Filming History in Seattle’s Chinatown | Seattle News

Seattle News Today | 2 Min News | The Daily News Now! · Jul 1, 2026 · 2m

A powerful new film, “I Am American,” just wrapped shooting across western Washington, bringing intimate, historically grounded storytelling to life through authentic locations tied to Japanese American incarceration history. Directed by Kelsi Umeko, the film draws from her family’s past and the broader Japanese diaspora experience, filming at sites like the Virginia V steamship, a Snohomish County farm, Bothell’s old schoolhouse, and crucially, Seattle’s Chinatown-International District — including the hauntingly preserved Panama Hotel. Rarely seen in film, this location-driven approach…