He is Sansei Japanese American (3rd generation) and based in the San Francisco Bay Area. He is the recipient of numerous honors, including an Academy Award for the documentary short subject, Days of Waiting: The Life & Art of Estelle Ishigo (1990), four Academy Award nominations, a Primetime Emmy, and the George Foster Peabody Award. His work explores the extraordinary lives of ordinary people caught up in dramatic historical events and troubling social issues.