WATCH THIS INTERVIEW OF “CRAFT OF SPEED” BY THE AUTOMOTO ARTS & FILM FESTIVAL.
“AMERICAN AND JAPANESE HOT RODDING MEET IN NEW MOONEYES DOCUMENTARY.” Elana Scherr, Senior Editor/Features of “Car and Driver”
“CRAFT OF SPEED”
MOONEYES DOCUMENTARY
LOGLINE
Shige Suganuma and Chico Kodama, two Japanese/Japanese American hot rodders, helped save Moon Equipment Company, an iconic American speed parts company, rebrand it as Mooneyes, preserve legendary founder Dean Moon's legacy, and popularize hot rod culture in Asia.
SYNOPSIS
For 30 years, Shige Suganuma and Chico Kodama, two Japanese/Japanese American hot rodders, helped save Moon Equipment Company, an iconic American speed parts company, rebrand it as Mooneyes, preserve legendary founder Dean Moon's legacy, and popularize hot rod culture in Asia. As Asian/Asian American pioneers in their industry, they battled against racism and xenophobia and ultimately created a global following. Now, Shige is attempting to grow hot rod culture despite declining interest in hot rods, and Chico is handcrafting a new race car to try to break a second land speed record at Bonneville Salt Flats.
DIRECTOR’S STATMENT
I was introduced to Mooneyes by my father-in-law, who is into hot rods and used to own a yellow ’32 Ford Roadster. Later, I had the honor of meeting Chico Kodama, the President of Mooneyes USA, and I was inspired by his and Mooneyes owner Shige Suganuma’s incredible story. With their full support, my team and I are making a feature documentary about their lives and work. The film is an epic origin story of legendary Dean Moon and his worthy successors, Suganuma and Kodama. It spans from Moon’s creation of Moon Equipment Company as an iconic American speed equipment & custom accessories company to Suganuma and Kodama’s evolution of it into Mooneyes, a coveted international brand. We’re deeply honored to be able to tell this important story to inspire new generations of hot rodders.—Ming Lai, Producer / Writer / Director
VISIT THE MOONEYES OFFICIAL SITE.
PROJECT STATUS
We’ve completed “Craft of Speed”! Now, we’re transitioning to distributing it. However, the costs to do so are very high, from submitting our documentary to film festivals and attending them to booking theaters and promoting screenings to creating DVDs, Blu-rays, and DCPs and having the film translated into different languages. We’re independent filmmakers, not supported by any studio or network. We need your help to share our film with the world. Please donate via our fiscal sponsor, the respected International Documentary Association, a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization. Receive a tax deduction. Best of all, show your love for Mooneyes. Thank you for your support!
GRATITUDE
Our deepest gratitude to our fiscal sponsor, grantors, donors, and supporters.
FISCAL SPONSOR
International Documentary Association
GRANTORS
California Humanities CA CARES Relief Grant
Doc Society (formerly known as BRITDOC and earlier the British Documentary Film Foundation) Documentary Impact Producers Relief Fund Grant
DONORS
Hiroshi Aggravante, Julie Akahori, Anonymous, Claudia Arnold, Michael Barnucz, David & Sue Bell, Kyle Bigelow, Pete Bowers, Enzo Cesario, Sean Chao, Angelina Cheng, Dongil Choi, Chun Family, Chuck, Shirlee, & Ben Coleman, Kevin Conway, Ron Cooper, Cruzin Magazine, Deanna & Don Doveatt, Rob Ekstrom, Tamara & Gary Fine, Ben Forster, Daric Galden, Kenneth Glasser, Henry Gronmark, Aaron Hamachi & Family, Tomoyuki Hatada, Anders Haugen, Charlene & Stanford Hirotsu & Family, Julie Holbrook, Vaughn & Phyliss Imada & Family, Jim Jard, Stanley & Sachi Kakita, Glenn & Harumi Kawaguchi & Family, Tom & Jennifer Kenna & Family, Kiyo & Kat Kiyonaga, Elena Klaw, Gary Lackore, Sharon Lee, Nate Lipp, Vladimir Ljadov, Sari Makki-Phillips & Family, Tad Matsuno, Laraine Matsuyama, Christopher Morton, Wesley Nielsen, Ming Ong & Brian Damitz, Barbara Oxborrow, Brandon Piver, William & Samantha Pung & Family, Susan Quaglietti & Vic Froelicher, Mike Rusch, Jacqueline Sanchez, Hiroichi Sekiguchi, Robert Shoji, Ron Sweet, Vivian Szeto & Roberto Garces & Family, Kari Taattola, Steven Takeshita, Yukio Tamura, Tuan & Fenny Tran & Family, Justin Tucker, Shigeru Uchida, Edwin Ushiro & Lynn Yamasaki, Kiichiro Watanabe, Miles Wenzel, William James College, Vince Wong & Michelle Chun, Harry & Leona Yahata
MEDIA
FILMMAKERS
MING LAI
PRODUCER / WRITER / DIRECTOR AND DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY / EDITOR / COLORIST
Ming Lai is a filmmaker and photographer and Founder/CEO of Humanist Films, a film and photography production company based in Los Angeles. His narrative and documentary films explore the human condition, from social issues to arts and culture. His fine art and documentary photography express his artistic vision. He’s created TV commercials and videos for many international clients, including Coldwell Banker, Epson, Fujitsu, Marukome, and Yakult. With all of his projects, he strives to create enduring works of art that benefit humanity.
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TUAN TRAN
PRODUCER / CO-DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY
Tuan Tran is a director of photography and photographer. He also works as a photo assistant and digital tech. Originally from Vietnam, he’s based in Los Angeles. He attended the Art Institute of Colorado, majoring in photography. He has more than 25 years of experience in photography and 15 years of experience in videography. As a director of photography, he prides himself in often working as a one-person crew. He’s worked on a wide range of industries, from high tech to fashion to beverages. His clients include Butter London, Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf, Dell, Juicy, Munchkin, Pelican, and Wells Fargo.
SVEN FAULCONER
COMPOSER
Sven Faulconer, born and raised in Belgium, is a Los Angeles-based composer for film and television. He employs a wide and unique range of music styles, as reflected in the remarkable list of credits acquired by him over the years. In particular, a keen sense for collaboration and strong storytelling skills have earned him music credits on blockbuster movies, such as The Hunger Games series, Nightcrawler, The Bourne Legacy, The Green Hornet, and Parkland. His original approach in independent productions has resulted in numerous scores with a very distinctive character.
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ANTHONY LOOMIS
CO-COMPOSER
Anthony Loomis is a composer & sound designer. Originally from the Pacific Northwest, he moved to Los Angeles to study audio production, with an emphasis in film, television, and video games. He has spent the last decade working in various studios, while assisting some of Hollywood’s biggest mixers & composers. He has contributed additional music & synth programming to projects such as Marvel’s Spider-Man, Daredevil, Invincible, and more.
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JEFF HUTCHINS
SOUND SUPERVISOR / SOUND DESIGNER & EDITOR / FOLEY ARTIST
Jeff Hutchins is a hands-on Sound Supervisor with 30 years of experience doing sound work for motion pictures and television. Field recording is a passion and brings a flow of unique sounds into every project. Spanning the globe on a quest to record interesting sounds, his high definition recordings really propel a freshness into each project. Jeff’s studios include a design suite and a high definition foley stage. As a result, he has won five Emmys and seven Golden Reel awards for excellence in the sound industry.
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BRUCE GREENSPAN
DIALOGUE EDITOR / RE-RECORDING MIXER
Bruce Greenspan has been working in L.A. since 1993. As an audio engineer who specializes in post sound for film and TV, he does what’s necessary to propel a story to best serve the narrative and realize the creator’s vision. For the last 20 years, Bruce has been a “one-man editor, designer, and mixer” for Planet Grande Pictures, Painless Productions, and many independent producers, delivering TV series from animation (CrashBox, Snowden’s Christmas) to reality adventure (Patrick Dempsey: Racing Le Mans, The Dead Files, Freshman Year, Two Hour Tour) to documentaries and specials (Moonshine Madness, Bad Boys of Summer, Breaking the News, It Conquered Hollywood), and much more. With hundreds of broadcast hours and dozens of features of experience, Bruce has had the opportunity to work with some of Hollywood’s finest and is thrilled to work with Ming on such an important film.
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SVEN IGAWA
DESIGN DIRECTOR / GRAPHIC DESIGNER
Sven Igawa is the Co-Founder of Igawa Design with over 20 years of experience in branding and graphic design. With his refined design sense, he’s created successful brand identities and advertising campaigns for many national and international companies: Crank Brothers, HBO, ICON Aircraft, Mountain Hardwear, PlayStation, Quiksilver, VF Corp, and Western Digital. He’s won numerous awards in identity, packaging, and collateral. He’s a proud graduate of California State University Long Beach with a BFA in visual communications.
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DAVID STEELE
ADVISOR
DIRECTOR, AMERICAN HOT ROD FOUNDATION
David Steele is the Director of the American Hot Rod Foundation, an organization dedicated to the historical preservation of hot rods and hot rod culture; a freelance automotive journalist; a national Concours-level car show judge, and an avid car collector and restorer.
W. DAVID MARX
ADVISOR
CO-FOUNDER AND CHIEF EDITOR OF NEOJAPONISME
W. David Marx is a writer on culture based in Tokyo; the Co-Founder and Chief Editor of Neojaponisme, an arts and criticism web journal; and the author of “Ametora: How Japan Saved American Style.”
SCREENINGS
AUTOMOTO FILM FESTIVAL / WINTER 2023
Los Angeles, California
Sneak Peek Screening and Q&A:
Sunday, 12/10/2023, 7:30 p.m.
South Park Center (USC Tower)
1139 S. Hill St.
Los Angeles, CA 90015
To learn more about the “Craft of Speed” Sneak Peek:
https://www.automotoentertainment.com/filmfest-winter-2023
To buy tickets to the AutoMoto Film Festival / Winter event:
https://automotoentertainment.ticketsauce.com/e/automoto-film-festival-winter-2023
NEWS
Featured
PHOTOGRAPHY
“Craft of Speed” is not only a feature-length documentary film but also a documentary photography series, featuring images of the historic Mooneyes Machine Shop, Chico Kodama handcrafting his rear engine modified roadster, and him trying to break his second land speed record at the epic Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah. Some of our black-and-white photographs of the vintage machines in the Mooneyes Machine Shop are showcased here on this site as well as in our film’s title sequence. They explore the Japanese concept of “wabi sabi” (“beauty in imperfection” or, in this case, beauty from use and age). One of our favorite images is the one above of a beautiful lathe tailstock, which looks fast even while standing still.
