Words by Alyssa Winn | Photos by J Stevens

We got to speak with Emily about her exposure to anime and samurai films and how it prepared her for her role in Warigami.

Woman sits on stool and leans forward.

Warigami has been described as a “perfect mix of samurai films and anime”.  Growing up, were you familiar with samurai films and anime?

My connection to Japanese content growing up was mainly through Studio Ghibli films, which I’ve seen so many of, numerous times, and love greatly. We only had one TV channel with cartoons on when I was little and it didn’t have any anime, so I kind of missed that. We had a few Sailor Moon VHS and I had (still have) a bunch of Sailor Moon “merch” and a mixed tape of the soundtrack I listened to on repeat. I would try and perfect my drawings of Sailor Moon and run around our orchard pretending to be Sailor Mars… But aside from not having much exposure, when I did see anime and samurai films, I was too squeamish with violence and sensitive to intensity to enjoy them.

At one point, we won a Dragon Ball Z VHS in a raffle with the Victoria Nikkei Cultural Society that my family was part of. I was excited to watch it when we got home, honestly to feel like I was more tapped into this content that was part of my heritage that so many people around me seemed to be into and know more about. But then one of the characters got his arm blown off ha (I had zero context at the time, but guessing that was Piccolo,) and I was so disturbed!!! And there was so much yelling and loud music!! We stopped the VHS and gave it to my cousins I think.

Then Kill Bill was probably my first taste of seeing that samurai cinema-style on screen and I again felt left out because everyone loved Vol. 1, but I spent half of it with my hands over my face. So I loved Vol. 2 because I guess by the time it came out and given the level and kind of violence in it, I could actually handle watching more of the film. Since then, I’ve watched more of both samurai films and anime and can properly enjoy them and appreciate the intensity and creativity, the power and style, but it was a slow rocky start haha!   

How did samurai films and anime influence you in prepping for the role of Wendy?

Watching samurai films and anime while I prepared was an exciting reminder of what I hoped to be part of bringing to life with our team, especially with the fight/action sequences. Through university, some of the anime I watched included Dragon Ball, Ranma, Escaflowne… my brother watched Evangelion and Full Metal Alchemist so I watched that over his shoulder… But in the time I had to prep for Warigami, I had such a blast going through Netflix watching episodes from various anime that captured some of the action and even comedy I wanted to tap into and have in my mind’s eye as we worked. In terms of samurai films, for prepping to play Wendy, our director Jason Lapeyre recommended I watch Lady Snowblood.

I’d seen Seven Samurai, and most other Japanese live-action films I’d seen at that point featured male leads, so it was quite gratifying to watch this Japanese “femme fatale” in full colour, gliding and deadly. At a young age, Wendy suddenly became very alone when both her parents were killed and she was separated from her brother, Vincent. For all she knew, he was killed as well. Yuki (aka Lady Snowblood) also lost her mother, father, and brother and spent the rest of her life on a mission to live out the dying wish of her mother to seek vengeance. I felt Wendy would see so much of herself in this and aspire to be as singularly focused and fearsomely skilled. Wendy even similarly discovers that she has inherited a mission from her family that becomes her burden to bear and share with Vincent when they are reunited. 

How do you feel about paying homage to Japanese culture in a mainstream North American show? Growing up, did you hope to see this representation in the media?

I’m so excited, grateful, humbled, and proud all at once to get to pay homage to Japanese culture in a mainstream North American show with Warigami. It’s definitely something I’ve been excited to see more of since I was little – more characters of Japanese descent, more artists of Japanese descent in front of and behind the camera, and more stories about and even just including Japanese culture authentically.

Two things that happened repeatedly to me growing up were being compared to Lucy Liu, and either being jokingly told by someone who was not of Japanese descent that they were “more Japanese than me,” or just feeling that way when I compared their knowledge and enthusiasm against my insecurity. Lucy Liu is, of course, AWESOME, but what bothered me was feeling that those people had no Japanese actresses in mainstream North American media to reference, so they just compared me to Lucy Liu in a way that felt dismissively like “You’re all the same.” And this thing of feeling like I wasn’t “Japanese enough,” is also something I’m excited to see represented onscreen – the struggles and celebrations of cultural identity, being mixed race in North America (for me, half-Japanese, half-British, raised in Canada). 

I loved watching the Hulu series PEN15 for so many reasons, but a significant one was watching Maya Erskine be absolutely brilliant, wild, heartbreaking, and hilarious as Maya Ishii-Peters, and knowing that she co-created/wrote it, and relating to so many aspects of the show/her character, specifically in relation to her being of Japanese descent. Months later, I still laugh out loud about some of those parts. I hadn’t seen that onscreen yet and it felt so good! I’m excited for more authentic and specific Japanese content creation in mainstream North American media, but I’m also so thankful to just get to represent wherever I go, whatever work I’m doing, by showing up with the way I look, the experiences I’ve had, and the DNA in my chains. 

How do you think your upbringing doing musical theatre influences the way you act for film and television?

Oh man, I miss musical theatre. It’s been a minute. I think having started out the way I did makes me feel so lucky to get to show up and act, that that is my job and how I fit into the kaleidoscope that is any production, regardless of medium. Starting out with musicals, community theatre, drama camps, Fringe festival, collectively-created theatre pieces… I would frequently be wearing many hats. The productions were generally put on with very little money, to earn little or no money, and once you perform it, it’s done. It’s gone. All of that makes me feel like the pleasure, purpose, satisfaction of my job is in acknowledging that it is a team effort, that the joy is in the moment, and the hope is that the teamwork and joy will lead to something that brings joy and conveys meaning to audiences. It’s very present, rigorous, and wonderful work.

I’m also grateful for the training I received through my theatre studies and all I learned through live performance and creation for stage to help me as an actor. When deciding whether I’d study acting for theatre or film after high school, I ultimately chose theatre because I felt comfortable with subtlety, but wanted to make sure I could be able to expand, go big, strengthen my voice, and use my whole body to convey character. If I had theatre as my foundation, I felt I’d be confident to act in any medium.  

Can you pinpoint the moment you got bit by the acting bug?

Yup, signing an autograph for a girl when I played a bird in The Three Pigs’ New Adventure with Four Seasons Musical Theatre. I was 11. Up until that point I had wanted to be a singer, a paleontologist, a teacher, an author, a pediatrician… I had been encouraged to audition for this play by my fifth grade teachers. I was cast. Then I had fun rehearsing, felt a knack for it. I loved when the costumes and props started coming in. Then we were running the lighting cues before dress rehearsal. There was a definite click there… At this point, we were comfortable with the material and each other, the space, and we were getting physically transformed, and then the lights went off in the house and up on the stage and I felt this freedom and permission: to trust the work, the team, myself, and just do it, boldly as I pleased, as confidently as I could. 

The lights were a revelation for sure, but up until then I still felt like it was all just kind of for fun. But when the cast was signing autographs after the shows, there was a definite clunk, not just a click, and I could hear my voice in my head saying clearly: “This is what I want to do with my life.” It actually bothered me for years after, I wondered what it meant that I felt like acting was my chosen career after signing an autograph. I feared vanity and narcissism. I’m sure there is part of me that feels grateful for recognition, that enjoys feeling appreciated or validated… It’s funny how you can feel something before you actually know or can articulate what it is.

What I came to understand and what feels most true to me, is that that was the moment where all the fun I’d been having and work we did became not just about me or us on that stage, living in a bubble… The point was to share it, give it to audiences, and for them to hopefully feel excited or inspired or moved or thoughtful – a position I had frequently been in as a viewer and was getting to experience for the first time on the other side. It was the moment of understanding the purpose of acting for me and the value of working hard, doing my best and enjoying every step.  

You received your BFA in Acting from the University of Victoria. What drew you to the acting program there?

I researched many schools and programs and was so glad when UVic accepted me because I was honestly very excited to continue living at home (a 20-min walk from campus), have the support of my family (I had a part-time job at Rogers Video), UVic had given me a scholarship for a portion of my time there… all of this and more helped me to feel like I could just pour everything into making the absolute most of my time there.

I’m a lot like Wendy in that I love to immerse and focus. I really loved acting and I really wanted to be good at it, and to be knowledgeable and respectful of it, the theatre, and what goes into making productions happen. At this point I can’t remember the specifics of the program or facilities that initially drew me to UVic over so many others, but I know I was so excited when I was accepted, and I know why I’m grateful I went there. The main takeaway from my time at UVic in their Phoenix Theatre program was developing a sense of self-sufficiency as an artist – to trust the well of my creativity and be able to collaborate with others to make work from the ground up.

I feel that was really fostered through their Student Alternative Theatre Company (SATCo) that gave us the opportunity to mount our own shows in addition to classes and working on the “mainstage” programmed productions. I also learned various ways to break down scripts and characters – on the page and in my body – with the teachers and my classmates there. I feel like the theatre program at UVic gave many opportunities for me to discover more about myself as a human and artist and strengthen both.  

What has been the most exciting moment of your career thus far?

Oof, tough question. I’d say getting to play Wendy in Warigami, for ALL that entailed. And also the phone call where my agent and manager told me I booked the job I’m on now in New Zealand, and being here, currently halfway through my four months of work, with this team on this show in this character.  

How did you prepare for the martial arts and stunts in the show? Did you have any formal training beforehand?

I studied Taekwondo in the leadup to the shoot. Before that, I’d received my level 1 certificate in dramatic combat from the Academy of Dramatic Combat and done some drop-in sessions with them before that intensive. That included hand-to-hand, rapier-dagger and single-sword. I’ve also danced in various styles since I was 4 years old and was doing a lot of physical theatre through university and after I’d graduated. And I do yoga haha, that’s pretty much me. I like a long walk, a quick sprint, and a nice hike.  

Tell us about Wendy Ohata. What is your favorite thing about her?

I see a lot of similarities between us, but the main difference is that she does not care what people think of her and she does not easily make exceptions or adjustments to her behaviour for the comfort of others. There was something very powerful, liberating and also comedic about that for me that I found very appealing when playing her.  

Wendy discovers she has a twin brother, Vincent (Kai Bradbury). How was it working with Kai and how did you two build your chemistry offscreen for portraying a sibling bond on screen?

Gosh, I love Kai. Kai is the best. Kai is the brightest light in the room, he is very easy to have chemistry with. It could have something to do with our very similar backgrounds: ethnic, geographic, musical theatre… so the chemistry didn’t need to be worked at as far as friendship, glee, and appreciation goes.

It was fun to go from being goofy together as Kai and Emily to being rather serious and comically at odds as Wendy and Vincent. That’s where the real acting comes in haha and thankfully so much is right there on the page in how they speak and how different their values are from one another. Also in life, Kai has sisters and I have brothers, so we’re used to that sibling dynamic.