storyteller/musician/artist (to keep our spirits and histories alive during these dark days).

What is the last thing you searched for on google?
Names of all the members of the Wu-Tang Clan.

If you could talk to your high school self, what would say?
Hang on girl, keep yo shit together...you got this!

What is the best thing or meal you ever ate?

Too many to name, but my most recent was my mom's stuffed eggplant, 茄子餅. It's two slices of eggplant with ground pork sandwiched in the middle and deep fried in a tempura batter. SO EFFIN' GOOD!

What is a memorable project that you are working on or have worked on?

Disability Visibility Project, a community partnership with StoryCorps. This is a campaign I launched last year collecting the oral histories of people with disabilities in the United States. It's been an awesome experience highlighting the diversity of the disability community and having the opportunity to archive these stories at the Library of Congress thanks to StoryCorps. For more information, check out: http://disabilityvisibilityproject.com/in-the-pressnews/
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Oblivious meets Jenn Santos Estacio

11/4/2015

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In the early 2000s Jenn and I were Festival of Philippine Arts and Culture community builders who put a lot of time, energy, and sometimes tears (on my end, not sure about hers) into the festival!  Besides her work with FPAC and FilAm Arts she is also blogs at A Bite of Soul where she shares about her delicious foodie and travel adventures! In honor of FPAC coming up this Saturday, I'm excited to share this interview with Jenn!

Oblivious meets Jenn Santos Estacio
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Name(s)
​Jenn Santos Estacio

Affiliations (arts org, fun things you do, etc) :
FilAM ARTS
Kappa Psi Epsilon
A Bite of Soul

What's the one word you are guilty of using too much?
UGH!

How did you end up doing what you are doing now?
I've always been involved with my Filipino American community and the work I do with FilAM Arts is a stress reliever for me. It's actually fun work (challenging at times) but the pay off is worth it. 

Growing up, my parents loved to cook and I never understood why until I lived on my own and learned how to cook. I'm a wannabe chef and I love to eat at the hottest new restaurant, but also finding those hole in the wall places too! 

Which member of the Wu-Tang Clan best describes your personality?
Method Man
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Dogs or Cats, who wins? Why?
Dogs! They are just too cute! 

What is the best part of any given day for you?
Cooking in the kitchen and testing new recipes. Also a good workout that makes me sweat

In a zombie apocalypse who would you want on your survival team?
Darryl (duh!)

What is the last thing you searched for on google?
How to make Thai Food

If you could talk to your high school self, what would say?
Do what you are passionate about and who cares what other's think as long as you are happy

What is the best thing or meal you ever ate?
A fusion take on Asian and French cuisine: Cassia in Santa Monica, CA

What is a memorable project that you are working on or have worked on?
Right now, I'm in heavy planning for the Festival of Philippine Arts and Culture and just seeing fresh new faces taking on a tradition here in the LA area is so refreshing. 

Also, I finally get to use all my Pinterest boards to figure out how to DIY some new home decor at my new house. ​
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Oblivious meets Kristina Wong

11/2/2015

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When I was in college I did an internship with TeAda Productions. Kristina Wong was one of the people who supervised me. I was a wide eyed college student taking in all I could at this arts organization. As years progressed I would run into Kristina at Tuesday Night Cafe and other Asian American events around Los Angeles. Her work always wows me. I am so honored that she did this Oblivious Interview. And I'll give her a pass for her answer to the Wu-Tang question!  

You can check out Kristina in action in her show 'Wong Street Journal' at REDCAT running from Nov 12-15th. Buy Tix Here: Wong Street Journal at REDCAT

Follow Kristina Wong on Facebook (iloveKristinaWong), Twitter (@mskristinawong), and Instagram (@mskristinawong).  Check out her website for more info on her shows and dates! (KristinaWong.com).
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Photo credit - Tom Fowler
Name(s)
Kristina Wong

Affiliations (arts org, fun things you do, etc) :
I'm a performance artist, comedian and writer.  I make solo theater shows, write plays, make Youtube videos and write essays.  I am also teaching performance at Cal Arts this Fall in the MFA for Creative Writers program this Fall.  And for those who don't ever leave their TV screen to watch live work, I also have been on Comedy Central, FXX, and General Hospital.
 
My new show is The Wong Street Journal and it is at the REDCAT November 12-15.  
Here is the link... http://www.redcat.org/event/kristina-wong-wong-street-journal

What's the one word you are guilty of using too much?
"YaknowwhatImsaying?"
 
How did you end up doing what you are doing now?
As a teenager, I didn't know what I do now could actually be a career.  I thought there were actors and writers but not people who did both and wrote one woman shows.  I always assumed that as a performer, you had to wait for someone to write you a role.  Before college, I pretty much was only exposed to plays and musicals written by white men and thought that if I were to pursue the arts as a career that I'd be at the mercy of "colorblind casting."  I didn't know that humor or performance could be political, feminist or subversive.  I didn't even know what "feminist" was.  When I was at UCLA, I was introduced to the Chicano Theater Movement and theater artists of color making interdisciplinary performance work that was relevant and important.  I was totally into it and convinced it would be my life. 

It was pretty frightening when I graduated from UCLA and all my classmates were working for big fancy corporations and I was making $10/hr at part time job with a non profit arts company and trying to make my career happen.  Those were really ugly times.  I was broke, miserable, and easily discouraged.  My first speaking gigs out of college came when I basically forced myself onto college classes that were teaching www.bigbadchinesemama.com (my fake mail order bride website).  Eventually, in these college classroom settings, I'd talk more and more about my performance work and less about the website.  Because my work doesn't fit neatly into the box of stand-up comedy, it was really difficult to get theaters (who'd never heard of me anyway) to take me on in my work.  I was lucky to have people in my life who were people of color who toured their work to theaters and colleges and they helped demystify things for me.

Now I've made five full length solo theater shows, an ensemble play, and a lot of other crazy guerilla performance projects. I haven't had a job working for someone else in ten years. I'm on tour a lot. I'm always working on ten projects t once. I pretty much don't think I can get a straight job at this point because an employer would google me and the jig would be up.  

Which member of the Wu-Tang Clan best describes your personality?
Flavor Flav.  Am I doing this right?

Dogs or Cats, who wins? Why?
I'm a total cat lady.  But dogs are growing on me.  For someone who tours, cats are the better pet to own because you can leave them for a while and feed them at weird times.  

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Photo credit - Tom Fowler
What is the best part of any given day for you?
Around 10am.  The whole day feels possible.  The end of the day gets depressing because nothing got done.
 
In a zombie apocalypse who would you want on your survival team?
People from Vermont.  They seem to know how to do things like make syrup come out of trees and farm animals and shit.

What is the last thing you searched for on google?

"how much do chinese factory workers make" 

If you could talk to your high school self, what would say?
All your dreams are going to come true, so stop doubting it.  And stop picking your zits.
 
What is the best thing or meal you ever ate?
I've had a lot of good food.  But one of the most magical food experience I've had was in Quezon City, Philippines at a place called "Van Gogh is Bipolar".  It's something of an anti-restaurant where everything about the ritual of eating out is flipped over it's head into this spiritual (but not in a creepy way) experience.  It's eating as performance art.  The owner lives in the space and the last part of the meal ends with you alone in his bedroom reading aloud a love letter to yourself.  This is better than it sounds.
PicturePhoto credit - Diana Wyenn
What is a memorable project that you are working on or have worked on?
In making The Wong Street Journal, I went to Gulu, Uganda to work with a microloan organization as part of research for my show.  I didn't know exactly what the show would look like but did know that I'd get something amazing out of the experience. My third night there, I met some guys at a food stand in the street.  I followed them into a music studio and we started recording a rap album that now plays in the nightclubs and on the radio in Northern Uganda.  That music and the story of meeting those guys is in The Wong Street Journal.

To check out the music we made together--->  http://kristinawong.bandcamp.com/

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Photo credit - Tom Fowler
Many thanks to Kristina for this interview! Folks should definitely check out her The Wong Street Journal at REDCAT this November!
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