Experiencing Interruptions?

Mia's Mission

Mia Yamamoto has seen it all. She was born in an incarceration camp during World War II. At age 60 she came out as transgender after a 20-year career as a criminal defense attorney in Los Angeles. At age 78, Mia shows no signs of slowing down. We follow her mission throughout the years to rally communities of color around issues of racism and to bring visibility to the LGBTQ community. Her passion is rooted in her deep ties to the geography of L.A. and the neighborhoods she calls home.

  • Jireh Deng
    Director
  • Jireh Deng
    Producer
  • Mia Yamamoto
    Key Cast
  • Jeanette Lam
    Director of Photography
  • Crys Lee
    Assistant camera and photographer
  • Bridgette Yang
    assistant director and production assistant
  • Jireh Deng
    Writer
  • Project Type:
    Documentary, Short, Student
  • Genres:
    LGBTQIA+, Japanese incarceration, Los Angeles
  • Runtime:
    11 minutes 21 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    December 20, 2022
  • Production Budget:
    287 USD
  • Country of Origin:
    United States
  • Country of Filming:
    United States
  • Language:
    English
  • Shooting Format:
    Digital
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    Yes
  • Student Project:
    Yes - CSU Long Beach
  • Digital Cinema Package:
    Unavailable
Director Biography - Jireh Deng

Jireh (they/them) is a queer Taiwanese/Hong Konger American poet and multimedia journalist born and raised in the San Gabriel Valley. They are currently freelancing for various publications including The Los Angeles Times. They serve as the national board representative for the Asian American Journalists Association, L.A. chapter and currently co-direct AAJA national’s LGBTQIA+ affinity group. They’ve been a recipient of writing fellowships from the Key West Literary Seminar and Brooklyn Poets.

Previously they interned with NPR’s Diverse Sources Database and with The Los Angeles Times‘ editorial board. Most recently they were an associate producer with CapRadio’s new podcast MidPacific on Asian American identity and a video fellow with the Asian American Journalists Association’s Voices program. Their poetry has appeared in Ada Limón’s The Slowdown, the Human Rights Campaign, The Los Angeles County Museum of Art, The Rumpus as well as the Asian American Writers’ Workshop. Their journalism has appeared in local and national publications including L.A. Taco, Next City, The Guardian, The Washington Post, amongst other places.

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Director Statement

I was accepted into the Asian American Journalists' Association VOICES program for student journalists. As part of their video cohort, I was searching to specifically film a short doc about a queer Asian American elder based in L.A. So often times, I feel our queer communities are stratified by age and I wanted to find a story that would highlight the presence of our history and existence as queer Asians in our neighborhoods. It was a gift to interview Mia about her life and her work as a criminal defense attorney while working with a volunteer crew of all Asian American women. I was so proud that this film displays queer Asian American talent on-camera and behind it. I was nervous because this was a student project and my first time ever directing a short documentary like this, but I am super proud of the results mainly because I am a self-taught filmmaker who learned how to edit in Premiere Pro for this short documentary.