Dear Seattle

September 1, 2018 7:13 PM

Just a Kid From Seattle directed by JJ Augustavo

“I have kind of a love-hate relationship with Seattle,” explained Jon Jon Augustavo, whose “Just a Kid From Seattle” is an autobiographical look at a young Filipino’s struggle to leave the city that shaped him. “I never wanted to make a film about the city I was from.” Augustavo, whose music video productions with fellow Seattle native Macklemore have made him an industry darling, changed his mind when the Visit Seattle opportunity came up. “Making this Seattle short film really made me think about Seattle and what it is, and what it is to grow up there,” he reflected.

posted by Become A Silhouette (10 comments total)

There was so much of my neighborhood in that piece, I half thought they were going to drive past my house.
posted by palmcorder_yajna at 8:04 PM on September 1, 2018

I haven't had time to watch it yet, but skimming through, yeah, they came pretty close to driving past my old house too.
posted by litlnemo at 9:22 PM on September 1, 2018

Also: He is absolutely right that you can't talk about Ethiopian food around here without talking about Ibex.
posted by palmcorder_yajna at 10:49 PM on September 1, 2018 [2 favorites]

I live in Seattle and I thought this film was meh.
posted by k8t at 7:39 AM on September 2, 2018 [1 favorite]

Where are they in the last outdoor shot, when the car is parked under the power structure? It looks like the ridge above 23rd where it splits off Rainier but the view is wrong...
posted by zinful at 12:15 PM on September 2, 2018

Seattle's home for me, and there's a fair bit of nostalgia here, but I think there are others that are better positioned to represent the city. The Charcoal Sky and WASSUP PHAM are two of the best representations of Seattle culture I've seen.
posted by jewfro at 5:27 PM on September 2, 2018 [2 favorites]

Although I titled this post Dear Seattle, I mainly posted this as the only short I have ever seen that tackles Filipino-American identity. I probably overlooked the mediocre writing because this is the first time I've truly related to a lead character that looked and acted like me. And it reminded me how much harder JJ Augustavo and other filmmakers of color have to work for people to respect them. Cause a lot more people would like this if it were about a white kid from Seattle.
posted by Become A Silhouette at 10:02 PM on September 2, 2018 [6 favorites]

the last outdoor shot is an alley (not sure if it's still an 'alley' when there's no buildings) between 12th and 13th Ave S between Oregon and Snoqualmie street on Beacon Hill, a bit farther off from the rest of the locations in the film which are generally around Rainier St.
posted by jmlee337 at 10:15 PM on September 2, 2018 [2 favorites]

I grew up in a suburb of Seattle and now live in the UK. I am also Filipino-American. This short film, inclusive of the sometimes awkward writing, moved me to tears because there are so few media examples of young Fil-Ams also trying to work their shit out.

I live in a place that's 85% white. I don't have friends of the same ethnicity as me. People tell me "I just think of you as white" as if it's a compliment.

It's important for me to see other specifically Fil-Am narratives because every day, it feels like I am losing who I am.
posted by quadrant seasons at 3:14 AM on September 3, 2018 [4 favorites]

I grew up in a vibrant Filipino community, and I never had much pride in my culture because it was the norm. I always saw myself as a kid with a ton of interests that just happened to be a Fil-Am. But I moved to Minneapolis a few years ago and being Fil-Am makes me an outsider. Being Filipino is all I think about now.
posted by Become A Silhouette at 5:13 AM on September 3, 2018 [3 favorites]