Not Just Another Big Fish Story
Filmmaker Cory Shiozaki’s in progress documentary focuses on former Manzanar internees’ fishing adventures.
Legend has it that a fisherman named Ishikawa used to slip through the Manzanar barbwires in search of the golden trout thriving in the nearby creek. He caught fish so beautiful, the legendary photographer Toyo Miyatake immortalized the fisherman and his prized catch in a black and white photo.
That image along with his passion for the noble sport of fishing spurred Cory Shiozaki — a cameraman whose work includes credit in major Hollywood films like “Training Day” and “Dances with Wolves” — to make a documentary about the former internees who risked their lives for brief moments of freedom.
Cory, a Sansei from Gardena, Calif. who is producing the film in association with Talk Story Media, Inc., comes from a family of leaders —his father Ron Shiozaki was a former JACL Pacific Southwest District governor during the 1960s. — Lynda Lin
Pacific Citizen: Are you a filmmaker by trade and a fisherman at heart?
Cory Shiozaki: My involvement with Manzanar goes back to the pilgrimages of the early 70s. And today, I am currently an active docent with the Manzanar National Historic Site & Interpretive Center. I was also active in the campaign for Redress and the passing of the Civil Liberties Act of 1988, which was signed by President Ronald Reagan.
As a fisherman, I am a licensed and bonded trout-fishing guide for the Eastern Sierra. I have fished the area extensively for nearly 20 years. I prefer freshwater (and especially trout) fishing.
PC: What is it about the sport that makes you a fixture at Crowley Lake in California?
CS: I have worked at the tackle shop for the past three years and also at the same time became a licensed trout-fishing guide. I originally had no plans to become a guide but was coaxed into it by some other friends who were guides because of my experience and knowledge.
I am able to work during trout season at Crowley because I am on season hiatus from my television shooting schedule, which is usually from mid-April to August.
I love trout fishing because it makes me forget about my worries and makes me feel free of spirit plus is a lot of fun … especially when I show kids how to catch fish.
PC: What sparked your interest in stories about former internees escaping camp to go fishing?
CS: In April 20, 2004, there was an article written in the Los Angeles Times by Darrell Kunitomi, which featured a story of an internee — Ishikawa Fisherman — who snuck out of Manzanar to catch ‘golden trout.’
While working at Crowley, I noticed thousands of Japanese Americans com
ing annually to fish, Nisei, Sansei and Yonsei alike. On some days, up to half of the anglers were of Japanese descent.
On one of my trips from my home in L.A. to Crowley and the Eastern Sierra a few years ago, I was passing the Manzanar Relocation Camp just off Highway 395 when the thought suddenly popped into my head: ‘Was there some connection between the JAs who fish the Eastern Sierra today and the internment at Manzanar so many years ago?’
I went to Manzanar to find out. Ranger Richard Potashin confirmed that yes, indeed, there were internees who snuck out and went trout fishing.
PC: How is the documentary going?
CS: Audiotaped interviews were redone on video, and the pieces began to fall into place. All that was needed was to string the pieces together. Richard Imamura, a childhood friend of mine … pored over the hours of interviews and brought together what I had intuitively known all along — that all of the fishermen’s stories touched, in one way or another, a yearning to be free.
The work is not yet finished, but the goal is now clearly in sight.
PC: Everyone has a fish story, what’s yours?
CS: I have caught very small golden trout but nothing even close to what Mr. Ishikawa caught. I have caught large trout up to 12 pounds but I would love to catch trophy size golden trout like one caught by Ishikawa.
PC: What kind of fishing artifacts have you been collecting?
CS: During my research and interviews, I had been fortunate enough to receive actual fishing equipment from former Manzanar Internees. Such items include: conventional reel, fly reel, several manufactured expanding rods, fishing creels, bait cans, hooks, sinkers, leaders, snake bite kit, drinking cups, sleeping bags, gloves, hat, hot plate to cook the fish on, etc.
I believe they kept these items as sentimental remembrances of what gave them good feelings during a dark time of their life.
PC: How did you find and select your interview subjects?
CS: I first contacted Potashin to see if he could assemble any kind of list of survivors who had mentioned anything about their fishing experiences while incarcerated. I then asked him to get permission from these people to do an oral history. It was a slow process but as the months and years went by, Potashin kept an eye and ear out for visitors who came through the interpretive center and asked each person if they had any fishing stories or knew of anyone who had done such a thing while in Manzanar. The list of people gradually grew from just a few to about a dozen survivors.
Every story was different but was heartfelt. If I had to choose but one person, I would have to say the story of Ken Miyamoto. Here was a man in his early 20s who had faced many hardships even before he was incarcerated but found his freedom and passion sneaking out and going fishing. He told me he fished almost every day while he was at Manzanar.
PC: When you fish, do you think about the JAs who risked life and limb to fish along the same banks?
CS: While I fished the creeks that were fished over 60 years ago, I can only imagine what they felt. When I was fishing those very creeks, I felt a sense of freedom and peace, something I am sure is what they felt and sought after while they were there.
PC: What is the largest obstacle you have encountered in filming?
CS: I have been working on this project since Spring of 2004 and being a very time sensitive project, finding the survivors to film their stories is a major problem, but up to now I have been producing this project out of my own pocket.
Currently my biggest obstacle is finding resources to fund the completion of this documentary. My goal is to make an hour-long film aimed at distribution to schools, colleges and museums.
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