{"id":"The Blue Jay (film)","doctype":"articles","links":{"html":"https://resourceguide.densho.org/The%20Blue%20Jay%20(film)/","json":"https://resourceguide.densho.org/api/3.0/articles/The%20Blue%20Jay%20(film)/"},"title_sort":"thebluejayfilm","description":"Narrative short film set in\n  \n   Poston\n  \n  centering on Sam and Ayako Shigeta, a young Nisei couple with a newborn baby, and their evolving relationship with Pohache, a Native American staff person.","rg_rgmediatype":["films"],"mediatype_label":"Films and Video","mediatype_icon":"fa-film","rg_interestlevel":["Grades 9-12","Adult"],"rg_genre":["Drama"],"rg_theme":["Evils of racism","Importance of community","Will to survive"],"rg_availability":["Available"],"categories":[{"title":"Arts"}],"topics":[],"authors":[{"title":"Brian Niiya","json":"https://resourceguide.densho.org/api/3.0/authors/Brian%20Niiya/","html":"https://resourceguide.densho.org/authors/Brian%20Niiya/"}],"sources":[],"title":"The Blue Jay (film)","published_rg":true,"modified":"2023-12-15T13:30:17","databoxes":{"rgdatabox-Core":{"rgmediatype":["films"],"title":["The Blue Jay"],"creators":[],"interestlevel":["Grades 9-12","Adult"],"readinglevel":[],"guidedreadinglevel":[],"lexile":[],"theme":["Evils of racism","Importance of community","Will to survive"],"genre":["Drama"],"pov":[],"relatedevents":[],"availability":["Available"],"freewebversion":["No"],"primarysecondary":[],"hasteachingaids":["No"],"warnings":["Bloody violence"],"denshotopic":[],"geography":[],"chronology":["1942–43"],"facility":["Poston (Colorado River) [2] - Parker, Arizona"]},"databox-Films":{"title":["The Blue Jay"],"date":["2023"],"genre":["Drama"],"released":[],"director":["Marlene Shigekawa"],"producer":["Sandra Varona","Val Valdez"],"writer":["Marlene Shigekawa"],"screenplay":[],"story":[],"basedon":[],"narrator":[],"starring":["Lee Shorten (Sam Shigeta)","Ajuawak Kapashesit (Pohache)","Ayako Karasawa (Mariko Shigeta)","Chris Tashima (Toshi Shigeta)","Brad Macdonald (Ken Warren)","Kavan Reece (Thomas Wirley)","Stefano Meier (Private Blake)","Josh Holt (Roy \"the Cowboy\")","Florence Morishita (Baby Jimmy)"],"music":["Taisuki Kimura"],"cinematography":["Toshiyuki Imai"],"editing":["Marco Rosas"],"studio":[],"distributor":[],"runtime":["15 minutes"],"country":[],"language":[],"budget":[],"gross":[],"imdblink":[],"trailerlink":[]}},"rg_title":["The Blue Jay"],"rg_freewebversion":["No"],"rg_chronology":["1942–43"],"rg_hasteachingaids":["No"],"rg_warnings":["Bloody violence"],"body":"<div class=\"mw-parser-output\">\n <div id=\"databox-Films\" style=\"display:none;\">\n  <p>\n   Title:The Blue Jay;\nDate:2023; \nGenre:Drama;\nReleased:;\nDirector:Marlene Shigekawa;\nProducer:Sandra Varona; Val Valdez;\nWriter:Marlene Shigekawa;\nScreenplay:;\nStory:;\nBasedOn:;\nNarrator:;\nStarring:Lee Shorten (Sam Shigeta); Ajuawak Kapashesit (Pohache); Ayako Karasawa (Mariko Shigeta); Chris Tashima (Toshi Shigeta); Brad Macdonald (Ken Warren); Kavan Reece (Thomas Wirley); Stefano Meier (Private Blake); Josh Holt (Roy \"the Cowboy\"); Florence Morishita (Baby Jimmy);\nMusic:Taisuki Kimura;\nCinematography:Toshiyuki Imai;\nEditing:Marco Rosas;\nStudio:;\nDistributor:;\nRuntime:15 minutes;\nCountry:;\nLanguage:;\nBudget:;\nGross:;\nIMDBLink:;\nTrailerLink:;\n  </p>\n </div>\n <div class=\"rgonly\">\n  <!--\"rgdatabox-CoreDisplay\" removed-->\n  <div id=\"rgdatabox-Core\" style=\"display:none;\">\n   <p>\n    RGMediaType:films;\nTitle:The Blue Jay;\nCreators:;\nInterestLevel:Grades 9-12; Adult;\nReadingLevel:;\nGuidedReadingLevel:;\nLexile:;\nTheme:Evils of racism; Importance of community; Will to survive;\nGenre:Drama;\nPoV:;\nRelatedEvents:;\nAvailability:Available;\nFreeWebVersion:No;\nPrimarySecondary:;\nHasTeachingAids:No;\nWarnings:Bloody violence;\nDenshoTopic:;\nGeography:;\nChronology:1942–43;\nFacility:Poston (Colorado River) [2] - Parker, Arizona;\n   </p>\n  </div>\n </div>\n <p>\n  Narrative short film set in\n  <a class=\"encyc notrg\" href=\"https://encyclopedia.densho.org/wiki/Poston_(Colorado_River)\" title=\"Poston (Colorado River)\">\n   Poston\n  </a>\n  centering on Sam and Ayako Shigeta, a young Nisei couple with a newborn baby, and their evolving relationship with Pohache, a Native American staff person.\n </p>\n <p>\n  Filmmaker Marlene Shigekawa based the short on her feature length script\n  <i>\n   Hawk Dreamer\n  </i>\n  , which was in turn loosely based on her father's incarceration at Poston.\n  <i>\n   The Blue Jay\n  </i>\n  premiered at the\n  <a class=\"encyc notrg\" href=\"https://encyclopedia.densho.org/wiki/Japanese_American_National_Museum\" title=\"Japanese American National Museum\">\n   Japanese American National Museum\n  </a>\n  on October 29, 2023. Shikegawa had previously co-directed the documentary film\n  <i>\n   <a class=\"external text offsite\" href=\"https://resourceguide.densho.org/For%20the%20Sake%20of%20the%20Children%20(film)/\" rel=\"nofollow\">\n    For the Sake of the Children\n   </a>\n  </i>\n  , on the impact of the incarceration on Japanese American children growing up after the war, and of two children's books,\n  <i>\n   <a class=\"external text offsite\" href=\"https://resourceguide.densho.org/Blue%20Jay%20in%20the%20Desert%20(book)/\" rel=\"nofollow\">\n    Blue Jay in the Desert\n   </a>\n  </i>\n  and\n  <i>\n   Welcome Home Swallows\n  </i>\n  , on aspects of the incarceration or its immediate aftermath.\n </p>\n <div id=\"authorByline\">\n  <b>\n   Authored by\n   <a class=\"encyc notrg\" href=\"https://encyclopedia.densho.org/wiki/Brian_Niiya\" title=\"Brian Niiya\">\n    Brian Niiya\n   </a>\n  </b>\n </div>\n <div id=\"citationAuthor\" style=\"display:none;\">\n  Niiya, Brian\n </div>\n <p>\n  Might also like\n  <i>\n   <a class=\"external text offsite\" href=\"https://resourceguide.densho.org/Tsuru%20(film)/\" rel=\"nofollow\">\n    Tsuru\n   </a>\n  </i>\n  (2014);\n  <i>\n   A Song for Manzanar\n  </i>\n  (2015);\n  <i>\n   <a class=\"external text offsite\" href=\"https://resourceguide.densho.org/Day%20of%20Independence%20(film)/\" rel=\"nofollow\">\n    Day of Independence\n   </a>\n  </i>\n  (2003)\n </p>\n</div>\n","moreinfo":"<div class=\"section\" id=\"For_More_Information\">\n <h2>\n  <span class=\"mw-headline\" id=\"For_More_Information\">\n   For More Information\n  </span>\n </h2>\n <div class=\"section_content\">\n  <p>\n   Filmmaker website:\n   <a class=\"external free offsite\" href=\"https://www.marleneshigekawa.com/\" rel=\"nofollow\">\n    https://www.marleneshigekawa.com/\n   </a>\n  </p>\n  <!-- \nNewPP limit report\nCached time: 20250625170613\nCache expiry: 86400\nDynamic content: false\nComplications: []\nCPU time usage: 0.026 seconds\nReal time usage: 0.032 seconds\nPreprocessor visited node count: 367/1000000\nPost‐expand include size: 7430/2097152 bytes\nTemplate argument size: 1752/2097152 bytes\nHighest expansion depth: 4/40\nExpensive parser function count: 0/100\nUnstrip recursion depth: 0/20\nUnstrip post‐expand size: 0/5000000 bytes\nExtLoops count: 0\n-->\n  <!--\nTransclusion expansion time report (%,ms,calls,template)\n100.00%   12.660      1 -total\n 26.70%    3.380      1 Template:Databox-Films\n 25.33%    3.207      1 Template:RGDatabox-Core\n 16.31%    2.065      1 Template:Published\n 15.44%    1.955      1 Template:AuthorByline\n 14.86%    1.881      1 Template:publish-rgonly\n-->\n  <!-- Saved in parser cache with key encycmw:pcache:idhash:4551-0!canonical and timestamp 20250625170613 and revision id 35658\n -->\n </div>\n</div>"}