Appreciation, NOT👏 Appropriation👏

In Atlanta, there’s only one place you can get late night sushi on a Thursday: Trap Sushi. Fusing Atlanta and Japanese pop culture, Trap Sushi builds community around food, music, anime, and cosplay. Founders speak on the due diligence it takes to appreciate (and not appropriate) culture.

Artist Tolden Williams, aka Troop Brand, grew up in Mississippi loving Dragon Ball Z. Stephanie Lindo, an environmental scientist, first learned about manga and anime from her Vietnamese best friends. When Tolden discovered Stephanie art online, their shared love for Japanese culture fueled a project that has now become centerstage of Atlanta’s growing cosplay community.

Many Black cosplayers are on the rise–and so is racism. This exists in anime communities too, where being Black means you cannot play a certain character. Trap Sushi has become the place where people of all backgrounds feel safe and accepted to tap into cosplay, anime, and community in general.

Director
Joy Jihyun Jeong

Producers
Joy Jihyun Jeong

Director of Photography
Joseph East / Brave Voices Media

Editor
Haruka Motohashi

Editor-In-Chief
Keshia Hannam

Head of Production
Stephanie Tangkilisan

Post Supervisor
Syarifah Sa'diyah

Associate Producer
Ella Chi

Color
Nadya Sabrina

Sound
David Alba

Special Thanks
Chef Doni Lukman
Monday Night Brewing
Wagaya Groceries

Additional Music by
Telephone Hype by Son of Augustine
Cut to the Chase by Lalinea
Late to the Party by FVMELESS

Additional Archival Material
Getty Images
Simple png from pngtree.com
Motion Array