Japanese sound mixer reaps awards for 2 Filipino films

NEW YORK, NY – Japanese production sound mixer Shiho Miyazawa’s two recent Filipino projects have been awarded by prestigious organizations.

In mid-November, John Paul Su, a Filipino director was recognized as the Best Asian American Student Filmmaker by the Directors Guild of America (DGA) for his short film “Pagpag” [your story]. Earlier the same month, another film “Johnny Loves Dolores” directed by another Filipino, Clarissa de los Reyes, won the Grand Jury Award at San DIego Asian Film Festival.

Aside from being both directed by Filipinos, these two successful films have one thing in common: Miyazawa.

Ms. Miyazawa studied filmmaking at Tisch School of the Arts at New York University (NYU). Upon graduation in 2006, she immediately started working as a professional freelance sound crew.

Doing sound for film is something that came naturally to her. Her extensive background in dancing since she was three enhanced Miyazawa’s ability to follow actors with the microphone attached to the boom pole, impressing her professor in her very first sound class at NYU.

Boom operating is not an entry job as many think. The operators need to understand the script, movement, frames, lighting, and acoustics. As Ms. Miyazawa studied more about the sound of film, she discovered that she was not only good at swinging the boom but also in recording, making her a much sought after sound mixer much later.

Being entrenched in film, Miyazawa also assumed other roles outside of sound mixing.

She was part of “Memoirs of a Geisha”, dancing in the movie, because she just wanted to work with Rob Marshall, also the director of the Oscar-winning film “Chicago”.

Miyazawa also has been collaborating with Filipina Clarissa de los Reyes since 2004 when both worked in another Filipino film “Rigodon” directed by Sari Dalena and Keith Sicat and starred Joel Torre and Arthur Acuña.

Ms. de los Reyes served as an assistant director for the film’s New York segment while Miyazawa was a special effects make-up artist, who was in charge of making Acuña look beaten up during a boxing scene.

The award-winning short film “Johnny Loves Dolores” is Ms. Miyazawa and Ms. de los Reyes’ sixth collaboration and both are now working toward its feature length version. Miyazawa will serve as co-producer for this project.