They Call Us Bruce Jeff Yang & Phil Yu
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- Society & Culture
Hosts Jeff Yang and Phil Yu present They Call Us Bruce, an unfiltered conversation about what's happening in Asian America.
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234: They Call Us Avatar: The Last Airbender
Jeff and Phil welcome Albert Kim, showrunner of Netflix's live-action Avatar: The Last Airbender. He talks about the epic challenge of adapting the beloved animated series, "remixing" the original show's story elements for the streaming format, the cultural considerations that go into building an Asian-inspired fantasy world (does Iroh have an accent?) and casting Asian and Indigenous actors for these iconic roles. Plus: Jeff divulges Albert's personal email address. Also: The Good, The Bad, and The WTF of making the live-action Avatar: The Last Airbender.
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233: They Call Us Asians in Baseball
Jeff and Phil welcome Kim Cooper and Scott Okamoto, co-hosts of the podcast Asians in Baseball, just in time for spring training. They discuss the current renaissance of Asian and Asian American players in Major League Baseball; becoming a baseball fan in this extraordinary moment; Shohei Otani's ass; the Lenn Sakata Fan Club; and the unifying love of Kim Ha-Seong. Also: The Good, The Bad, and The WTF of Asians in baseball.
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232: They Call Us Olivia Cheng and Dianne Doan
Jeff and Phil welcome Olivia Cheng and Dianne Doan, stars of the badass action series Warrior (now on Netflix!). They talk about how the show has embodied the fighting spirit of Bruce Lee; some of the initial trepidation and concerns they had about their roles at the beginning of the production; and why Olivia is the Ginger Rogers of Warrior. Also: a guest appearance from Dianne's dog and why Olivia's early role as "Dim Sum Girl #1" actually completes an interesting full-circle moment.
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231: They Call Us Past Lives
In this special conversation recorded live at Asia Society in New York City, Jeff welcomes newly minted Academy Award nominee Celine Song, writer/director of Past Lives. (Spoiler warning!) They discuss the real-life autobiographical moment that inspired her film's bilingual, bi-cultural center; telling a story about the people who hold and know the different parts of ourselves; and how things might have ended up differently for Nora and Hae Sung if they just had better tech and a stronger internet connection.
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230: They Call Us Nǎi Nai & Wài Pó
Jeff and Phil welcome filmmaker Sean Wang, director of the Academy Award-nominated documentary short Nǎi Nai & Wài Pó, a love letter to his own grandmothers. He talks about making an unapologetically personal film about the everyday lives of these two extraordinary women, why Wài Pó wields a sword, and the amazing gift of getting to experience the film's success as a family. Also: The Good, The Bad, and WTFarts of making Nǎi Nai & Wài Pó.
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229: They Call Us The Most Asian Costco
Jeff and Phil ring in the Year of the Dragon and welcome back friend, journalist and fellow podcaster Ada Tseng to talk about her Los Angeles Times piece which asked and answered a very important question: Which are the "most Asian" Costcos in Southern California? They discuss why the wholesale chain holds a particular appeal for Asian American shoppers, the specialty items you can only find at the Most Asian Costcos, and the spiritual journey of purchasing Kirkland clothing. Also: The Good, The Bad, and The WTF of Costco.