Reflections on the Screen & Stage

Photography by Abbie Huynh

Coming off of one of the most successful years for Asian representation in Hollywood, Michelle Yeoh made history this year as the first Asian woman to win Best Actress at the Oscars. With Asian stars and filmmakers sweeping the award scene with films such as “Everything Everywhere All At Once" and "RRR", all seems bright in the film world. 2022 was filled with triumphs for the AAPI community, with big budget production companies like Disney creating films like “Turning Red” and “Shang-Chi.”

I wanted to gain some insight on the presence of API people in film and theater, along with their experiences that led them to follow their dreams in the creative space. I spoke with Gregory DeJesus, a junior film student at UCF and Alyssa Scripture, a sophomore studying film as well. The two are working on their own passion projects, with DeJesus currently producing a short film titled “Donna & Crystal” and Scripture aspiring to become a Director of Photography.

DeJesus noted that many of his inspirations come from Asian filmmakers such as Satoshi Kon, whose works include “Perfect Blue”, “Millennium Actress” and “Tokyo Godfathers,” and Hayao Miyazaki, best known for his works at Studio Ghibli. Both Kon and Miyazaki are known for their animated features and the way concise and well-written stories are woven into their art. Like these directors, DeJesus hopes to one day spearhead and produce his own stories for the big screen.

Similarly, Scripture mentions Kon’s works as well, along with Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert, the directors and writers for “Everything Everywhere All At Once,” and Boon Jong-Ho, the director for “Parasite.” Both of these films were received with critical acclaim due to both the performances in the films and technical aspects such as the editing, composition, etc. Scripture goes on to talk about how their personal stories of where they started and where they want to go deeply resonated with her.

With the recent news of the recent Oscar wins, both feel fired up from the triumphs.

“Hearing Michelle Yeoh say: 'This is to everyone who looks like me, to all the boys and girls.' I was like, ‘Oh my god, that’s me!’” DeJesus said.

Her words resonated with thousands of supporters as she accepted the award, with thousands liking and retweeting her win online.

“I think this is something that we have been working so hard towards for a very long time, and tonight we freaking broke that glass ceiling. I kung fu’ed it out and shattered it, and we need this because there are so many who felt unseen, unheard,” Yeoh quipped in a post-award interview.

With notable Asian individuals such as Phillipa Soo, best known for her role as Eliza Schuyler in Hamilton, and Marc deLaCruz, who recently joined the Hamilton cast as the first Asian man to play the lead role, the push for more representation in the theater scene is definitely present.

While Asian/AAPI representation has had its ups, there are still other barriers to consider. For example, the “K-POP” musical featured the first female Asian composer on Broadway, with a plot centered around Korean pop culture. But after just 44 preview shows and 17 public shows, the musical “shut” its doors for good.

With the K-Pop genre growing more and more in recent years, many are confused at the lack of interest, with both DeJesus and Scripture saying that they weren’t aware of its existence. DeJesus went on to compare it to Disney’s recent film “Strange World”, a film that primarily featured LGBTQIA+ people of color that also performed poorly due to mishandled marketing. This mirrors some of the reasons “K-POP” closed so quickly, a mix of poor marketing and being unable to retain sales. With such a large cast full of Asian representation, it’s disheartening to see it leave Broadway after only being open for a couple of weeks.

In a 2019 study by the Asian American Performers Action Coalition, also known as the AAPAC, Asian American representation on New York City stages decreased from 6.9% to 6.3% and merely 4.4% of writers are of Asian descent. The statistics for Asian Broadway Producers is even lower, with only 2.1%. There’s still much to be desired from the stage.

And even with this year’s recent Oscar wins, the film industry still seems lacking. While there have been a total of 1,808 acting Oscar nominations, only 23 of those nominations identify as Asian. Out of that 23, only six have won their respective awards, with Yeoh and her co-star Ke Huy Quan making up two of those awards.

Scripture argues that the industry is still primarily headed by white men, with their influence aiding the low numbers. White elitism is still present in the industry, with DeJesus referencing the TikTok phrase “nepo babies” in regards to those in film and theater who’s rise to fame can be attributed to pre-existing connections to the industry. These connections push people to higher positions or roles, with a majority of them being white such as Lily Rose-Depp, Maya Hawke and Lily Collins.

And getting through the “nepo babies” isn’t the only barrier for AAPI people. Whitewashing and yellowface still persists today.

A prime example of this is Scarlett Johansson’s casting in “Ghost In the Shell,” a film based on a popular Japanese cyberpunk franchise. Though the original media and the film itself is set in a fictional city in Japan, even the protagonist's name was changed from Motoko Kusanagi to Mira Killian to reflect this controversial casting. Similarly, in 2017, Netflix acquired the rights to produce the cult classic manga “Death Note” into a live action film. But rather than choosing an Asian actor to portray the character Light Yagami, instead the name was changed to Light Turner and a white actor was cast instead. The same happened to other characters in the cast, showing no effort to retain the original setting or characters.

“You are doing a disservice to everybody else that wants to see representation of themselves in these pieces of media,” Scripture said.

In stage shows like “Madame Butterfly", “Miss Saigon” and “Thoroughly Modern Millie,” Asian characters are played by white actors and actresses using yellowface. With the use of makeup, acting, and garish stereotypical depictions of East Asians, the characters end up as mockeries of Asian people. Though many protest the use of it, some still continue to produce these shows in schools and commercial theaters, all while using yellowface.

“Thoroughly Modern Millie” in particular came under fire in 2019 when protests erupted at a high school trying to put the production on. The musical itself features two Chinese characters, who portray racist stereotypes, along with a white woman disguising herself as a Chinese woman to run a white slavery ring. Even with its controversy, schools and productions continue to produce the show, only halting production when coming under fire.

“It’s an issue that can absolutely be avoided, and it’s glazed over a lot,” Scripture states.

When Asians started being cast, they’d be typecast into roles that ‘fit’ them. These roles are built on a misguided perception of Asian people: the nerdy kid, the soft, submissive woman or the sharp, fox eyed villainess. While things have changed in recent years, we still see the impact these tropes and stereotypes have left on the public image of API individuals.

So, what should Hollywood and Broadway do to fix all of this?

“Uplift Asian artists. There’s so many of us around, just give us a chance. It’s great to choose people who have different stories and new stories to tell— ones that haven’t been told before onscreen or on stage,” DeJesus said.