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"A TRADITION OF HONOR" DOCUMENTARY SELECTED OFFICIALLY INTO MAUI FILM FESTIVAL TO SCREEN JUNE 11 AT McCOY THEATRE

Riveting Documentary Tells The Story Of The 100th Infantry Battalion, 442nd Regimental Combat Team & Military Intelligence Service

Torrance, Calif. (May 28, 2003) - The Go For Broke Educational Foundation is extremely pleased to announce its documentary, "A Tradition of Honor," has been selected as an official entry to the Maui Film Festival being held in Wailea and Kahului from June 11-15. Yonsei producers Craig Yahata and David Yoneshige take a unique approach to telling the story of the 100th Infantry Battalion, 442nd Regimental Combat Team and the Military Intelligence Service that combines emotion filled testimonies with humor and the gruesome reality of war.

The 82-minute documentary includes the stories of three units, the 100th, 442nd and MIS. It focuses on the personal stories of more than 40 Nisei veterans from Hawaii and the mainland concentration camps. "A Tradition of Honor" chronicles the lives of the Nisei's from being classified "4-C", enemy aliens, through their war experiences and beyond, ultimately redefining what it means to be an American.

Born and raised in Northern California, Yahata, like so many Yonsei's born to Hawaii natives (his mother is from Kahului where his grandparents still reside, and his father is from Hilo), was late in discovering the amazing heroics and legacy of the Nisei veterans of World War II. Yahata's uncle, Mitsuo "Spider" Yahata was an original 100th D Company veteran from Hilo. Not ever having the opportunity to talk with his uncle about the war, Yahata became inspired to create "A Tradition of Honor" and helped develop the Go For Broke Educational Foundation's Hanashi Oral History Program.

"When David and I set out to create this documentary two years ago, we wanted to ensure that the veteran's voice told the story and that their faces would be seen," said Yahata, who also directed and edited the documentary. "During the course of two years it took to complete 'A Tradition of Honor,' we edited down approximately 500 hours of interviews from 200 veterans and spent one week at the National Archives in Washington D.C. to uncover unique, never-been-seen footage." Yahata's other credits include co-producing the eight-season CBS-TV series "Diagnosis Murder" and the documentary "A Safe Place," which received the Southern California Documentary Emmy Award in 1994.

"A Tradition of Honor" is the first documentary created from the Go For Broke Educational Foundation's Hanashi Oral History Program's video archive of World War II Nisei veteran interviews. The program was formed in 1998 by a group of young Japanese Americans who wanted to ensure the stories of the WWII Nisei soldiers were preserved. Today, Hanashi comprises nearly 100 volunteers who have conducted more than 350 interviews in Hawaii as well as eight other regions throughout the United States. The goal of the Educational Foundation is to create educational media and materials with its coveted Hanashi video footage. The Educational Foundation, in addition to creating "A Tradition of Honor," is working on a Web-based video archive of these interviews that will be a valuable resource for educators, researchers, and students.

The documentary will be screened at the Maui Film Festival June 11-15. "A Tradition of Honor" is scheduled to show on June 11 at 5:30 p.m. at the McCoy Theatre in the Maui Arts & Culture Center. Tickets for the event are available by calling (808) 579-9244 or (888) 999-6330. For more information, go to www.mauifilmfestival.com. The producers can be contacted directly at ATradtionofHonor@yahoo.com.

The Go For Broke Educational Foundation received a grant from the State of California, California Arts Council to create "A Tradition of Honor."

The Go For Broke Educational Foundation institutes educational programs focused on the heroism and history of the Japanese American soldiers of World War II, as well as the West Coast evacuation and incarceration of Japanese Americans and civil liberties issues raised by those events. Currently the Educational Foundation's programs include An American Story teacher training workshops and curriculum development, Hanashi Oral History Program, and select media projects, including producing "A Tradition of Honor" documentary. For more information, go to www.goforbroke.org.

In 1989 Japanese American World War II veterans established the 100th/442nd/MIS WWII Memorial Foundation to build the Go For Broke Monument as an eternal tribute to the heroics of the segregated Japanese American units: 100th Infantry Battalion, 442nd Regimental Combat Team, MIS (Military Intelligence Service) and the many other men and women who served overseas during World War II. The monument is located in downtown Los Angeles at Temple and Alameda streets.

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