By Geraldine Shu
NAP Contributor
Minidoka: A Song Film by Kishi Bashi was shown in May as a free virtual event honoring the 25th anniversary of the Minidoka National Historic Site in Idaho.
Kishi Bashi (Kaoru Dill-Ishibashi), an American singer-songwriter and filmmaker, created and performed violin improvisations on the Minidoka historic campsite, using the history of the place as his inspiration. His goal was to create a visceral experience that connects history through music. One piece was done on farmland that the incarcerates had labored to make cultivable and productive.
“Though confined, they transformed the land.” *
Another composition was performed in front of the root cellar. A third piece was set on the baseball diamond where children (including Kishi Bashi’s father) had played amid the surrounding starkness.
The music was influenced by the 1901 Japanese song, Kojo no Tsuki, which Kishi Bashi felt the Japanese immigrants would have related to. It was quite beautiful and moving against the barren though picturesque backdrop, which was interspersed with archival black and white photos of camp life and internees. Ideally, the documentary would have been even more immersive on a 3D screen in a theater with surround sound rather than in 2D in one’s home with computer audio. The film ran for about 15 minutes, leaving the viewers wanting more.
The screening was followed by an interview and Q&A with Kishi Bashi. He considers himself a holistic and visionary artist and deeply values art created in difficult situations. Justin Taylor Smith, the film director who shot the footage, was unable to participate in this Zoom presentation. Robyn Achilles, executive director of Friends of Minidoka, graciously moderated the event. More than 200 guests logged on.
“The land remembers history. So should we.” *
For more information, see www.minidoka.org/event-details/minidoka-film-screening.
(*These were quotes from the film printed on screen.)
