Biola University- M.F.A., University of Southern California
- B.A., University of Southern California
Professor, Cinema and Media Arts
“As an educator it is my job to challenge students to find their voices and then empower them to tell their stories.”
An M.F.A. graduate of the USC School of Cinematic Arts, Dean Yamada teaches Visual Aesthetics, Intermediate and Advanced Directing, and oversees the biannual, university-funded film, known as Biola Film. In addition, Yamada brings a class of students to the Sundance Film Festival every January and has traveled numerous times to Tokyo, Berlin and Jakarta with classes of students to shoot both shorts and features.
His short film Jitensha (Bicycle) premiered at the Venice Film Festival, screened in competition at the Clermont-Ferrand Short Film Festival and won numerous awards, including the Vision Award from the Heartland Film Festival and the Golden Reel from the Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival. It aired on PBS through Film School Shorts.
Yamada’s first feature, Cicada, shot in Tokyo with a crew of 10 students and 3 alumni, won 8 awards, including the Grand Jury Award at the Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival and the Narrative Feature Award from the Heartland Film Festival. He is also a two-time King Foundation Best of Festival winner at the Broadcast Education Association Festival of Media Arts and the inaugural recipient of their Faculty Chair's Award.