Role in ‘Paradise’ Helps Tomita Trace Her Cultural Roots

Starring in the new Alan Parker Film “Come See the Paradise� gave Tamlyn Tomita something few roles ever offer: the chance to explore her own history.

The film, which opens Dec. 23, explores the lives of a Japanese-American family in a World War II internment camp. It also gave Tomita a firsthand look at what her late father experienced as a child.

“He remembered living in the desert with huge mountains around him and a barbed-wire fence,� says the actress, who plays the independent oldest daughter of an immigrant businessman. “One of his most vivid memories was playing marbles and having to retrieve them from under the fence.

“Most Japanese-Americans have that legacy. The camp experience is something of a calling card between them. They say, ‘So, where were you interned?’ �

A former UCLA mass communication/history student, Tomita had a “very Cinderella-ish� introduction to her present career. She won the title of 1984 Nisei Week Queen at the annual L.A. Japanese festival. Through the contest, she met a woman who was helping out the casting director of “The Karate Kid, Part II.� Tomita went to a casting call to satisfy her curiosity--and walked out with the role of Ralph Macchio’s girlfriend. “I guess they found something quirky in me.�

Of her current part, Tomita says: “It’s so incredible--not just a great Asian-American role, not just a great woman’s role.�

Despite her appreciation of her own cultural background, Tomita encountered culture shock on her first visit to Japan.

“It’s so foreign to me. The only reason I even learned Japanese was to figure out what my parents were getting me for Christmas.�