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Sleeping Tigers: The Asahi Baseball Story

Jari Osborne
2002 | 50 min
This feature-length documentary tells the story of the Asahi baseball team. In pre-World War II Vancouver, the team was unbeatable, winning the Pacific Northwest Championship for five straight years. After the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, all persons of Japanese descent in Canada were sent to internment camps. The former Asahi members survived by playing ball. Their passion was contagious and soon other players joined in, among them RCMP officials and local townspeople. As a result, the games helped break down racial and cultural barriers. This remarkable story is told with a combination of archival footage, interviews and dramatic re-enactments.

Awards and distinctions

  • Banff Rockie Award - Category: Sports Programs
    Television Festival, Banff
    2004
  • Jury Award
    Golden Sheaf Awards /Short Film and Video Festival, Yorkton
    2004
  • Honorable Mention - Category: The Humanities
    International Film and Video Festival, Columbus
    2003
  • Best Feature Documentary
    Asian Film Festival, San Diego
    2003