Other films by Ann Kaneko

100% Human Hair
100% Human Hair is a 17-minute action-packed musical extravaganza set in a Crenshaw wig shop. Threatened by eviction, Mr. Kim struggles to keep the shop afloat for his motley crew of employees and customers while his yuppy daughter pressures him to retire. Can he keep the shop alive? Eureka! His streetwise granddaughter has a plan. 100% Human Hair ranges from country to opera, surprising with every song. . .

A Shortness of Breath 14 mins.
A Shortness of Breath mixes documentary and narrative form to describe attitudes toward death and dying. Three older people, the filmmaker's parents and aunt, matter-of-factly comment on heaven, religion, cancer and war. One of them battles breast cancer, undergoing chemotherapy and enduring the accompanying side-effects. These attitudes are juxtaposed against a young woman's comical and ironic response to the news that she is terminally ill.

  • Women in the Director's Chair Film Festival, Chicago, March 1994
  • Bronze Apple, National Educational Film and Video Festival, Oakland, May 1993
  • Ann Arbor Film Festival, March 1993
  • Asian American International Film Showcase, San Francisco, March 1993

Lucy Goes Shopping 7 mins.
In a comical storybook parody, a young woman goes shopping for a new face. Confronted by expectations of family and peers, Lucy sets out on a quest to find the ideal face in a society which views her as the other. Shopping deals with the broader issues of identity and representation of women in today's society.

Tomás Carrasco and Elias Serna of the acclaimed comedy troupe, Chicano Secret Service, appear in the piece, and Carrasco's younger sister, Susan Carrasco, plays Lucy. Both English and Spanish versions of the film are available.

  • San Juan Cinemafest, Puerto Rico, October 1995
  • Festival ¡Cine Latino! San Francisco, September 1995
  • BACA/The Brooklyn Arts Council Film and Video Festival, New York, March 1995
  • San Antonio CineFestival, San Antonio, February 1995

Displaced 21 mins.
A violent rape occurs, harming the mother, while the child escapes the scene, urged by her mother to leave for her safety. Displaced examines what happens to Elena, a young girl who must cope with such a forced separation from her mother and the memory of such a violent act. Placed at an urban beach, Elena takes refuge in her imaginary playworld and is befriended by a mysterious musician who frequents the beach. At the same time, the mother struggles through a language barrier to search for her daughter. The film is in English and Spanish.

  • The Other America Film Festival, San Antonio, Texas, June 1997
  • 4th Berkeley Video Festival, 3rd Place Short Feature, November 1994
  • Certamen Internacional de Curtmetratges I Video, Badalona, October 1994