What to Watch on WTTW for Asian American Pacific Islander Heritage Month

This May, join WTTW in celebrating Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month with a lineup of compelling programs. Explore stories that illuminate both present-day issues and pivotal moments in history as well as influential individuals. 

This month features several new programs, including a new Chicago-based cooking show, Indian As Apple Pie (read our interview with the host). Plus, two new stories on Independent Lens, a look at Taiwan’s first female president, and an examination of the mysterious life of a Japanese photographer.

Click the schedule links for additional air times.

Indian As Apple Pie 

Saturdays, beginning May 2 at 4:00 pm on WTTW
In this new program, Chicago-based cookbook author Anupy Singla takes us on a journey of Indian ingredients by visiting fresh markets across the U.S. and cooking popular recipes in her own kitchen. She aspires to help create the next generation of Indian home cooks in America by demonstrating how to source Indian ingredients and prepare authentic dishes at home. Read our interview with Singla, and check back for recipes from the show.

Field Trip with Curtis Stone: Hong Kong

Saturday, May 2 at 8:00 pm on WTTW Prime
Curtis Stone heads to Hong Kong to discover the influences of tradition and a modern food scene that carries a deep respect for the past. During his journey, he finds himself folding dumplings with a master, exploring jars of ancient ingredients, and training with a martial arts legend.

Rudy Maxa’s World: The Taste of Japan

Saturday, May 2 at 9:00 pm on WTTW Prime
This program takes an in-depth look at the places in Japan that many visitors miss, as well as the food that makes Japanese cuisine one of the world's most admired. Along with Tokyo-born, Washington, D.C. restaurateur Daisuke Utagawa, host Rudy Maxa tours Tokyo, the northern Japanese island of Hokkaido, and the southern, subtropical island of Kyushu.

Lucky Chow 

Sundays at 9:30 am on WTTW Prime
Lucky Chow travels to explore Asian cuisine's impact. The un-hosted six-part series explores a wide variety of Asian food and drink – from a famous Japanese noodle dish to Korean kimchi to Chinese fusion – while meeting the new generation of chefs and entrepreneurs dedicated to keeping the traditions alive.

Asian Americans

Sunday, May 3 at 7:00 pm on WTTW Prime
Explore the impact of Asian Americans, the fastest-growing racial/ethnic group in the United States, on the country's past, present, and future, told through individual lives and personal histories.

A Life Reimagined: The George Masa Story 

Sunday, May 10 at 9:00 pm on WTTW Prime
Working backward through filmmaker Paul Bonesteel's decades-long fascination, A Life Reimagined: The George Masa Story unravels the mysterious life of George Masa, a Japanese immigrant whose extraordinary photographs helped define the identity of the Great Smoky Mountains.

Invisible Nation

Sunday, May 10 at 10:30 pm on WTTW Prime
Invisible Nation offers viewers unprecedented, intimate access to Tsai Ing-wen, Taiwan's first female president, providing a character-centered study of her leadership during a period of complex global and geopolitical challenges. The documentary explores Taiwan's evolution, highlighting its vibrant democracy, hard-won civil liberties, and established democratic processes, including robust and fair elections.

Amache: An American Injustice

Sunday, May 10 at 11:30 pm on WTTW Prime
Amache: An American Injustice tells the story of the unjust incarceration of 120,000 innocent Japanese Americans during World War II after the bombing of Pearl Harbor. For years, archaeologists and survivors have been digging into the past and discovering how those incarcerated built a life behind barbed wire and created a community in the desolation of the desert.

Food Roots

Monday, May 11 at 9:00 pm on WTTW
Emmy Award-winning, Chicago-based restaurateur Billy Dec travels through bustling Philippine metropolitan cities, remote islands, and mountain villages to find his last living relatives and face the family tragedy that haunts his past. By embracing the culinary and cultural treasures of his homeland, Billy gains a deeper understanding of how food has shaped his family’s worldview.

Photographic Justice: The Corky Lee Story

Sunday, May 17 at 9:00 pm on WTTW Prime
Using his camera as a “weapon against injustice,” photographer Corky Lee’s art is his activism. His images of Asian American life empowered generations. This intimate portrait reveals the triumphs and tragedies of the man behind the lens.

American Masters: Nam June Paik

Sunday, May 17 at 10:00 pm on WTTW Prime
See the world through the eyes of Nam June Paik, the father of video art and coiner of the term “electronic superhighway.” Experience the acclaimed artist’s creative evolution, as Academy Award nominee Steven Yeun reads from Paik's own writings.

Independent Lens: Light of the Setting Sun

Monday, May 18 at 9:00 pm on WTTW
After a family member has a mental breakdown, filmmaker Vicky Du traces generational trauma rooted in her family’s displacement during China’s 1949 revolution. Across Taiwan and New Jersey, she explores if healing can break the mental illness cycle.

Antiques Roadshow: Celebrating Asian-Pacific Heritage

Monday, May 25 at 7:00 pm on WTTW
Travel with Roadshow to watch incredible items from Asian-American, Asian, and Pacific Islands creators, including a Hawaiian Kou bowl, a Gandhi presentation spinning wheel, and an 1888 Joseph Nawahi painting. Which is $250,000 to $300,000?

Independent Lens: Third Act

Monday, May 25 at 9:00 pm on WTTW
Filmmaker Tadashi Nakamura chronicles his father Robert A. Nakamura’s life, from World War II incarceration to becoming a pioneer of Asian American cinema. As Parkinson’s and political unrest open old wounds, father and son confront art, memory, and legacy.

Secrets of the Dead: China’s Bronze Kingdom

Wednesday, May 27 at 9:00 pm on WTTW
A mysterious ancient city lies hidden in the mountains of Sichuan – remnants of a kingdom consigned to oblivion for thousands of years, until the chance discovery of a jade artifact in 1929. More than 10,000 unusual items have been found at the site which experts believe may be as archaeologically important as the Terracotta Army of Xi’an. Could this be the capital of the ancient Shu kingdom?

Great Performances: Yellow Face

Saturday, May 30 at 8:00 pm on WTTW Prime
Enjoy Tony winner David Henry Hwang’s comedy starring Daniel Dae Kim as an Asian American playwright who protests “yellowface” casting in the musical Miss Saigon only to mistakenly cast a white actor as the Asian lead in his own play.