DOCUMENTARY AND SCRIPTED FILMS • LOS ANGELES
Focused on honest stories. Told with warmth.
Documentary and scripted films about family, resilience, and community.
New · Documentary short · 2026
Light on a Hill
When the Eaton Fire tore through Altadena, a Korean family lost their home but not their restaurant. They turned its parking lot into a place where neighbors could eat, find clothes, and find each other. Artist Robert Vargas painted a mural on its wall. Told through home footage and the voices of those who lived it.
Directed by Myles Matsuno · Produced by Myles Matsuno & Lailanie Gadia · Special appearance by Edward James Olmos
Screenings
LA Asian Pacific Film Festival World Premiere
Sacramento Asian Pacific Film Festival Official Selection
Austin Asian American Film Festival Official Selection
Laemmle Glendale, CA Theatrical Run, Sept 2026
Catalina Film Festival Official Selection
Silicon Valley Asian Pacific Film Festival Official Selection
Dolby Theatre, NY November 4, 2026, 3-5pm
DOCUMENTARY SHORT • 2026
LIGHT ON A HILL
A Korean family restaurant becomes a lifeline for Altadena after the Eaton Fire.
Filmography
NARRATIVE FEATURE • 2021
CHRISTMAS IN JULY
A heartwarming story of what a family will do for love.
Now streaming on Apple TV, Amazon, Google Play, Tubi, Vudu, and YouTube.
FULL FILMOGRAPHY IN NAVIGATION TABS
DOCUMENTARY • NEW DAY FILMS
FIRST TO GO
The Kataoka family’s story of World War II incarceration of the Japanese, told by their great-grandson.
Streaming on New Day Films + Kanopy.
BRANDED & IMPACT WORK
Broadcast discipline to stories that matter.
Having worked at a Disney, ABC as an Engineer and Technical Director for broadcasting, I saw the importance of creative direction, placement, and marketing at a high-stakes and fast-paced level. Alongside our independent films, we bring that same importance, creativity, and vision to commercial and mission-driven work for partners including Spotify, Universal Music Group, Civic Nation, and many more.
NARRATIVE SHORT • 2012
ELLA
Sometimes learning how to let go is the hardest part.
A Los Angeles Shorts Festival “Festival Gem”
Now on YouTube
SELECTED FESTIVALS & RECOGNITION
LA Asian Pacific Film Festival Recognition City of San Francisco Austin Film Festival Screen Writing Sidewalk Film Festival
Telly Awards LA Shorts Fest Burbank International Film Festival Knoxville Film Festival Catalina International Film Festival
Cannes Shorts Fest Austin Asian American Film Festival Big Bear International Film Festival
WHY WE MAKE FILMS
My great-grandfather had a motto: honesty and kindness are best in business. It stuck with me.
I started telling my family’s story in First To Go: Story of the Kataoka Family because I wanted to document my own family story on the Japanese American Incarceration so I can pass it down for my family for generations to come. It was important to me to tell my grandmas story and from my family who lived it. What started as a home film project became so much more. Light on a Hill started the same way. After the Eaton Fire, I watched a family who had lost their home and turn their restaurant into a place where it gave back to their community in a time of need.
Every piece of work we make comes from the same place: to make an impact.
- Myles Matsuno, Founder & Director
Get in touch
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