Asian students are branching out from STEM fields and onto the stage*

*THE FULL STORY CAN BE READ HERE

During the silent film era, Sessue Hayakawa became Hollywood’s first Asian actor. Hayakawa immigrated from Japan to allegedly study economics in Chicago but he became enamored with the theatre and acting troops.

Soon after his success in 1914, Hayakawa became stereotyped, typecast and fetishized for his non-European features. Frustrated, he founded Haworth Pictures Corporation, the first ever Asian run film production company.

Haworth Pictures would eventually close, but they started a legacy of Asian creatives in American media that is still growing.

Data from the U.S. Census shows that Asians make up just under 6% of the total population in the United States. On a state by state basis, Hawaii has the highest concentration of Asian Americans; they come in at 38.9% of the state’s total population. However, when it comes to density, California has documented over 6.5 million people of Asian descent.

Jonathan Fong, a music student at California State University, Northridge, was born in Sacramento to Asian immigrants.

While he has felt the stereotypical pressures to go into STEM fields from his grandparents, he says his parents have been very supportive of his choice to go into music composition.

He recalls, “Obviously my parents were a little surprised I decided to pursue a career in the arts, but they were actually very supportive. I can’t say the same about some of my grandparents.”

Fong’s goal is to eventually score music for films. The historical lack of Asians in media is not a deterrent for him. He sees Asian representation as something that just is, not as a goal that should be fought for any harder than another goal.

“It’s great to see Asians and people who look like me or share a similar cultural background; it’s great to see them, you know, doing their thing in the arts and being successful and being recognized, and I think that they should be. I tend to focus more on the art itself rather than the culture or what’s behind it.”

His point of view, however, is a rare one. The history and culture Asian immigrants brought with them were crushed by the need to assimilate into American culture to avoid being treated like “the other.”

The most common stereotype associated with the Asian demographic is the “model minority” role. It became a general assumption that Asians would only accept careers in STEM fields rather than creative avenues. When someone broke from the mold to enter movies or television, they were stuck in offensive, stereotyped roles like the dragon lady or the prostitute.

Fong commented on the culture gap that comes from being a child of immigrants.

“I still have aspects of my Asian heritage that I connect with but I think being born and raised in the states, I’m a bit more multiculturally focused,” he recalls. He wants his success to be driven from his talent, rather than be recognized for his ethnicity.

In the early 1990s, Hollywood released a movie called The Joy Luck Club. It was the first film in American history to feature an entirely Asian cast. The film was revolutionary.

It was based on the novel by Amy Tan and heavily highlighted the complexities of being a part of two worlds and why the effort to bridge the gap between Asian and American identities is so emotionally taxing.

As relevant and powerful as The Joy Luck Club was, it would take Hollywood another quarter century to create another all-Asian film. Crazy Rich Asians in 2018 brought back the conversation about why it has taken so long for Asians to see themselves represented properly in the media.

From there, Asian led films have made their way into contemporary Hollywood. Minari took the film scene by storm and was nominated for several Academy Awards. Director Chloe Zhao became the second woman and the first Asian to ever win an Oscar for Best Director.

Leianne Lamb from San Jose’s Contemporary Asian Theatre Scene wants to bring the resurgence of Asian representation back to the stage as well. “We knew that San Jose, Silicon Valley was an emerging area that was desperate for art.”

CATS originally only served residents of Northern California but since the pandemic forced people online, their audience has grown to cover Asian American artists globally.

“Whether it was theatre, whether it be film, comedy, literary elements and visual art, so these four people actually came together and said hey listen, let’s put together, let’s be producers and get these pieces out there so we have a reflection of who we are what we’re going through and pride in the Asian American experience.”

CATS is also hosting their 8th Film Festival this year. Lamb mentions that their impact has been inspiring. They started out Asian comedy nights bringing some of the most well-known Asian comics, like Hasan Minhaj, to a spotlight.

In the following video, Lamb talks about the importance of Asian Americans owning their heritage. She talks about how diverse the range of Asian creators is. CATS honors creatives across the pan-Asian spectrum. Lamb mentions that each person brings their own story and background that need to be shared in a creative space.

Asian representation has slowly been increasing in the United States. Especially in California where the Asian population is starting to reflect the percentage of people on screen or behind the scenes. The annual Hollywood Diversity Report from UCLA has been tracking the increase in both Asian leads and supporting actors in broadcast, cable, digital/streaming television and film.

The slow but steady rise is encouraging for younger Asian creatives who want to break free from the stereotypes set upon them by a country heavily invested in specific social roles.