Never in a million years did I ever think I would launch myself into filmmaking. Since I created Infinite Flow Dance in 2015, I had watched the Easterseals Disability Film Challenge from the side, but I never thought of entering it. This year, a few days before the entry deadline, I suddenly came up with an idea with this year’s theme “Suspense and Thriller,” and could not let go of it. With my long-time creative collaborator Kenzo Le, we sent our entry on March 27, and then dove into the 5-day challenge April 1-6. We both had other jobs, and I was traveling for half the time. We didn’t sleep, but ended up making something beautiful and powerful. I’d been producing videos and content at Infinite Flow Dance for 10 years, and I acted in a couple of short films when I first moved to LA, but this experience was transformational in new ways.

Looking forward to creating more films. Here’s “Killed It”:

Published: April 12, 2025

I was diagnosed with Autism 3 years ago, and 6-7 years into creating Infinite Flow Dance, a dance company that employs disabled and nondisabled dancers with diverse identities with a mission to advance disability inclusion, one dance at a time.

I spent years wondering what was “wrong” with me:

• Not understanding jokes, idioms, and figurative language.

• Missing social cues.

• My intense tunnel vision focus.

My autism diagnosis was a turning point. It didn’t just give me a label. It gave me answers. Rather than continue hiding or denying the parts of me I once saw as flaws, I used them as fuel to create this short film for the Easterseals Disability Film Challenge.

70-80% of people with disabilities have nonapparent disabilities. Especially since my Autism diagnosis, I had been constantly thinking: How do we make nonapparent disabilities more visible in Dance and other expressive arts.

Making a film with Autism at the center was not easy. In this film, I marry both the apparent and nonapparent, the visible and invisible. Though this was a sprint, making a film in 5 days, I feel like we shed light on some gaps in disability representation. Now, I have more ideas lol :)

Thank you Team Killled It:
Executive Producer | Writer | Actor Marisa Hamamoto
DP | Director | Editor Kenzo Le
Starring Marisa Hamamoto, Sharon Lee
Featuring Lauren Freedman, Auden Singh, Alexandria TK Sar
Sound Marco Cordova

The Prom - Short Film

Published: May 28, 2025