We just wanted to update everyone with the new PBS broadcast dates scheduled for April, May and June.  We are very happy with the exposure that Who Does She Think She Is? has received on all of these broadcasts across the country.  Let your friends and family know about the dates to see our film!

In addition to the dates/times below, Who Does She Think She Is? will also be airing on the WORLD multicast channel in June (their theme for June is Work).  We are scheduled for Saturday June 25th at 7am, 1pm, 8pm and Sunday June 26th at 1am.   Click here to see where WORLD broadcasts in your area!

"I Will Be With You" by Mayumi Oda

For ten years, I worked so hard to make the Japanese government and people aware of the dangers nuclear reactors posed to the well being of Japan and its people if damaged by an earthquake or other natural disaster. When our group, Plutonium Free Future, together with many other organizations, could not succeed at convincing the Japanese government and decision-making bodies that this threat was dire, I retired to Hawaii and started to farm. My goal was to bring Japanese people to my land on the Big Island to teach them how to farm and live sustainably – with a special hope that they could then help their own friends and families in Japan during a time of disaster. That time has unfortunately arrived.

However, we have the amazing gift of the village in Morokino and we can start working on site in Japan right now. People that I have trained in sustainable farming are already starting to move there to serve as models for living in harmony with the earth in peace.  I am writing today to because I really need your financial support to bring Morokino up to date with living essentials so that my trainees can start doing their work.  I thank you in advance for any assistance you can give this very special and timely project.

View of Morokino

Additionally, while I was in Japan, I became acquainted with a group called United Earth — a network that oversees organizations doing direct aid in areas affected by disasters. These are people who have been working continuously since the Kobe earthquake in 1995. This group will continue their excellent efforts in Japan for many years to come. So, for those of you – my dear friends and colleagues – who would wish to make an additional donation for Japanese disaster relief – I highly recommend United Earth.  When you give to them, you can know that your donation will actually reach the people who need assistance on the ground. For information about United Earth, please visit their website.  Thank you for your consideration here as well.

As many of you know, I co-founded and still serve on the Board of Directors of a non-governmental 501(c)(3) called INOCHI — in Japanese it means “life force.”  INOCHI has set up a special fund to receive donations that can benefit “The Morokino Project”, United Earth or both — it is up to you. Please specify on your donation which organization you want to support and if you wish to give to both, indicate how much you would like to give for each. Checks can made out to INOCHI and mailed to me at my farm in Hawaii at the following address:

Mayumi Oda, Ginger Hill Farm, PO Box 1907, Kealakekua, Hawaii 96750

Here’s an update of all the scheduled PBS Broadcast dates, times and channels for Who Does She Think She Is? by state as of today, March 30, 2011.  If you don’t see your station listed, give them a call and tell them you’d like to see our film scheduled for their May programming.  It is available to them through APT Online!

The Sustainable Arts Foundation is a non-profit foundation supporting artists and writers with families.  Their mission is to provide financial awards to parents pursuing creative work.

Too often, creative impulses are set aside to meet the wonderful, but pressing, demands of raising a family.  The Foundation’s goal is to encourage parents to pursue their creative passion and to rekindle those passions in those who may have let them slide.

The Foundation is now accepting applications for their 2011 Awards.  Please visit the Sustainable Arts Foundation website for more information and to submit your work to be reviewed!

Who Does She Think She Is? (the one hour version) will be airing across the country on PBS & WORLD Channels during the months of March, April, and May.  Below is a listing of all the scheduled broadcasts by State as of today, March 2, 2011.  We will keep this list updated as we are learning about new broadcasts every day.  Please tell your friends, family, and community members to tune in and watch our film!  We are so excited that our film will reach an even wider audience and our message will continue to spread across the country.  Thank you all for your support of our film!

Deposition by Maye Torres

Our featured artist from Taos, Maye Torres, will be hosting an art opening in Albuquerque on Friday, March 4th from 5:00 – 6:00pm at the Boro Gallery, 317 Gold SW at the corner of 4th and Gold.  The exhibit will feature a display of drawings and sculpture by Maye, including the piece above, Deposition.  If you’re in the area, stop by and say hello to Maye….everyone is invited to attend!  Contact 575-779-7832 for more information.

Director Pamela Tanner Boll

Growing Bolder, a radio and TV show on PBS, delivers empowering stories that inspire audiences of all ages to believe that it’s never too late to achieve their dreams. Click here to Listen to their interview with our director, Pamela Tanner Boll!

For the past eight months or so, I have been thinking of making another film.  I say this with LOTS of trepidation.  It took seven years to bring Who Does She Think She Is? to the screen.  And it was a hard haul; two years into filming and editing, I was told “there is NO story here.”  I wandered the desert, cutting and pasting the women’s stories together with Paula and with Micki; then Nancy Kennedy came on board.  She is a genius–she knew the material would make a story, but it took another year to complete.  Still  the film was not finished: we spent another year submitting the film to the  “festival circuit.”  Then, working to get it to theaters.  Our outreach efforts–a fancy way of saying, letting people KNOW about the film–was nearly as much work as the making of it.  The good news, of course, is that three years later, we are still selling it, still showing it and still finding our audience.   In fact,  our audience is GROWING.  Wow!!!  Thank you all.