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Interview of the Lost In Racism Campaign
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"[The] humor is too often based in stereotypical perceptions of Asians (they're short, they're laughably polite, they eat weird food)."
- Ken Fox, TV Guide
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"[After] it's abundantly clear the movie's going nowhere slowly, [the protagonists] encounter Charlie Brown, or "Chalrie Blown" (the director's friend, Fumihiro Hayashi), who's so thinly developed that he makes Bob and Charlotte look like classic Dickensian creations by comparison."
- Gregory Weinkauf, Dallas Observer
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"Lost in Translation is being promoted as a romantic comedy, but there is only one type of humour in the film that I could see: anti-Japanese racism, which is its very spine."
- Kiku Day, The Guardian
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"Lost in Translation expresses a distasteful racism through romantic comedy. It says, as racists often do, that foreigners, in this case Japanese, are inherently comic and stupid. Of all the Japanese in the film, not one comes across as much better than a cretin.
- Robert Fulford, The National Post
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"The film relies on stale stereotypes of the Japanese for laughs: They’re short! They’re wacky! They can’t pronounce their r’s! ... The film is replete with racial gags that draw from the same old Hollywood stereotypes"
- Melissa Bagtan, Asian American Movement Ezine
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"The Japanese are presented not as people, but as clowns ... the hilarity is rooted entirely in the "otherness""of the Japanese people. We laugh at them, not with them."
- E. Koohan Paik, Color Lines Race Wire
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| Last updated on Sunday, 29 Feb 2004 |
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February 29, 2004 - NEW YORK
On January 31, 2004, following the announcement of the Academy Awards nominations, we launched a campaign to convince the motion picture industry to vote against the film "Lost In Translation" in all awards categories. Within a four short weeks and with limit resources, we did our best to inform The Academy of our objections to the film. Tonight, our campaign officially ends along with the 76th Academy Awards ceremony. We are pleased that "Lost In Translation" lost in three award categories. And we are dissappointed, but not surprised, that the film won for Best Original Screenplay. Our campaign was ultimately about informing artists and audiences about issues facing Asian Americans in the entertainment industry and about lending a voice to those who share our concerns about this film. To this end, we were successful.
We want to thank the motion picture industry and news organizations for listening to our concerns; to film critics and Asian American advocates who wrote about the film's heavy reliance on Japanese stereotypes for humor; and to our dedicated volunteers and supporters who donated time and resources, lobbied voters and handed out flyers at screenings; sent out e-mail blasts, contacted the press, and answered letters.
Our campaign was mostly directed at entertainment industry professionals. The entertainment industry needs to make a more concerted effort to help ensure a fair and balanced portrayal of Asian Americans. Today, Asian Americans are frequently the targets of racial humor and portrayed as caricatures on radio, television, and film, and we are more likely to see negative portrayals of Asian Americans or no portrayal at all. We hope that in the future, producers and artists will remember our concerns and make a greater effort towards a fair and balanced portrayal of Asian Americans.
Now that the Oscars are over, we will continue to engage in other media-related issues that affect the Asian American community. We will participate in positive activities such as supporting our Asian American artists, discussing media-related issues, and continue speaking up against stereotyped portrayals of Asian Americans in the entertainment industry.
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On January 31, 2004, a grassroots organization of Asian Americans launched a nationwide campaign to petition motion picture industry groups, including the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, Directors Guild of America, Screen Actors Guild, and Writers Guild of America, to vote against the film "Lost In Translation" in all awards and categories. Our goal was to convince voting members to support films other than "Lost In Translation." This film is and we do not believe that this film deserves to win any awards. There are better films for awards voters to support.
The film "Lost In Translation" dehumanizes the Japanese people by portraying them as a collection of shallow stereotypes who are treated with disregard and disdain. The film has no meaningful Japanese roles, nor is there any significant dialogue between the main characters and the Japanese. Such portrayals perpetuate negative stereotypes and attitudes that are harmful to Asian Americans in the United States where a significant minority of Americans already have negative attitudes towards Asian Americans.
Volunteers and supporters of the campaign helped pass out flyers and lobby voters at screenings of the film in Los Angeles, New York, and San Francisco; conducted e-mail blasts; contacted the press; and answered letters to our website.
The campaign officially ended on February 29, 2004 with the commencement of the Academy Awards ceremony. The campaign's sponsor, Asian Media Watch, continues its involvement in media-related issues affecting the Asian American community.
http://www.asianmediawatch.net
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One minute film reviews
A look at the film's anti-Japanese themes
Letters from readers like you
- Ms. M. "How can I help?"
- Mike G. "What's wrong with a movie that has fun with these Japan's quirks?
- Douglas "What about the American stereotypes? We laugh WITH not AT the Japanese"
- Daniel S. "I've been to Tokyo ... It's just like that."
Campaign flyer addressed to awards voters:
Los Angeles (Rev. 2)
New York (Rev. 3)
Campaign press release HTML
Read more about racism in "Lost In Translation" HTML
*PDF file requires free Acrobat Reader
Become involved in media-related issues that affect the Asian American community. Visit us at our main website:
http://www.asianmediawatch.net
The lost-in-racism.org Campaign is sponsored by www.asianmediawatch.net -- a grassroots organization of individuals in the Asian American community whose mission is to promote a fair and balanced portrayal of Asian Americans in the entertainment industry.
For more information about us:
Visit us our main website at: www.asianmediawatch.net
Or e-mail us at:
Based on feedback that we've received, we have decided to cancel the fund-raiser for the ad in Variety magazine. To support our campaign and the APA community in other ways, please contact us at:
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lost-in-racism.org campaigns against the film "Lost In Translation" and its negative portrayal of the Japanese that is harmful to the Asian American community.
| FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE |
CONTACT: |
| February 5, 2004 |
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NEW YORK - February 5, 2004 - An organization of Asian Americans launches a nationwide campaign to petition the motion picture industry, including Academy Award members, to vote against the film "Lost In Translation." There are other better films for voting members to support at the Academy, and at other industry awards. Voting members should not reward a film that gives a biased and offensive portrayal of the Japanese. This film perpetuates racial and cultural insensitivity towards Asian Americans.
The humor and lampooning of the Japanese in the film has a distinctly racial element. The film portrays the Japanese people as a collection of shallow stereotypes. The audience laughs AT the Japanese people and not with them. Japanese characters in the film include the weird prostitute and other Japanese who mispronounce their R's and L's; an ineffectual film director, strippers, and doctors who assault you with the Japanese language; the stoic arrogant sushi chef; and an emasculate colorful talk show host and partygoers.
The main characters' callous treatment towards these stereotyped Japanese is unfair and offensive. The main characters are portrayed as normal people while the Japanese are bizarre. The main characters prey on the Japanese and their inability to understand English. Particularly offensive are the hackneyed stereotypical jokes such as the overdone juxtaposition of L's and R's, mocking them because they bow and are short, and references to their disgusting food. The main characters visibly express disdain, and make insulting remarks and jokes in the direct presence of Japanese characters. There are no redeeming Japanese roles in the film, nor is there any significant dialogue between the main characters and the Japanese characters. They merely serve as buffoons for the main characters to ridicule.
"Lost In Translation" provides a biased and offensive portrayal of the Japanese people and perpetuates negative stereotypes that are harmful to the Asian American community. Had this film been set in Africa or Mexico, for example, we do not think Ms. Coppola would have given such an insensitive and racist portrayal of a people. This film is indicative of a level of mainstream tolerance and acceptance of Asian American discrimination that would otherwise be unacceptable if directed towards African and Hispanic Americans.
Asians and Asian Americans are frequently portrayed as caricatures and the target of racist jokes in American radio, television, and film. Caricatures and racist humor lead to discrimination, racist taunts, and violence. This makes the film's portrayal even more dangerous. Due to films such as "Lost In Translation", we Asian Americans are treated as foreigners in our own country.
We respectfully ask voting members to vote against the film "Lost In Translation" at the Academy Awards and at any other industry awards.
lost-in-racism.org is a grassroots organization of individuals in the Asian American community whose mission is to promote a fair and balanced portrayal of Asian Americans in the entertainment industry. Visit our website at:
https://lost-in-racism.org
Disclaimer: lost-in-racism.org represents only the personal opinions of individuals in the Asian American community. We are not affiliated with any production studio or Academy Award nominee.
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