Santa Barbara International Film Festival 2020 – Mochitsuki
How One Community Celebrates the Japanese New Year, bringing together tradition, family and love… all through MOCHI.
Interview with Director Sky Bergman
Congratulations! Why did you make your film?
Mochitsuki: Celebrating the Japanese New Year came as an offshoot of my first feature, but it also occupies a special place as a part of my own immediate family’s history. This wasn’t a project that mapped out and said, “OK, this is next, how am I going to make it work?” It was something that needed to be documented, needed to be done. I’m a professor at Cal Poly and one of the things I try to show my students is what they plan for, the things they want to do, aren’t always what’s begging to be done. Sometimes you really have to pay attention, but more often than not, it’s right there in front of you.
Imagine I’m a member of the audience. Why should I watch this film?
I hope they reflect on the traditions that bring families together and what it takes to keep them going. My first documentary was the feature-length Lives Well Lived. It’s about connecting with the oldest among us (75-100+) and listening to their stories. During filming, it became clear that much of what we pass on is through food. The Japanese tradition of making Mochi stood out to me as something I could break off into a film of its own. I think all audiences can relate to food and how it connects them to a sense of family, place, and home.
How do personal and universal themes work in your film?
My sister-in-law is Japanese and she and my brother are raising their two little boys in Japan. So, through my own family ties, I’ve been introduced to the tradition. When I met and interviewed Susy Eto Bauman for Lives Well Lived we started a conversation about Mochi. I shared with her my family’s background and she taught me a little more about her family’s custom and the lengths they’ve gone to preserve it. It was a seamless exchange. At times like that, you sort of have to really jump in and say to yourself, “this is what I should be focusing on. This is the story.” As a filmmaker, sometimes that’s difficult because you have an idea going in and it turns into this other thing. I was lucky enough to be invited to chronicle their Mochi celebration and it all fell into place. The day I was filming Mochitsuki here in California, my brother and his family were making Mochi in Japan.
How have the script and film evolved over the course of their development?
As someone who films documentaries, I always have an idea going in and I try to research the subject matter the best I can so I have a plan. But also, you get into it, and something else unfolds. I like to think about every story as having layers. There’s what you’ll tell someone in passing when they ask how your day is going, “It’s fine.” And then there’s the real story of your day that would surface if someone were to sit down and take a few hours with you and really listen. It’s my job to listen. And it’s my job to translate what I’m hearing into a film.
What type of feedback have you received so far?
Well, I think people have enjoyed it. It’s short but in that time there are a lot of smiles, a lot of kids laughing, and a lot of hard work going into a celebration. Those things are tough to disagree with. A lot of folks have saId the film leaves them *a-hem* hungry for more. But, you know, in filming, and editing and watching it, I realized this story of celebration spans generations, and upheaval, and conflict, and internment—it's the one where there’s room to go a lot further. Not every film is like that.
Has the feedback surprised or challenged your point of view?
I am gratified that people enjoy the positive message of the film. And I believe there’s more to the story as well.
What are you looking to achieve by having your film more visible on www.wearemovingstories.com?
I hope that a wider audience will look for the film and that watching Mochitsuki will enable viewers to reflect on their own families and the traditions they might have to pass along through the generations. Sometimes we take our family traditions for granted, we don’t even think about them because they’ve always been there. But if people can pause, there’s something that’s probably been done at least once a year that shapes their identity and is a part of their fondest memories. I hope the film evokes that.
Who do you need to come on board (producers, sales agents, buyers, distributors, film festival directors, journalists) to amplify this film’s message?
It would be wonderful to have journalists come on board to help spread the message of the film. I’m a big believer in word of mouth, and showing films to specific audiences who might relate to the subject matter most is so important. But it’s always nice when someone who is an expert in parsing through the thousands of offerings out there accepts some work you did and even become a champion of it.
What type of impact and/or reception would you like this film to have?
I feel like everyone might have a similar answer here: Of course we want our work to be well-received and liked by all. I’m sure I fall into that category too. For me, in this film, in particular, I’d like to leave people with a sense that there is much more of a backstory there. That a celebration is a way to connect with past lives with future ones, but the story, as told through food, is ever-changing and is always being updated. I want this to feel like a complete project, but, at the same time, stir up some curiosity.
What’s a key question that will help spark a debate or begin a conversation about this film?
Oh wow. I haven’t thought about this film in terms of debate, but I see your point. I think we’re at a time in history where a lot of things are happening that feel out of our control or are stripping us of our identity. And this happens especially to marginalized groups. Filming this celebration, I got the feeling that it was a time where everything paused, everything was tangible, everyone was there just for that moment. And it was also a group where some of the elders had survived the most unspeakable of hardships in order to be there to share it. We desperately need to hold on to our values and traditions—our morals—when forces beyond your control are actively stripping them away.
Would you like to add anything else?
Lives Well Lived is the reason this film exists. It all started with my grandmother coming to live with me for a month every summer. Before I had any notion of doing a documentary, it was about being with her, cooking, and talking. The film was a way for me to communicate how much that time meant to me, and how much I learned from her. Everything since has been an offshoot of that. What’s happening in your everyday life that you care about, that helps you learn, that’s making you grow? The thing you should be doing, the thing you’re really passionate about, is usually right in front of you.
What other projects are the key creatives developing or working on now?
I just finished another short film called Forever Voters. Why in the past have only 36% of 18-25-year-olds voted? Many high school seniors are eligible to vote and have very strong opinions about what needs to change! But they don’t really know much about the voting process or how to register. The League of Women Voters is stepping in to educate high schoolers to prepare them for voting because they know that people who vote early, vote forever. I can’t think of an election year where this message has been more crucial, certainly not in my lifetime.
Interview: January 2020
We Are Moving Stories embraces new voices in drama, documentary, animation, TV, web series, music video, women's films, LGBTQIA+, POC, First Nations, scifi, supernatural, horror, world cinema. If you have just made a film - we'd love to hear from you. Or if you know a filmmaker - can you recommend us? More info: Carmela
Mochitsuki
How One Community Celebrates the Japanese New Year, bringing together tradition, family and love… all through MOCHI.
Length: 4:47
Director: Sky Bergman
Producer: Sky Bergman
Writer: Sky Bergman
About the writer, director and producer:
SKY BERGMAN is an accomplished, award-winning filmmaker and photographer. Sky’s directorial debut, Lives Well Lived, has received rave reviews and 100% fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes. Her newest film, Mochitsuki premieres at the SBIFF. Her fine art photography work is included in permanent collections and her commercial work has appeared on book covers and in magazines. She is currently a Professor of Photography and Video at Cal Poly State University in San Luis Obispo, CA.
Looking for: journalists
Facebook: Sky Bergman Productions
Instagram: @skybergmanproductions
Hashtags used: #Mochi, #intergenerational
Website: www.skybergmanproductions.com
Other: IMDb
Where can I watch it next and in the coming month? Santa Barbara International Film Festival, January 19, 2020 at 5 p.m. at the Arlington Theatre