Only the Brave screens free on June 5 (Mission from Buddha Productions)
Once again you can find movies for free thanks to another local organization with a cause. On Thursday June 5, The Japan Studies Institute will be hosting a free screening of the award-winning film Only the Brave . The screening will be held on the SDSU campus in the Arts and Letters Building, Room 201. Based on real events, the film portrays the all-volunteer, Japanese American regiment that served in World War II. Actor and director Lane Nishikawa will lead a discussion following the film. The screening is part of the American Association of Schools, Colleges and Universities 19th annual Japan Studies Institute. The Japan Studies Institute , which is part of the National Faculty Development Institute offered by AASCU, allows faculty to learn from scholars, business leaders, artists and journalists about Japanese civilization, history, language, business and education.
The press notes describe the film as follows: "In 1941, when Japan attacked Pearl Harbor, there were 5,000 Japanese Americans serving in the U.S. Armed Forces. Overnight, these second-generation citizens were stripped of their official duties - simply because they looked like the enemy. On the mainland, 120,000 innocent men, women and children were rounded up and swept into remote internment camps, where they would remain behind barbed wire for the duration of the war. Determined to prove their loyalty, the discharged Hawaiian Territorial Guardsmen of Japanese descent successfully petitioned the U.S. government to allow them to serve. These 1400 Hawaiian Nisei (second-generation Japanese-Americans) became the 100th Infantry Battalion. In July 1943, after rigorous training, they were sent to North Africa, then Italy. Fiercely courageous, they suffered so many casualties the 100th was soon dubbed the 'Purple Heart Battalion.'"
The film is a small independent production so if this subject interests you, this may be your only chance to see it on a big screen.
