New Sci-Fi Drama Explores Race, Ethnicity, & Culture Through a Mixed-Race Lens
What can we learn from 'Caucus: After the Fall?'
Fam:
For years I’ve been watching the multitalented Teja Arboleda create and advocate for “social action through entertainment.” I’ve found his work to be inspiring and challenging—always inviting us to look at race, ethnicity, and culture in new and intriguing ways.
Teja’s latest is an engrossing dramatic fictional podcast, “Caucus: After the Fall,” set in 2076. This country has become the United Segregated States of America. A Mixed-race documentary producer travels to the fractured segments of the country to find the two people who stopped it all.
“’Caucus: After the Fall’ is a story 23 years in the making, and most relevant right now, right where you are,” Teja says. “Which side will you choose? Enter Season One, and you’ll question everything you’ve been taught about race, ethnicity, and culture.”
The sci-fi drama podcast has achieved a major milestone: global reach with listeners in over dozens of countries and hundreds of cities. “Clearly this podcast resonates with all kinds of humans,” Teja says.
“…the United States can be a hostile place when it comes to promoting an identity that is not considered ‘normal.'“
All About Teja
Teja Arboleda is Mixed Black, White, and Asian. He grew up in Japan and has “a deep appreciation for diversity and humankindness.” He is Co-Executive Producer, Director of Photography, and Editor at Tow-Arboleda Films, whose award-winning social impact videos address racism and bullying against Asian Americans have garnered tens of millions of collective views worldwide.
He has an EMMY Award and five Telly Awards. Teja’s PBS documentaries such as Crossing the Line: Multiracial Comedians, and Model Minority: Do the Math, have stirred considerable discussions on identity, race, and culture in the news including The New York Times, Los Angeles Times, USA Today, and National Public Radio. His Discovery Education series, Diversity Elementary, has been a big success in many countries. He has edited and created over 150 nationally and internationally acclaimed social issue-oriented full-length documentaries and magazine-style news programs such as PBS’s Frontline.
Teja is also the author and illustrator of books on Multiracial and Multicultural identity, including In the Shadow of Race, Mixed Feelings, and Jeni So Many.
He says that his company, Entertaining Diversity, specializes in integrating our knowledge and experiences in the areas of race, culture, and media to create educational and entertaining solutions for a culturally diverse world.” Since 1992, Teja and Entertaining Diversity have toured the nation, “educating millions and tackling inequalities.”
“Storytelling is the oldest, most powerful way to ensure lasting reality of our own truths.”
Peep Our Chat
Q: You’ve been an influencer and creative in the Mixed-race space for a while now. When, how and why did you start doing this work?
A: I’ve been doing this work since the early 1990s. I wanted to figure out a way to address discrimination in a way that was approachable, even entertaining, if you will - hence the company name, Entertaining Diversity.
In 1991 I went to see the famous Saturday Night Live producer/actor Al Franken speak at Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government, here in Cambridge, Massachusetts. He talked about comedy and politics. After his talk, I went up to the microphone to ask what his plans were to include women in People of Color in SNL work. His response was sexist, racist and homophobic, and was booed by at least half the people in the room. I challenged him with a few more related questions, then after I sat down, he kept making inappropriate remarks. While he ranted on, he kept pointing at me, saying, “I’m sorry - where’s that ethnic guy?” So that night I was determined to fight this man (I don’t care about him per se, but what he represents), and started writing an outline for my one-man show, Ethnic Man!
That show became popular within the first year. I created a business out of it, starting Entertaining Diversity, Inc., then traveling around the US for twenty years, adding TV production, educational video/media distribution, and reaching millions of people.
Q: How has being Mixed inspired and impacted your work?
A: I am Black/Asian/White and I grew up in Japan, meaning I am culturally Japanese in the body of a Mixed-race person. Being Mixed has been a mixed blessing, in that I have learned how to harness the beauty of that and pass that on to younger generations of Mixed-race Americans and Mixed people in many countries. At the same time, the United States can be a hostile place when it comes to promoting an identity that is not considered ‘normal.'
“About 22 years ago, I started thinking about what the impact would be if racial classification were taken literally, with the United States segregated into geographical race regions.”
Q: What are some of the main things you’ve learned working in this space?
Storytelling is the oldest, most powerful way to ensure lasting reality of our own truths. I don’t hesitate to promote this in all forms, all media, and in all venues. What I call myself is not for anyone else to decide. And I have agency to change how I describe myself whenever I want.
Q: What vision drives your creativity?
A: “Need” and “desire” drive me. Justice and civil rights compel me. I’m not saying it’s ever easy, because even the best artist must rehearse, rehearse, rehearse, practice, practice, practice, fail, fail, fail and then only sometimes experience success. From 6:30 p.m. every morning until 11:00 p.m. at night I am writing, illustrating, recording, filming, editing, conceptualizing or inventing…and of course re-writing, re-editing or re-inventing. It’s usually a struggle, but the purpose always is to do “good work” - good trouble, to make a difference and help people. To make the world a better place.
Q: How did “Caucus” develop? Was it a book or a story first? What made you decide to do a dramatic fictional podcast series?
A: About 22 years ago, I started thinking about what the impact would be if racial classification were taken literally, with the United States segregated into geographical race regions. This would require a megalomaniac/tyrant/billionaire. I literally thought about Donald Trump and his early, power-hungry real estate activities, pushing out underserved communities and dumping on the poor. Look at us now.
Also, there would need to be an unrelated rationale, a distraction, so I came up with an uncontrolled worldwide virus. Then we had Covid. A war would break out, and this war between the ‘races’ could then only end by those who are Mixed-race. In the case of Caucus: After The Fall, Mixed-race children are sent to spy on each race district.
The Caucus property and series concept was first a three-part book series, only the first (Caucus) of which had been written. Publishers I pitched to at the time had no clue as to how to market something like this. Then I converted it into a screenplay. When I shopped it around, studios warned that America was not ready for this story. So two years ago I decided to write, produce, direct and fund it myself as a podcast with a story that takes place after the original story ends.
Q: Can you tell us about your methodology in developing this work / project?
A: I spent much of my career as a documentary producer. I moved from scripted to unscripted content based primarily on my desire to have it sound like an authentic interview with characters in real time. The actors (good friends of mine) had to read through an extensive world book that had all the details of the generations of history and then become their characters and have a talk with The Producer (played by myself) about their perspectives of what happened through the decades since the race districts were established. So, I used mostly improvisation and authentic cultural/racial context.
Q: Caucus: After the Fall is a powerful story around identity, clashing categories, and at the same time very much about community. Please tell us more…
A: You’ll have to listen to all nine episodes of Season One!
Q: What kind of response are you getting to Caucus: After the Fall so far?
A: We have had listeners in 62 countries and over 900 cities as of February 6, 2025, so clearly, many people around the world really want to know how America is going to get out of our racism problem.
Q: Are there plans for another season of Caucus: After the Fall? And / or other dramatic podcasts?
A: Yes, Season Two is being planned now, and my Development Partner and I are going to be shopping the podcast, screenplay, and series property to distributers.
Q: What do you want audiences to take away from your various works, and this podcast in particular?
A: Stop with the divide and conquer, power-hungry, privileged, malicious hate.
Q: Why is Mixed-race representation so important, and what do you hope to add to this category of creative content?
A: We Mixed-race people have the ability to pull people together. I want people to see that Mixed is normal and should no longer be portrayed as anomalies or ‘extra.' I want people to stop with stereotypical portrayals of Mixed-race people as ‘cute’, ‘damaged,’ or ‘confused.’ Ultimately, I want to produce all content with Mixed people.
I'd like to encourage everyone to support independent dramatic fictional podcast artists! Rate the show and share with your friends!
Caucus: After the Fall is available where you get your podcasts:
All links: http://linktr.ee/caucuspodcast
RSS Feed: https://feeds.buzzsprout.com/2394773.rss
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