Patrick is joined by friend, writer, director, and composer H.P. Mendoza. He talks about his journey as a filmmaker from his early childhood to now. He discusses everything from Colma: The Musical to I Am a Ghost to Bitter Melon. His latest film The Secret Art of Human Flight, starring Grant Rosenmeyer, Paul Raci, Lucy DeVito, Nican Robinson, Reina Hardesty, Maggie Grace, and Sendhil Ramamurthy premieres at the 2023 Tribeca Film Festival in New York.(0:00) Intros(1:10) How did H.P. get into filmmaking?(4:48) What drew him to "The Secret Art of Human Flight"?(12:26) What was it like working with a larger budget?(15:22) The experience of directing a screenplay he did NOT write(22:10) What he learned as an artist from this film(27:23) Traversing Asian American and LGBTQIA+ film festivals(30:17) H.P.'s advice to other filmmakers and creators(36:32) OutroWatch the video version of this episode on YouTube: youtu.be/U3L2NSwsM1MH.P. Mendoza https://hpmendoza.com, https://www.youtube.com/ @hpmendoza, https://twitter.com/hpmendoza, https://instagram.com/hpmendozaPatrick Epino: twitter.com/PatrickEpino, instagram.com/patrickepinoNational Film Society: nationalfilmsociety.com, twitter.com/NatFilmSociety, instagram.com/nationalfilmsocietyEmail the show: nationalfilmsociety@gmail.comMusic by Paper Son: paperson.bandcamp.com, soundcloud.com/paper-son Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Patrick is joined by friend, actor, director, and producer Yuji Okumoto. He talks about the experience of playing the role of Chozen in The Karate Kid Part 2 in 1986 and revisiting the role decades later on Cobra Kai. He talks about the audition process, memories of the great Pat Morita and Tamlyn Tomita, and the aftermath of being in a massively popular movie in the 1980s.(0:00) Intros(0:48) What was it like auditioning for Chozen?(4:48) Afterwards did he feel like you had a good shot?(7:32) Reaction after getting the part?(9:30) Tamlyn Tomita(11:28) Toughest part of the shoot?(15:21) What was the deal with Chozen's MASSIVE pecs?(20:24) The Tomato-Throwing scene(25:35) Knowing Chozen was going to be an iconic character?(30:48) Karate Kid Part 2 blows up(38:31) Instant fame post-KK2(42:38) Are people still surprised Yuji "speaks English well"?(46:41) What was it like finding roles AFTER The Karate Kid Part 2?(1:00:54) Shooting True Believer in Folsom State Prison(1:03:27) Pat Morita liked to party(1:05:32) On Asian American representation today(1:10:05) On the return of Chozen in Cobra Kai(1:14:53) Where Chozen's been the past 3 decades(1:19:50) Yuji's recommendations for actors, filmmakers, and restaurateurs(1:25:21) OutroWatch the video version of this episode on YouTube: youtu.be/aV3a0VxaJao, youtube.com/PatrickEpinoYuji Okumoto: twitter.com/yujiokumoto, instagram.com/yuji_okumotoKona Kitchen, Yuji's restaurants: konakitchen.comCobra Kai: netflix.com/title/81002370Awesome Asian Bad Guys: amzn.to/3RNmvXDThe Paper Tigers: amazon.com/Paper-Tigers-Jim-Sporleder/dp/B01KKY8SCCOdesza: youtube.com/watch?v=ZkwoBbkSh7kPatrick Epino: twitter.com/PatrickEpino, instagram.com/patrickepinoNational Film Society: nationalfilmsociety.com, twitter.com/NatFilmSociety, instagram.com/nationalfilmsocietyEmail the show: nationalfilmsociety@gmail.comMusic by Paper Son: paperson.bandcamp.com, soundcloud.com/paper-son Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.