Name: Meet Chef Masako Morishita
Uploaded: Jun 05, 2025
Channel: Colt Bradley
Description: When the U.S. State Department inducted Masako Morishita into its American Culinary Corps, we had a choice: film the ceremony or tell a story. We went with the story.

Client

U.S. Department of State

Website

state.gov

When the U.S. State Department inducted Masako Morishita into its American Culinary Corps, we had a choice: film the ceremony or tell a story. We went with the story.

Behind the Line with Masako

When we started planning this piece, the initial impulse was pretty standard—capture the event, shoot the speech, maybe cut in a quick interview afterward. But Masako isn’t a standard chef, and this wasn’t a standard story. She’d just been named the James Beard Foundation’s Emerging Chef of 2024. Her food blends Japanese tradition with D.C. flair, and we wanted to capture that fusion with the same intentionality she brings to her dishes.

So we met her where the magic happens—before opening hours, in the kitchen at Perry’s.

Instead of a formal sit-down, we talked with her as she prepped, plated, and riffed. There were just two of us behind the cameras, keeping it nimble and intimate. No lights blazing, no staged moments. Just the cadence of her routine, the steam rising from the udon, and the kind of reflections that only show up when someone’s in their element.

She cooked her famous Udon Carbonara (yes, it’s as good as it sounds), and talked us through her process—how she thinks about cultural identity, how cooking has become her diplomacy, and what it means to represent the U.S. overseas as a Japanese American chef. The result? A video that feels more like a short film than a recap. Something real. Something memorable.

Cultural Layers, Visual Texture

Since this video was released during the 2024 Japanese state visit, we knew the visual treatment had to carry some cultural weight. So instead of just dropping in photos with hard cuts or simple dissolves, we designed custom backgrounds and subtle textures that nodded to Japanese aesthetics without being heavy-handed. The visual language we used was meant to echo the story: a blending of cultures, a respect for roots, and a clarity of intention.

These layered treatments didn’t just elevate the imagery—they helped tie the whole piece together. It’s one thing to document; it’s another to design a feeling. And in the end, the team at State felt like this piece captured something deeper than just a moment—it honored a person, a voice, and a shared sense of purpose.