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MANZANAR, DIVERTED: WHEN WATER BECOMES DUST

LOGLINE:
From the majestic peaks of the snow-capped Sierras to the parched valley of Payahuunadü, “the land of flowing water,” MANZANAR, DIVERTED: WHEN WATER BECOMES DUST poetically weaves together memories of intergenerational women. Native Americans, Japanese-American WWII incarcerees and environmentalists form an unexpected alliance to defend their land and water from Los Angeles.

  • Ann Kaneko
    Director
    A Flicker in Eternity, short documentary , Against the Grain: An Artist’s Survival Guide to Perú, feature documentary
  • Jin Yoo-Kim
    Producer
    A WOMAN'S WORK: THE NFL'S CHEERLEADER PROBLEM, KTOWN '92, TAKE EVERY WAVE: THE LIFE OF LAIRD HAMILTON
  • Ann Kaneko
    Producer
    A Flicker in Eternity, short documentary , Against the Grain: An Artist’s Survival Guide to Perú, feature documentary
  • Susan Metzger
    Editor
    THANK YOU FOR COMING, RIGHT FOOTED
  • Project Type:
    Documentary
  • Genres:
    ENVIRONMENTAL, SOCIAL JUSTICE, ASIAN AMERICAN, NATIVE AMERICAN, WATER, SUSTAINABILITY, COLONIZATION
  • Runtime:
    1 hour 23 minutes 52 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    February 1, 2021
  • Production Budget:
    692,819 USD
  • Country of Origin:
    United States
  • Country of Filming:
    United States
  • Language:
    English
  • Shooting Format:
    DIGITAL
  • Aspect Ratio:
    16:9
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    No
  • Student Project:
    No
  • DC Int Film Festival
    Washington DC
    United States
    May 8, 2021
    East Coast Premiere
    Justice Matters Competition
  • CAAMFEST
    San Francisco
    United States
    May 16, 2021
    California Premiere
    Centerpiece film
  • DOXA
    Vancouver
    Canada
    May 6, 2021
    Canada
  • Milwaukee Film Festival
    milwaukee
    United States
    May 6, 2021
    Milwaukee
  • One Earth Film Festival
    Chicago
    United States
    March 7, 2021
    Chicago
    Official Selection
  • Big Sky Documentary Film Festival 2021
    Missoula
    United States
    February 26, 2021
    World
    Closing Weekend Film
  • Big Sky Pitch
    Missoula
    United States
    February 22, 2020
Director Biography - Ann Kaneko

ANN KANEKO (director/producer) is known for her personal films that weave her intimate aesthetic with the complex intricacies of political reality. Often set in other parts of the world, she poetically probes how power impacts the personal. Her work has screened internationally and been broadcast on PBS Independent Lens and the Newshour. She has been commissioned by the National Endowment for the Arts, the California Endowment and the Skirball Cultural Center. Her films include A FLICKER IN ETERNITY, based on the diary of Stanley Hayami; AGAINST THE GRAIN: AN ARTIST’S SURVIVAL GUIDE TO PERU, highlighting four Peruvian political artists; 100% HUMAN HAIR, a wig shop musical for the AFI Directing Workshop for Women and OVERSTAY, about undocumented foreign workers in Japan. She was the cinematographer for Pam Tom’s Emmy nominated FINDING HOME: A FOSTER YOUTH STORY. Fluent in Japanese and Spanish, Kaneko has been a Fulbright and Japan Foundation Artist fellow and funded by the Hoso Bunka Foundation and Center for Cultural Innovation. She is a member of New Day Films, a national educational distribution cooperative. She has an MFA from UCLA in film directing, teaches at Pitzer College and been the artist mentor for VC’s Armed with a Camera Fellowship for emerging filmmakers.

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Director Statement

We envision that this film will promote discussion and incite change that will bring about more sustainable approaches for caring for our dwindling resources. The film’s message and story will resonate beyond the theater, stir up change and awaken a sense of responsibility to take action to preserve our environment. We believe that the story doesn’t end with the making and screening of this film and that its message will echo far and wide.

When I started Manzanar, Diverted I already understood the power of building bridges. I identify with many communities, and I know that we are strongest when we come together. Especially during these very divisive times, my way of fighting for justice is by bringing together communities, galvanizing a collective voice and emphasizing where common interests lie. This project unveils shared histories of exploitation that will continue to occur if we do not take action. Manzanar, Diverted has awakened my activist heart, reminding me that everyone must care about the environment and that man-made havoc impacts communities of color most. I believe that Manzanar, Diverted will enact powerful paradigm shifts and behavioral changes, empower everyday people to stand up against environmental injustices and encourage the next generation to take responsibility for this planet and raise hell when large corporations and public entities extract natural resources without regard for the land and its people.
We endeavor to educate our citizenry and leaders to tackle our pressing global water issues by charting the history of water relations between Los Angeles and Payahuunadü/Owens Valley. Los Angeles imports 90 percent of its water, much of it from Payahuunadü/Owens Valley. We aim to show how we can build a more sustainable future by acknowledging the damage that big cities have had on the lands where they have extracted water and encourage Angelenos to wean itself from imported water.

This film shows that “We live in the same house,” by celebrating how water is a symbol of resistance and power for the Native American, Japanese American and environmentalist communities. It honors our earth and shows how we must all come together to protect and save our home, as these communities did by overcoming historical differences to tackle this environmental catastrophe.

It shows that “We are one” and that together these communities have been speaking out on the same issue in order to bring about change. Whether it’s standing up to preserve culture on the Owens Lake, mitigating dust to lesson respiratory health problems, build coalitions to freeze solar ranch development or speak out against the exportation of water from the Valley, these communities have been activated on behalf of everyone. In turn, we hope that this documentary rallies and challenges Angelenos to become a part of the solution to our water crisis.

Manzanar, Diverted endeavors to show that ”We are what we think” by educating, inspiring and enriching audiences to step up and take action in the face of this environmental crisis. As an environmental justice film that seeks to show how diverse communities can come together to really make a difference in protecting our planet, it also acknowledges the painful histories of racism and forced removal that have been a part of past colonialism and endeavors to rethink this past as we try to find solutions for the future.