Cheers: A Binghamton alum celebrates local business with documentary

For Jon Walley '10, "Kampai" means two things: The subject of his most recent film, or - something more in line with its traditional definition - a toast for the family and the man who made it possible.

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"My family moved to Boston, but we would come back to visit my in-laws and we'd always want to go to Kampai - some of the best sushi that we've had, bar none," Walley said. "The food is great, and the people are amazing. But there's something more. The thing that sparked me to try and figure it out was talking to other people who work at or are fans of the restaurant - they knew what I was talking about. It's a special place, and no one could put their finger on it."

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Walley '10 is a director who works primarily on commercial and documentary films. His most recent film, "A Walk with Richard," features the founder of the Japanese restaurant Kampai, Richard Matsushima. The film is a celebration of Matsushima's impact on the area, as well as a look into the special ways he interacts with the world.

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"Every day, he goes for a walk, rain or shine. He feeds turkeys, and he buys a specific brand of cracked corn that is softer on their mouth! Sometimes, he'll spread the feed so the turkeys don't fight because he wants them to be kind to each other," Walley said. "That empowers me, because those kinds of anecdotes are where a true story is. I want people to see the level of care and detail he lives by, and how that weaves into a bigger tapestry. This is a restaurant story, but it's also a family story, and it's a town story."

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Walley's decision to create the film is engrained within his upbringing in Vestal, N.Y. Although he isn't from the area originally, he developed a strong connection to the locality and, when he graduated, decided to stick around; he attended SUNY Broome Community College and ultimately ended up at Binghamton University for cinema.

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He says his time at Binghamton served as an awakening. Though his work now doesn't always reflect the style he learned in school, he says it taught him the most important lesson: to focus on the storytelling.

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"It was all about shifting your perspective on what cinema can be. It's a very theory-based program; it's very experimental, but I didn't know what that meant at the time. Experiencing all these things that I had never seen before was awesome," he said. "Through my time there, I got to know Professor Monteith McCollum, who was instrumental in developing my style and my filmmaking as a director."

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His style and process now center stories about legacy, process and people. When he first begins a project, he asks questions to unearth the "true creative potential" of a subject. For Richard, what quickly became noticeable was his hospitality and generosity.

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"I find process to be quite interesting in various walks of life - it could be manufacturing, art, cooking. How Richard decided to run this restaurant, and the effect that that's had on a community of people - that's interesting to me. They're mostly human nature stories," he said. "People like stories about other people. People want to see themselves in stories."

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Although some subjects - like the Matsushimas - are nervous at the start, Walley does his best to reassure them. He finds that developing trust and keeping people involved in the act of creation keeps the story as real as possible.

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Image Credit: Jon Walley.

​More information about Jon Walley and his other works can be found here.

"Throughout the production process, I wanted to capture the essence of what makes Richard special and quirky, and the little things that are funny, charming and endearing about him," he said. "I want to make sure I tell an honest story."

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Walley says he is often inspired by music and podcasts because of the opportunity to visually recreate the scene, but what truly draws him to a story is a need to learn more. He describes working through and sharing the "process of curiosity" as his true passion. His goal in his art is to inspire creativity and provoke conversation.

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"You talk with people, and you figure out what their story is, what their point of view is, and you take that and combine that with what the story you thought you were telling," he said. "Do these two things line up? Can I still work what I thought was interesting into what their story actually is? Do I feel like it's still worth telling? In many ways, the subject dictates where the story goes."

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In crafting the story, Walley says that he decided to leave spaces in the narrative intentionally short. Although the piece could have been feature-length, he hopes that the subtext leaves room for dialogue; he encourages the curious-minded to stop by Kampai and ask questions themselves.

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"I want to give you a glimpse. I don't want to try to unpack his whole life. We'd be here forever; he's been through so much," he said. "I want to encourage people to watch the movie and then go meet him, to go have an experience. I've given you a little introduction so you're not coming in cold. You have something to connect about now."

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And people did connect with the film. Walley says he worked hard to share the story both locally and in regional festivals. Although he also submitted to the more well-known, larger settings, he felt it was especially impactful within the community. It was ultimately well-received in both, and won Best Short Documentary at the Phoenixville Film Festival and the Audience Choice Award at the NYSIFF.

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It was also featured at the Monadnock International Film Fest (MONIFF), Pottstown Film Festival, Alpha Arts Film Festival, Flickers Rhode Island Film Festival, DUMBO Film Festival and the Online Global Peace Film Festival.

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Walley is currently working as a director of photography on a new project about bridging the healthcare gaps in America. He's also considering other stories in the Binghamton area for future films, but he says that "A Walk with Richard" will always hold a special place in his heart. In many ways, it is an ode to what makes Binghamton special and what makes it a home.

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At the end of the day, he says, the accolades are less important than the celebration.

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"The biggest thing I've learned is that if you can tell a story about a family and show it back to them, and they go, 'Oh, my God, this is incredible. You nailed it' - that's the bar, right? That's the benchmark," he said. "I want a film to be successful, but there is no higher praise than a family and a group of friends saying, 'Wow, you were able to distill the essence of this topic.' That's the highest compliment."

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