Internationally acclaimed film and stage actor Jason Scott Lee has begun an intentional journey from mega-movie stardom to living sustainably, on his off-the-grid taro farm, 4,000 feet up the slopes of Mauna Loa on the Big Island of Hawaii.
"Everybody was thinking that if you live so far away from Hollywood, you'll ruin your career," Lee admits in the documentary's opening scene. "I said, 'Career is nothing without the happiness and the joy inside.' Even now, it's kind of hard to explain."
Lee has named his farm "Pu Mu," represented by two Chinese characters symbolizing "Simplicity" and "Nothingness." Living more simply and with less "stuff" is at the core of what the actor/farmer is doing. With a characteristic grin he explains "People say, 'Why are you dropping out?' I say, from your perspective I'm dropping out. From my perspective, I'm dropping in!"
The camera tags along with Jason as he goes about his work, whether he's driving down Hollywood Boulevard on the way to a film production meeting in L.A., or launching his 12-foot aluminum boat off the ramp at Miloli'i, last surviving traditional Hawaiian fishing village near the southern-most tip of the United States. "This is fishing Hawaiian style!" he mugs to camera over the rush of wind and spray, one hand on the helm, the other scooping poi out of a calabash on board, laughing and smiling all the while.
An intimate portrait of one of Hawai'i's most beloved celebrities, the documentary consists solely of first-person narrative by Lee, his friends and family. Much more than a tabloid biography, the story quickly encompasses the universal issues Jason is confronting: Materialism and alienation in western society, environmental stewardship, preservation of indigenous culture, youth advocacy, and what "success" really means.
A scene in the taro patch shows Jason explaining taro cultivation to a visiting worker. "This is the plant that allowed the Polynesian people to thrive for thousands of years," he says, peeling the kalo root. "It's considered their ancestor, their older brother." Lee has embraced Natural Farming at Pu Mu, a technique developed by his teacher, Japanese agricultural sensei Masanobu Fukuoka. "Fukuoka-san created an art of farming that is as close to the natural growth pattern of crops as possible, in a semi-wild manner. He always talked about a way of farming, and a way of life, that would heal the human spirit, and the land itself. By healing the land, you heal yourself." Malama 'Aina, taking care of the land, is central at Pu Mu.
"Toward Living Pono" has been endorsed by PBS Hawaii, and has the fiscal sponsorship of the International Documentary Association. Watch for it on public television stations and film festivals nationally in 2010.
Lee has named his farm "Pu Mu," represented by two Chinese characters symbolizing "Simplicity" and "Nothingness." Living more simply and with less "stuff" is at the core of what the actor/farmer is doing. With a characteristic grin he explains "People say, 'Why are you dropping out?' I say, from your perspective I'm dropping out. From my perspective, I'm dropping in!"
An intimate portrait of one of Hawai'i's most beloved celebrities, the documentary consists solely of first-person narrative by Lee, his friends and family. Much more than a tabloid biography, the story quickly encompasses the universal issues Jason is confronting: Materialism and alienation in western society, environmental stewardship, preservation of indigenous culture, youth advocacy, and what "success" really means.
A scene in the taro patch shows Jason explaining taro cultivation to a visiting worker. "This is the plant that allowed the Polynesian people to thrive for thousands of years," he says, peeling the kalo root. "It's considered their ancestor, their older brother." Lee has embraced Natural Farming at Pu Mu, a technique developed by his teacher, Japanese agricultural sensei Masanobu Fukuoka. "Fukuoka-san created an art of farming that is as close to the natural growth pattern of crops as possible, in a semi-wild manner. He always talked about a way of farming, and a way of life, that would heal the human spirit, and the land itself. By healing the land, you heal yourself." Malama 'Aina, taking care of the land, is central at Pu Mu.
