Sessue Hayakawa was an unlikely star in early Hollywood, a Japanese actor who became a beloved matinee idol in an era of intense anti-Asian prejudice. Frequently typecast in roles that trafficked in exotic stereotypes (and not always Asian ones), Hayakawa eventually set up his own production company, Haworth Pictures Corporation, to bring a more nuanced presentation of Japanese culture to American audiences, often in collaboration with his wife and frequent co-star, Tsuru Aoki, and director William Worthington. The Dragon Painter, a delicate exemplar of the Haworth house style, is a mystical love story that unabashedly wields Orientalist cliches and primitive sexual politics to open American eyes to the aesthetics of non-Western art. Hayakawa stars as Tatsu, a feral cartographer who paints in hopes of capturing the essence of his eternal love, a woman who transformed into a dragon a thousand years ago. The master artist Indara (Edward Peil, Sr.) seeks a protégé who can carry on his legacy, but no one is good enough — except for Tatsu, who lacks the discipline to carry on Indara’s tradition. In a ploy to domesticate the unpredictable talent, Tatsu is tricked into believing that Indara’s daughter Ume-ko (Aoki) is his long-lost beloved in fleeting human form. With its blend of folkloric storytelling, studied naïveté, and staggering photographic beauty, The Dragon Painter finds Hayakawa beating Hollywood at its own game, creating a showcase worthy of his talents. This new restoration from the George Eastman Museum, EYE Filmmuseum, and the San Francisco Silent Film Festival reconstructs the original American release with gorgeous tints and tones and previously unseen footage.

Preceded by: “The Death Mask” (Thomas Ince, 1914) – 21 min – 35mm from Library of Congress