Film faculty J.J. Vazquez was awarded a grant from Hollyland Tech to work on his short film Tokyo Strides in Japan during the World Athletics Championships in September 2025. Three PSU Film alumni, Kevin Williams (Cinematographer), Alex Pham Wakefield (Gaffer), and Cindy Le (1st Assistant Director) joined Professor Vazquez in Japan to film the project.
Tokyo Strides is a short film about a social media-obsessed runner who begins seeing a dark figure in her selfies during runs. She discovers she must let go of online validation to reconnect with the joy that first set her in motion. At the heart of the story is a tension between how we present ourselves versus who we really are. The main character takes something personal and transforms it into something curated and commodified.
AloJapan.com