The Chef & The Daruma Poster

The Chef & The Daruma: Directed by Mads K. Baekkevold. With Gabriel Prevost-Takahashi. Hidekazu Tojo's invention of the California Roll introduced sushi to a western audience, but it wasn't always this way: when he came to Vancouver in the '70's he faced a staggering amount of racism from locals, and sushi itself was seen as bizarre and foreign. How much did he have to change about himself and his food to fit in with his new community? We chronicle the hardships he has faced, how far he has come, and follow his still-ongoing journey in search of identity. This is also the story of Daruma, an ancient fable about a Buddhist monk. The dolls made in his image are a traditional Japanese symbol of setting a goal, sticking to it, and getting back up when you fall. The film tracks the fable as a colorful, eye-catching parallel to Tojo's incredible story, and their shared theme of standing tall in the face of adversity.