PIC Exchange: Sons of Hālawa - Recap
Matt Yamashita, filmmaker of Sons of Hālawa, shares his thoughts about the impact of the PIC Exchange screening and his hopes about the impact of the message in his film:
The PIC Exchange screening of Sons of Hālawa at Doris Duke Theater was a very special event. I happened to be on Oʻahu for the screening as I was chaperoning my daughter's 5th grade class from Kaunakakai Elementary School visiting from Molokaʻi. The students had spent the day learning to edit on iMovie and then went on-set for the evening broadcast of Hawaii News Now. Ending their day watching a feature documentary about their home island, produced by someone they know personally as "Sage's Dad," seemed fitting.
We had a great turnout for the screening with over 200 people in attendance. The night was introduced by Leanne Ferrer's daughter, a bright and beaming counterpart to our youth from Molokaʻi. Our Molokaʻi 5th graders then performed their Kaunakakai oli, a chant that speaks of where they are from and who they represent. Clearly, the night was centering on empowering future generations through connection and identity, a theme that is very strong in Sons of Hālawa.
Sons of Hālawa is a simple film that triggers reflection around complex issues: family obligation, connection to place, spirituality, cultural survival, and the struggle between traditional values and modernity. The audience at our PIC Exchange screening responded to the Q&A with questions and comments that spanned all of these themes. It was one of the most engaging and thoughtful Q&A discussions I've ever participated in. My mind, though, kept going back to our 5th graders from Molokaʻi.
I wondered if seeing a story from our tiny home on the big screen, a story that is being nationally broadcast and viewed by millions of people, gave our Molokaʻi youth an expanded sense of their own identity and potential? Then it happened. One of our 5th graders raised his hand and asked what the main character's grandfather meant when he told him to, "remember your roots." I turned the question back on the boy and asked him what he thought it meant. "To remember where you're from and who your family is?" he responded. I nodded and smiled and could see in his eyes a sense of pride and confidence that he got it. This documentary is for all audiences to connect with, learn from, and enjoy... but it is also meant to be a gift for the future generations of our island. A story that will belong to them forever.
These types of discussions and explorations are an important part of documentaries. Documentaries reflect our world and they intimately connect us to places and people and give us opportunities to question, to learn, and to understand. They also serve to empower, protect, and give hope. With free admission and the expectation of serious conversation about the films shown, I think PIC Exchange is a wonderful venue!
If you missed the screening you can catch the broadcast of Sons of Hālawa as part of Pacific Heartbeat this month on public television. Check your local listings.
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