Watch an exclusive clip from the upcoming documentary Wisdom Gone Wild. Directed by Rea Tajiri, Wisdom Gone Wild is a poetic portrait of the filmmaker’s mother, Akiko, as she experiences dementia. The doc captures Akiko’s story across 16 years with this clip illustrating the film’s tender visual sense and empathetic portrait of a mother while her sense of self slips away.
Wisdom Gone Wild isn’t the first time that Taijiri has told her mother’s story. Her 1991 short documentary History and Memory: For Akiko and Takashige chronicled her family’s experience in the Japanese internment camps following the attack on Pearl Harbour. Her latest film captures her mother’s transformation, as she now responds only to “Rose,” but lives with dementia day by day, experiencing the world anew and accepting the challenges ahead.
The film is making its broadcast debut after a festival run that included stops at DOC NYC and IDFA. Wisdom Gone Wild won the top prize at the San Diego Asian Film Festival, along with the Festival Prize and Audience Award for Best Documentary Feature at both the BlackStar Film Festival and the Philadelphia Asian American Film Festival, among other accolades. Wisdom Gone Wild premieres November 20 on PBS.
