Alum Anthony Lucero's 'East Side Sushi' a Soulful Crowd Pleaser

SAN JOSE MERCURY NEWS -- “East Side Sushi” is as homegrown a production as the farmers market up the street. Not only was it filmed in Oakland where it flashes some of the city’s major attractions — the soothing beauty of Lake Merritt, the regalness of the Grand Lake Theatre, the cultural vitality of the Fruitvale district, to name a few — it was written and directed by an Oakland-born filmmaker who graduated from San Francisco State University. So that’s one angle to fuel interest in this uplifting drama about a Latina single mother’s evolving quest to become a sushi chef in a male-dominated profession. But also important to note are the numerous audience awards it has collected while on the festival circuit, including its world premiere at San Jose’s Cinequest in February. Either way, it would be a shame to miss this feel-good winner from Anthony Lucero, who in his feature-length debut, creates a signature dish that stacks up favorably with a flurry of other foodie films.