Good Luck Soup

A TRANSMEDIA DOCUMENTARY

Good Luck Soup is a transmedia documentary project on the journey of Japanese Americans and Japanese Canadians before, during, and after World War II.

Told through a traditional film, a virtual reality documentary and an interactive website, the film and VR piece tell the story of one Japanese American family, while the interactive website tells the stories of many.

THE FEATURE FILMDocumentary Feature
dir. Matthew Hashiguchi | 56 mins. | USA | 2016
For 29-year-old filmmaker Matthew Hashiguchi, growing up half-Japanese American in an Irish-Catholic neighborhood in Cleveland, Ohio, was a difficult experience. His inability to blend in with the predominantly White population of his surroundings translated into his own personal struggles with race, and in Good Luck Soup we join Matthew on a journey to discover how Japanese heritage influenced the lives of his Japanese American family members; before, during and after World War II.

PURCHASE THE FILM FROM DOCUMENTARY EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES.

THE INTERACTIVE WEBSITE

Good Luck Soup Interactive is a collection of stories on the Japanese American and Japanese Canadian experience that have been uploaded from the public and gathered by our team.

Individual stories from different people, places and times unfold in a series of seven chapters that when viewed together reflect the universal themes of immigration, integration and identity.

This format allows us to showcase the diverse experience of those with Japanese ancestry and to educate a broad audience on their unique history and identity within American and Canadian culture.

Good Luck Soup Interactive updates this shared experience by actively collecting stories, photographs and information through self-uploaded submissions and curated content. Allowing the continuous flow of stories and submissions enables our story to change along with the evolving identity of those with Japanese heritage in the United States and Canada.

If you’d like to contribute a story or experience you can do so here.

THE VIRTUAL REALITY DOCUMENTARY

Pull up a chair and join Eva Hashiguchi, a 90-year-old Japanese American grandmother, as she prepares traditional Japanese food for her Oshogatsu tradition, or Japanese New Year’s Day, that has been celebrated by her family for generations.