film

 THE SOROBAN AND THE PRESENT (2015)

A 20 minute, 16mm film, The Soroban and the Present is part abacus (soroban) tutorial, part historical account, part freeway numerology meditation, and part guerrilla ringing and field recordings of 2 forgotten L.A. bells. It is all love for the city of Los Angeles which, according to the Pythgorean system of numerology, is a “1” – the primal force and number of creation and the most difficult of all lovers.

The soroban: At one point in their lives, most kids in Japan learned to use the soroban in school. Some even went to cram school for additional soroban training. Skilled soroban practitioners (adults and children alike) can perform complex calculations by ‘air soroban’ – ing. The body is the calculator. The film follows the hands of a soroban novice as they begin their training.

The math: After learning basic addition and subtraction on the soroban, the novice will turn their beads towards deciphering the numerological significance of LA freeways; perhaps some of the most frequently uttered numbers in LA lingo. By calculating the “number” of each freeway (405= 4+5=9) a new story emerges, revealing the underlying hidden nature of such familiar terrain.

The present(s): In 1978 a replica of the iconic symbol of Mexican independence, ‘The Bell of Dolores,’ was given as a gift to the United States by the government of Mexico. President Jimmy Carter attended the dedication ceremony at El Pueblo de Los Angeles Historical Monument by Olvera Street in Downtown Los Angeles. ‘The Bell of Dolores’ replica was installed in the middle of a large fountain, in the center of a plaza bearing the same name. 34 years later the large bell was quietly moved over to an adjacent flowerbed, making way for a statue of the late Mexican born mariachi singer and actor Antonio Aguilar on horseback. Another ‘Bell of Dolores’ replica was also installed the same year in El Parque de México, 10 minutes away in Lincoln Park. Internet and library records, however, do not differentiate between the 2 bells.

Unlike their California bell counterparts that line the historic route of El Camino Real, The Bell of Dolores are installed in both locations with their clappers intact.

Los Angeles is a “1”: Ever had the feeling of a big weight being lifted off your soul as you flew out of LAX? That might have something to do with Los Angeles being a numerological 1. As a “1” Los Angeles is the most difficult of all lovers- demanding, confrontational, impatient, and working you all hours of the day. Ever look onto the sandy grid that is Los Angeles from your airplane window and think “eek, how do I keep living here?” but a month later you are right back in it? That’s also probably because L.A., as a “1” is a dedicated partner.

The Soroban and the Present explores unseen forces that possibly inform a love/hate/confused relationship to our land and displaced acts of good will and pride. All the while trying to be a more self reliant and sustaining force of analog embodiment.

 THERE HERE NOW THEN (2012)

  
  MIND THE GAP (2007)

DV, color, sound, 50 minutes Six people are deep in thought as they free associate from word to word, meaning to meaning. Each person is assigned a personally significant word to begin with (salsa, hip hop, transgender, solitude, pain, South Central, Iranian, India, Hello Kitty, wife, beauty) and then asked to free associate from there, using each previous word as a jump off point to the next thought, next word. The video asks- how much can really know from talking heads? Is it everything in between that really matters?



  FROM AHMEH TO ZUSHI STATION (2007)

DV, 5 minutes, color, sound  A video tutorial of simple Japanese phrases, from A to Z. Highlights include- Fushi ghi na yoru / A mysterious night, Natsu ka shii neh on / Nostalgic neon, and, Wasure rarenai / Unforgettable.

  AROUND SPECIAL REGISTRATION (2003)

DV, color, sound, 18 minutes An 18 minute journey with Abdulla, a student and engineer from the United Arab Emirates living in the U.S. The video follows Abdulla going through ‘Special Registration’- an ordinance implemented in Nov of 2002 by Attorney General Ashcroft as part of the “Homeland Security Act” where males over the age of 16, from 25 countries (mostly Arab) were required to to be registered, fingerprinted, interrogated, and photographed, risking indefinite detainment and deportation. Abdulla tries to assess the nature of ‘Special Registration’ as it is happening while going barely unnoticed by the public. What he finds is a voice that gets to the heart of what discrimination and racism feel like to him as an Arab man and also as a black man read as an African-American man. Through song, some jokes, and a statement delivered at a anti-war rally, Abdulla talks us through his experience and worries about what could happen in a time where ‘something so outrageous can seem reasonable.'  

  CALIFORNIA TELEPHONE (2003)

16mm, b&w, sync sound, 3 minutes  A portrait of a group of seven women and men playing the game commonly known as 'telephone.' In this case, the message whispered from one person to the next are lines of poetry excerpted from the work of the late June Jordan (1936-2002) - poet, novelist, essayist, and political activist. The film attempts to speak between the lines of June Jordan's words of resistance and insistence. 
 

   SÓ DANÇO SAMBA/UE WO MUITE ARUKOU (2002)

DV, color, sound, 5 minutes A karaoke video that takes two popular music crossover hits from the 60’s, one Brazilian, one Japanese, nine friends to sing them, and offers it up as a karaoke video for viewers to sing to, swing to, or just listen to. The four minute video proposes a cultural exchange through music, rhythm and language. 


  I LOVE YOU (2002)

16mm, color, sync sound, 2 minutes  A two minute film documenting the moment before, during, and after six people tell the subject (the filmmaker), 'I love you.'  

  BY THE WATERFALL IN EATON CANYON - 7 TIMES (2000)

Hi-8 video, color, sound, 10 minutes A group of high school student hikers and their teacher get together and pose for a snapshot by the waterfall. Looped 7 times, like an edition of 7, 1 for each person in the shot. 



  FROM LOS ANGELES (2000)

Hi-8 video, color, sound, 15 minutes  Video postcard snapshots from various locations of choice by 7 participants, who then switch places with the artist.

CREDITS

The Soroban and the Present (2014)

Crew
Haruko Tanaka, Kate Brown, Seema Kapur, and Kevin McCarty

There Here Now Then (2012)

Camera/Editing
Haruko Tanaka

Mind the Gap (2007)

Participants
Felicia Dickerson, Joni Gordon, Asher Hartman, Maryam Kashani, Ricardo Sebastian, and Aya Seko  

Camera/Sound/Editing
Haruko Tanaka

Around Special Registration (2003)


Partipcipant
Abdulla Al Mundari  Camera/sound/edit
Haruko Tanaka

 
Additional camera/sound
Abdulla Al Mundari and Matt Dunnerstick

California Telephone (2003)

Participants
Mirabelle Ang, Terry Chatkupt, Melanie Nakaue, Tuan Nguyen, Mari Okada, Kelvin Park, Haruko Tanaka, and Savitri Young  

Camera
Aigars Ceplitis

Sound
Jeremy Edney and Art Helterbraun Jr.

Dolly
Roshni Sharma and Natalie Turner

Titles
Margo Victor

Editing 
Haruko Tanaka

Só Danço Samba / Ue Wo Muite Arukou (2002)
Made in collaboration with Bia Gayotto 

Participants
Abdulla Al Mundari, Becky Allen, Bia Gayotto, Charles Karubian, Maryam Kashani, Leticia Meza, Naoko Sugibayashi, Haruko Tanaka, and Mauro Wernick Monteiro   

Camera
David P. Moore

Crew
Ricardo Sebastian, Cameron Smith, and Ian Smith

Editing
Haruko Tanaka

I Love You (2002)

Participants
Felicia Dickerson, Bia Gayotto, Heather James, Phil Mason, Kevin McCarty, Kristin Ruger, and Haruko Tanaka

Camera
Adriá Juliá

Sound
Haruko Tanaka

Titles
Margo Victor

Editing
Haruko Tanaka


From Los Angeles (2000)

Participants
Felicia Dickerson, Bia Gayotto, Sam Higashi, Chia Ho, Phil Mason, Vassil Petkov, Kristin Ruger, and Haruko Tanaka

Camera
Felicia Dickerson, Bia Gayotto, Sam Higashi, Chia Ho, Phil Mason, Vassil Petkov, Kristin Ruger, and Haruko Tanaka

Editing
Haruko Tanaka