World Premiere: Im/Perfection
As any creative can attest to, there is a fine balance between growing your business, maintaining your personal vision and producing meaningful work. Every creative will eventually find a period where a chasm begins to grow between these values. As the relationship becomes increasingly complex, they find themselves sinking into inner turmoil, struggling and questioning their passion and purpose. This is what I call, "burn-out." I hit that wall earlier this year. Maybe it was the culmination of simultaneously moving across the country, planning a wedding, and working tirelessly. Regardless, I hit that point.
Reflecting back on the meandering path that lead me to filmmaking I remember an obsession to produce overly-ambitious personal projects at any cost. I created interactive digital projects coupled with exhibitions and community engagement. I usually bit off way more than I could chew, relying on friends and family to bail me out at the last minute. However, no matter how ambitious of a vision, it was still my vision and on my terms.
Come 2016, I felt like I was having a mid-life crisis. I was struggling to catch my breath and inhale the life-saving passion that used to define my work. It had been over four years since I had dedicated time to work on a personal project–Follow My Steps, my Master's project. Looking close to home, I was inspired by my father's familiar (but incomplete) story and the timing of his retirement late last year. What began as oral history, quickly evolved into an overly-ambitious project that resulted in the short film Im/Perfection.
Typically working in the digital world of video and short films, Im/Perfection represents my first plunge into the deep-end of film making. Instead of working on the ground alone, I collaborated with a crew. I directed a post-production team. And I hired a composer and musicians to create and record an original score. The experience was challenging, magical and rewarding all at the same time. The result was a unique film far different from anything I had previously produced whose origin spawned out of personal struggle and burn-out. The result was rejuvenating.
Next month the film will be premiering at the Hawaii International Film Festival as part of their shorts programming on Sunday, November 6 and Saturday, November 12. My wife, Jenny, and I will be attending the first screening to share this special moment with my family and celebrate the tireless work that so many people have contributed to the making of this film.
I need to thank my wife and Associate Producer, Jennifer Moncayo for her consultation, endless support and awesome interview skills. Jessey Dearing for cinematography and photography, and for filming all day in paradise in a construction site (I literally wouldn't show him the beach until we finished filming). Duncan Blickenstaff for his incredible talent to create the original score for this film. Drew Jordan for bringing my father's illustrations to life. The musicians, Mark Robertson on violin, Josefina Vergara on violin, Luke Maurer on viola, and Cameron Stone on cello. Satoshi Noguchi for recording the music and his Jedi sound mixing skills. Sarah Brady Voll for designing the sound of the film. Michael Curry for his meticulous eye in the color grade. And my father, Hitoshi Hida, for sharing his story with me and the world.
I hope to see you next month in Honolulu for the world premiere of Im/Perfection.