In 1984, Rev. Masao "Mas" Kodani asked singer-songwriter and activist Nobuko Miyamoto to do something unprecedented: write an Obon song in English. The result, "Yuiyo," fused traditional Japanese folk music with Japanese American experience — and later reached global audiences through Karate Kid Part II. Nearly forty years later, as communities struggled to reconnect after pandemic isolation, Reverand Mas and Nobuko are called to collaborate again. The Making of Kangie follows the creation of "Kangie," tracing how a lifetime of movement songwriting, the discipline of centuries-old Obon forms, and an enduring creative partnership converge to call people home.

Director Biography - Derek Damon Nakamoto

"The Making of Kangie" marks the film directorial debut of Derek Nakamoto, whose career as a record producer, arranger, and composer spans four decades and bridges genres and cultures. Nakamoto co-wrote Hiroshima's signature song "Thousand Cranes" with June Kuramoto, and has produced and arranged for artists including Teddy Pendergrass, Michael Bolton, and The O'Jays. He has arranged and produced 23 albums for Keiko Matsui, and produced Angolan legend Waldemar Bastos' last album, Classics of My Soul. His work has been performed with the London Symphony Orchestra and the Czech National Symphony Orchestra.

His film scoring credits include An American Story: Norman Mineta and His Legacy and 100 Years From Mississippi. As longtime music director for Nobuko Miyamoto, Nakamoto has collaborated with her across albums, ballets, environmental music videos, and a series of Obon songs, as well as scoring her documentary A Song in Movement. The Making of Kangie brings that decades-long creative partnership full circle, as Nakamoto steps behind the camera to direct for the first time.