Comedian Jo Koy's upcoming film 'Easter Sunday' shines light on Filipino American culture
DALY CITY, Calif. (KGO) -- Daly City honored comedian Jo Koy Friday by declaring it "Jo Koy Day," and giving him the key to the city.
They're celebrating his upcoming film called 'Easter Sunday' which is based in Daly City and celebrates its rich Filipino-American culture.
"I wanted to tell a story about my family but most importantly, I didn't want to just let people know, only Filipinos can get this," Koy said. "When you leave, you're going to be like, that mom is just like my mom and that kid is just like my kid. And funny is just funny."
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Koy was thrilled to shine a light on Daly City's Filipino-American culture.
"Just to represent them, shout them out in the movie, is just my indirect way of giving love back, you know, shining light," he said. "That's why a movie like this is so significant because finally, now my mom can finally get to see something that looks like her, talks like her, acts like her, lives here in America like her and she gets to celebrate it."
Juslyn Manalo, Daly City's first-ever female Filipino city councilmember, says it's representation that's been long overdue.
"There were no movies growing up, I would say, that had a Filipino-American family," Manalo said.
She believes the key she handed over symbolizes opening the door, and keeping the door open, for others that look like her.
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"It's finally here and Jo Koy is opening those doors for so many others like the local actors and comedians and what he's doing is paying it forward and making sure with that key that he's opened, he's opening it for others," she said.
Daly City is home to around 33,000 Filipino-Americans.
Koy says he hopes the movie sends a much larger message to the city's younger generation.
"You can do it, you're not silent anymore, you're being heard, your story is valuable and not only that, it's relatable because that's another thing that we always felt like, that we're not relatable, we're too specific, it's like no we're not, funny is funny, my family is just like your family," Koy said.
"Easter Sunday" will be in theaters on Aug. 5.
It's the first studio film to center on a Filipino American family.
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