Has Orientalism Spoiled Future Depictions of Asian/American Culture?

Edward Said's theory of Orientalism inspired widespread discussion about the depiction of Asian and Middle Eastern cultures in art, literature, movies, and TV. Orientalism, the racist, exotic western depiction of eastern cultures, is all over in western culture. The definition of this pattern as Orientalism leads to people being way more aware of the racist undertones of stereotypical settings and people whenever white people stop by the Middle East in a movie. 

Part of Said's Orientalist theory is recognizing that after being exposed to the exotic, mystical nature of Orientalist depictions of Asia, many people from the west will only see that outlandish picture of a place in Asia or an Asian culture even when actually exposed to it. A white person making a movie about Egypt might go to Egypt to research the culture and places in an attempt at realism and still be previously conditioned to expect to see a beautiful exotic bazaar, which might make their trip to a random marketplace into a mysterious adventure. Their depiction of Egyptian culture, then, would be the way they saw Egypt through someone else's pre-planted expectations for that culture. 

If this self-sustaining circle really is the case with creators, however, then the question becomes: will we ever be able to see a realistic representation of other, specifically Asian, cultures? The answer, however, appears to be a simple one: don't try to tell a truthful story about a culture that you don't really know. That is not to say that a white person can never tell a story about a person who is not white. It is, however, to say, that creators and artists need to be aware of their biased interpretation of other cultures and allow that to inform their decision about writing about those cultures.