oblivious nerd girl
hood chronicles

​October is Filipino American History Month. Oblivious Interviews will feature Filipino-Americans doing kick ass things. This interview is with Janice Sapigao. I met Janice when she was organizing with Justice for Filipino American Veterans. Mike had been a part of the JFAV Steering Committee that planned the annual Veteran's Day Rally/Parade through Historic-Filipinotown. Janice was a part of the new leadership that continued to do the important advocacy work for Filipino American Veterans. 

Throughout her time in Los Angeles, Janice founded Sunday Jump, a monthly community open mic series in Historic-Filipinotown. Sunday Jump takes place at Kapistahan Grill (1925 W Temple St, Los Angeles, CA 90026). Sunday Jump is a space for storytelling, good food, and good vibes. Thank you for the Sunday Jump family for this Oblivious Interview!

​Oblivious meets Janice Sapigao

Steph Cariaga is an amazing teacher, friend, mother, woman extraordinaire. When she was a teacher at Locke high school she invited me to be a mentor to a student in a mentorship group that she had developed with a fellow teacher.  Props to the high school teachers who create space for their students. Steph is definitely one of those teachers.  

She's now on that grad student grind. Surprisingly I haven't run into her at work, but hopefully we'll run into each other more often! Steph is also a part of the People's Education Movement. Their mission is "Educators seeking to create sustainable liberatory spaces inside and beyond the classroom, to promote growth, healing, and transformation."  People's Ed is hosting an event: Self-care for SistarMaestras on Sunday, October 4th, 2-5pm.  Self care is something we all should practice, especially the teachers who give so much of themselves through their work. Space is limited so RSVP right away!  Enjoy this excellent interview with Steph: 

Oblivious meets Steph Cariaga

Calling all emerging artists! The Visual Communications Armed With A Camera Fellowship is accepting submissions. If you are an aspiring filmmaker I encourage you to apply! This fellowship allows folks to create art, network with fellow Asian Pacific Islander American artists, & showcase your short film at the Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival.

From Visual Communications:

ARMED WITH A CAMERA SUBMISSIONS OPEN! 

Deadline Oct. 2

Vanguard Visual Communications Program Embarks on 2015-16 Cycle

The deadline for application submissions for the 14th cycle of our pioneering Armed With a Camera Fellowship for Emerging Media Artists is October 2, 5pm PST!

Since 2002, AWC fellows have produced over 100 digital films; many alumni have gone on to produce full-length feature films and documentaries, initiated their own arts education endeavors, and so much more! 

If you are an emerging filmmaker, or know of others who are interested, please support and spread the word! 

APPLY HERE

 

PICTURED: On the set of AWC Fellow Yoko Okumura's OUR PLACE IN THE SKY (2015).

I'm so excited for this Oblivious Interview. I can't remember how I met Marjorie, but I'm glad I know her. She's a dope ass dj who puts out hot fire mixes. For folks who love to dance you have got to check her out. I am especially stoked to check out her latest EP Tambol. I love when artist infuse Filipino instruments into their music. 

Follow Gingee on Facebook (Gingee),  Twitter (@gingeeworld), and Instagram (@gingeeworld). Check her out on Soundcloud (Gingee). Support her by picking up her music on bandcamp (Gingee)!

Oblivious meets Marjorie Light aka GINGEE

Support DJ Won. El Monte Police Department is charging him with a noise disturbance fine because he was providing sound for a protest against police brutality. Click on the pic to get to the gofundme page or click here: HELP DJ WON

It's that time of year! Visual Communications is accepting submissions for the 32nd annual  Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival.  The early submission deadline is Friday, October 30th, 2015 at 5pm. The early submission fee is $25. The final submission deadline is Friday, November 27th at 5pm. The fee for the final submission deadline is $35. Don't wait! Get your films in early!
Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival 2016 Open Call

Questions about the festival? Here is a list of handy FAQ's!

I'm excited to be volunteering with the festival again this year. Can't wait to screen and post my festival recommendations!

The festival says it best:

Faith Choyce is a hilarious comedian that I follow on twitter (@teamsexydork). Her hashtag game is consistently on point. I am waiting for Chris Hardwick to shout out "POINTS!" to her already.  Follow her on facebook (facebook.com/faithchoyce). Check out her site for her show dates (faithchoyce.com) And support her on Patreon (patreon.com/faithchoyce) which supports her comedic shorts, webisodes, and vlogs. Support creative artists create more content for you to enjoy! When your bio says "Comedian. Unicorn Wrangler. Cat Enthusiast." I need to learn more about you. And now you can to in this Oblivious Interview with Faith Choyce!

Today is Grandparents day. It is also the day after my birthday. Today was spent in the Great One Eight. Brunch with my parents at Stonefire in West Hills. Ice cream at Wanderlust in Tarzana. And I visited my Lolo and Lola at San Fernando Mission Cemetery. 

Last night I called out a last minute get together at Oiwake in Little Tokyo for my birthday. Many thanks to the friends and homies who came out.   I love that it's a small Filipino American world and I ran into a) someone who I work with on Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival, b) someone who I grew up with from St. Genevieve Elementary School and High School, and c) someone I knew from college. These folks were all doing one last hurrah at Oiwake, like I was, so we combined forces to create one large and loud Filipino party. It felt like an old school Oiwake get together. Fun times all around. 

While I was taking pictures of the festivities last night my phone was acting up. When I would open up the camera this picture I have of my Lolo Gabing and Lola Sabel would pop up before the camera would appear. Totally weird. I took it as a sign to visit them today. I already had plans to see them, but the picture popping up randomly last night really felt like the strong push to see them this afternoon. I got a little lost and spent a few minutes looking for them, but eventually I found them!  I took a picture and notes on remembering where they are. Hopefully I don't forget again!

In honor of Grandparents day I worked on the second episode of Lessons From Lola. I tried my hand at editing and producing this episode. I am eternally grateful for Mike walking me through the editing process. That was not a joke and I give heaps upon heaps of props to the folks who edit podcasts for a living and put out multiple podcasts a week/month. 

Episode 2 is about food and the lies that parents will tell to steal food from their children. Well at least that's what my mom did! Yes this story is about my mom, but no worries we circle back to the lesson Lola has taught me about how to get what you want when what you want is delicious crab goodness.

If you have a story about your Lola or Lolo and you want to share hIt me up on twitter @OblivNerdGirl with the hashtag #LessonsFromLola. You can also email me at ObliviousNerdGirl at Gmail dot com

On today's edition of Oblivious Interviews, I'm honored to have a fellow Virgo who I share a birthday with today, Justin Quizon of Agents of GUARD! I met Justin through his brother Joel. Both Quizon brothers are involved in creative projects that inspire me to pursue my own creative pursuits. Justin was recently on the a reality cooking show called Eat Your Words where Justin and his friend Quincy attempt to recreate a dish that they have negatively reviewed online. Definitely check that out! 

Happy birthday Justin! I can't wait for folks to meet you on Oblivious meets Justin Quizon

Thank you to everyone who came out to this past week's Color Your Troubles away event! 

Save the date for the next event! Tuesday, October 13th, 7-9pm at The Park's Finest BBQ in Historic-Filipinotown!  Fill your bellies with yummy food, have some good conversation, and destress with some coloring!

RSVP by clicking on the picture above or RSVP HERE