JQ Magazine: Australia Unfolds Its 17th Japanese Film Festival
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The new Dragon Ball Z: Battle of Gods hits six cities in Australia as part of its 17th Japanese Film Festival continuing in October through December. (Dragon Ball Z Production Committee)
By Eden Law (Fukushima-ken, 2010-11). After the JET Programme more than fulfilled its promise of “an experience of a lifetime,” Eden returned to Sydney, Australia, where he joined the JETAA New South Wales chapter to take advantage of the network and connections available to undertake projects such as an uchiwa design competition for the Sydney Japan Festival. He also maintains the JETAANSW website and social media. Other than that, he’s a web designer and a poet, gentlemen and raconteur.
Like a springtime wave of hanami Down Under, the 17th Japanese Film Festival began showing in staggered releases nationally in Australia, blooming first in Broome in late September, before displaying a full bouquet of film delights in the major metropolitan areas of Sydney and Melbourne. This is the first time that the festival has launched a national program, ranging from a mini ensemble of three films for small towns like Broome and Cairns, to a behemoth 33 new films and five classics in major cities like Melbourne and Sydney, which means the festival will run from 17 Sep to 8 Dec as it tours around Australia. Many of the new films will be shown for the first time in Australia (aw, you spoil us, Japan Foundation, you really do!). In addition, at this time of writing, the five classics will be shown for free, allowing even the most penniless hipster to get a gander and drop a casual mention at the right fashionable dinner parties.
With so many new films, many of which aren’t known outside of Japan (trust me, I’ve Googled this), how will you know which to watch and be informed like the sophisticate that you no doubt are? Well, for a start, check out the screening schedules for all the films in your (nearest) city. But fret not, gentle reader, for I shall explore some of the selections on show.
Based on a True Story
Documentaries and dramatisations based on true stories feature strongly in this year’s program. A Boy Called H, which won Special Prize at the Moscow International Film Festival 2013, is based on Kappa Senoh’s best-selling autobiography about growing up in World War II-era Kobe. Closing some of the larger programs, Fruits of Faith is based on a novel inspired by a true story of a fruit grower who tries to achieve the impossible dream of the perfect crop of organic apples, despite skepticism and threat of bankruptcy. Reunion, based on a journalist’s accounts, is an illustration of how individuals strive to retain their humanity and compassion in the face of unrelenting misery and death in the wake of the Tohoku disaster. Leaving no eye dry at last year’s Montreal Film Festival, it’s a good way to see if life has yet to crush all feelings out of your bitter husk. And for anyone who has ever treasured a truly good bowl of ramen (especially after a long night of clubbing in Tokyo—the Japanese equivalent to our 4 a.m. kebab), the documentary The God of Ramen will inspire not just food lovers, but anyone who’s ever had an all-consuming (hah!) passion.
Japan UK Careers Seminar – Tues Nov 12
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Via JETAA UK. Posted by Kim ‘Kay’ Monroe (Miyazaki-shi, 1995 -97). Click here to join the JETwit Jobs Google Group and receive job listings even sooner by email.
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JQ Magazine Seeks Writers for Fall 2013!
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Visit JQ magazine online at http://jetaany.org/magazine.
As we head into fall, JETAA New York’s JQ magazine continues to provide content with an ever-expanding array of articles, interviews and features (see our recent stories here). We’re now looking for new writers, including recent returnees and JET vets, from all JETAA chapters worldwide for posting stories via our host at the global JET alumni resource site JETwit.com. (Scribes are also encouraged to join the JET Alumni Writers group on LinkedIn.)
Below are story ideas grouped by JET participants and alumni (JET World) and those more on Japanese culture (Japan World). And if you’re a JET or JETWit contributor from anywhere in the world with a story idea of your own, let us know!
Click “Read More” below for our fall 2013 ideas pitch package, and contact JQ editor Justin Tedaldi (magazine [at] jetaany [dot] org) to sign up for stories.
Now, JQ is looking for additional help behind the scenes! Our editor (celebrating his fifth anniversary at the helm in November) is seeking a capable assistant to help with the posting, social media sharing and story assigning across all JETAA chapters. If you’re a wiz with WordPress, Facebook and Twitter, and enjoy all forms of Japanese arts, events and media, reach out to Justin. Thanks and yoroshiku!
Justin’s Japan: Nippon in New York — Martial Arts, Hayao Miyazaki and ‘Evangelion’ at Comic Con
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The Wind Rises, the latest film from director Hayao Miyazaki, has its U.S. premiere at New York’s Alice Tully Hall Sept. 28. (Studio Ghibli)
By JQ magazine editor Justin Tedaldi (CIR Kobe-shi, 2001-02) for Examiner.com. Visit his Japanese culture page here for related stories.
Saturday, Sept. 28, 3:00 p.m.
All American Open International Karate Championships
Hunter College Sportsplex, 68th Street and Lexington Avenue
$30 general admission/$65 RES floor/$80 VIP ringside
Get your kicks at this annual event presented by Kyokushin Karate New York, the original and world renowned full-contact knockdown karate style founded in 1953 by Grandmaster Mas Oyama. The All American Open consistently brings the world’s best karate fighters to compete for the amateur athletic championship title. Scheduled fighters Include 2012 All American Open champion Zahari Damyanov, Women’s World Middleweight champion Julie Lamarre, and Men’s World Heavyweight champion Alejandro Navarro.
Sept. 28 & Oct. 4
Alice Tully Hall, 1941 Broadway
$13
U.S. premiere! As part of the 51st New York Film Festival, the great Japanese animator Hayao Miyazaki’s new (and reportedly final) Studio Ghibli film is based on the life of Jiro Horikoshi, the man who designed the Zero fighter operated by the Imperial Japanese Navy from 1940 to 1945. An elliptical historical narrative, The Wind Rises is also a visionary cinematic poem about the fragility of humanity, starring the voice of Neon Genesis Evangelion director Hideaki Anno! Presented in Japanese with English subtitles.
Sept. 29, 5:00 p.m.
Rainbow Bubble Girls Open Audition as Talent Contest
Maid Cafe NY, 150 Centre Street
Free
Girl group Rainbow Bubble, an international all-girl idol group based in New York, is now looking for new members who can sing in different languages and dance. This current contest (which precludes semi-finals and finals to come) offers a top prize valued at $500 and a chance to receive an exclusive artist contract! Click here for contest rules and email StarGenerationsINC@gmail.com to pre-register.
For the complete story, click here.
Justin’s Japan: Discover the Joy of Sake
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By JQ magazine editor Justin Tedaldi (CIR Kobe-shi, 2001-02) for Shukan NY Seikatsu. Visit his Examiner.com Japanese culture page here for related stories.
Now celebrating its 10th anniversary in New York City, The Joy of Sake—the world’s largest sake tasting event outside of Japan—returns to the Altman Building in Chelsea on Sept. 26, with a staggering 172 breweries serving samples of Japan’s most celebrated alcoholic beverage.
While current statistics show that sake is losing ground to beer in Japan, it continues to make inroads in the U.S., especially among drink-savvy New Yorkers with a palate for the record 384 premium labels to be offered at the event.
“In the last 10 years the amount of sake imported into New York has doubled as more and more people discover how good the premium labels can be,” says event organizer Chris Pearce. “The Joy of Sake is a celebration of the pleasures of the sake cup—and it’s also one of the best annual food and beverage events in New York.”
This popularity is bolstered by the spotlight on sake at other Manhattan events this fall, including the JFC International Sake Expo and Food Show (Sept. 14) and the New York Mutual Trading Japanese Food and Restaurant Expo (Oct. 12). These annual industry gatherings pair the freshest of Japanese cuisines with some subtle, yet powerful, selections.
If you’ve never experienced The Joy of Sake, now’s the time! For more information, visit www.joyofsake.com.
Benjamin Martin at the Japan Writers Conference
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Benjamin Martin (Okinawa, 2008-13), author of the award-winning YA fantasy series Samurai Awakening (Tuttle) and blogger at MoreThingsJapanese.com, will be among the presenters at the 2013 Japan Writers Conference to be held Nov. 2-3 in Okinawa. Here’s the official description of his presentation, titled “Getting Published When You Live On An Island”:
This will be an overview of my experience getting published while living on an island with a total population of 550 people, and what I learned along the way that will help perspective authors and those still finding their way while living in Japan.
I will outline my journey into the publishing world while living on Kitadaito and Kumejima Islands in Okinawa, including the successes and pitfalls I found along the way. I will talk about the processes I used to write, the friends and resources that helped me refine my work, and things I wish I had known back then. I will touch on the predatory tactics of companies and resources for avoiding them, and also on the benefits of contests such as the ABNA. I will delve into my experience working without an agent, the pros and cons, and the opportunity I found with Tuttle Publishing, the benefits and trials of working with a smaller press. Finally, I’ll cover marketing from Japan, with ways I found to connect with the writing community. I will end with time for questions and/or discussion.
For details on the Japan Writers Conference, visit http://www.japanwritersconference.org/
To learn more about Benjamin, visit http://samuraiawakening.com/author/
2013 Kume Island Ha-ri-
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Posted by Benjamin Martin, a JET from 2008-2013 in Okinawa, publisher of the blog MoreThingsJapanese.com and author of the award-winning YA fantasy series Samurai Awakening (Tuttle).
The Ha-ri- races are a yearly event on Kume Island. This year they took place on June 12 at three locations around the island. This year I stuck to the Maja area where locals and students gathered together for a day of races and fun in the water.
While the races are the primary attraction, there is also generally a ball-toss game for the nursery school children and a tug-of-war. There are numerous races from both locals and school participants. At the Maja area, students from the local Nakazato Junior High, Misaki and Nakazato elementary schools, and students from Kumeshima High School all joined together in mixed and separate races.
This year I broke out my gopro to give you a closer look at participating in the Ha-ri- races. Thanks to a few friends and students who wore the camera along the way. Of course with plenty of water a few bucket wars broke out among the high school students, and not all of the boats made it back without a little extra water. Check out the video and pictures below, then come join us next year for this great event.
For more photos and video from this special event visit MoreThingsJapanese.com
Justin’s Japan: Nippon in New York – Heritage at Citi Field, Hatsune Miku and the Joy of Sake
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The Japanese Folk Dance Institute of New York will perform at Citi Field’s fourth annual Japanese Heritage Night Aug. 28. (Courtesy of blog.janm.org)
By JQ magazine editor Justin Tedaldi (CIR Kobe-shi, 2001-02) for Examiner.com. Visit his Japanese culture page here for related stories.
As the summer winds fade to fall colors, the weeks ahead are shaping up with these exciting events, ready to be enjoyed both before and after Labor Day.
This month’s highlights include:
Wednesday, Aug. 28, 6:30 p.m.
New York Mets Fourth Annual Japanese Heritage Night
Citi Field, 123-01 Roosevelt Ave.
$23 Promenade Reserved/$37 Pepsi Porch/$63 Baseline Box Silver
Watch the Mets take on the Philadelphia Phillies with a special Japanese Heritage Night pre-game show featuring the Japanese Folk Dance Institute of New York, the Japanese Men’s Choir, taiko and fue master Kaoru Watanabe, and the Spirit Award presentations to important members of the community. Look for fun Japanese activities and games throughout the evening at the special Japanese Heritage Night tables! A portion of the proceeds of all ticket sales made through the special JHN ticket window and through online sales will be given to the Japanese American Association’s Committee on Aging Issues.
Saturday, Aug. 31, 2:00 p.m.
Hatsune Miku Magical Mirai 2013 premiere
Anthology Film Archives, 32 Second Avenue
$20 general admission
In Japan, Hatsune Miku is a phenomenally successful virtual idol that grew out of fan-created songs. With a name meaning “first sound of the future,” she is based on an innovative singing synthesizer software character. This special theatrical release—her first in the U.S. in nearly two years—celebrates the pop Vocaloid’s sixth birthday of by capturing a special commemorative live concert at the Yokohama Area simulcast in both New York and Los Angeles. (For this Examiner’s review of Miku’s previous live film screening in Times Square, click here.)
Sunday, Sept. 1, 5:30 p.m.
J-Summit New York Benefit Concert
The Bowery Electric, 327 Bowery
$15 advance/$18 day of show
Offering a welcoming environment to enjoy music, dance, performance and fashion for all fans and artists, j-Summit New York has created a community focused on the connections and cultural exchanges between New York and Japan through electrifying events. Proceeds for this special benefit concert will contribute to the 2011 earthquake and tsunami relief fund. Bands for the night include Aki, Lust, Red, Iri, Nicole Oliva, Nafsi Groove, and Yuri Bear.
For the complete story, click here.
JETAA UK Networking Reception in the Midlands (UK)
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Via JETAA UK. Posted by Kim ‘Kay’ Monroe (Miyazaki-shi, 1995 -97). Click here to join the JETwit Jobs Google Group and receive job listings even sooner by email.
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Amegoui – Praying for Rain
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Posted by Benjamin Martin, a JET from 2008-2013 in Okinawa, publisher of the blog MoreThingsJapanese.com and author of the award-winning YA fantasy series Samurai Awakening (Tuttle).
Since the end of the rainy season early this year, the weather on Kume Island has been full of clear sunny days. While it makes for great sight-seeing and beach-going, it has been a hard year for farmers, with little or no rain to sustain critical crops. For the first time in 15 years, the island locals returned to their roots, asking for the help of the Chinbei, the name of the high priestess from the old Ryukyu Kingdom to come and pray for rain.
This rare ceremony began early on August 11th. The Chinbei and other priestesses (noro) met at Chinbei Dunchi on Kume Island. There, a sacred rock was encircled by rope to signify the presence of a kami. After offerings of rice, fruit, and sake, the noro poured water onto the rock while the Chinbei and other local representatives prayed. The Chinbei poured sake from a small cup, repeating the process until she felt the kami was satisfied.
Afterward, all the attendees were asked to participate in a tug-o-war competition outside the grounds. In addition to the physical offerings of sake, rice, and fruit, the offering of effort and strength signified by the competition was in offering to local kami. While competing, locals were sprayed and doused with water, and afterward danced in the simulated rain.
From Chinbei Dunchi, the priestesses and local leaders made offerings at two other shrines in the area. These shrines date back hundreds of years. One was a natural rock formation where a kami is thought to reside. The other was hidden away near the airport grounds where a concrete structure enclosed the sacred home of another kami. At both sites, offerings of rice, sake, fruit and prayers were put forth.
Immediately after the prayers ended, it began to rain. A tornado was even spotted, though it did not touch down. The farmers and local representatives happily returned to Chinebei-dun, the parched ground sated with the first short downpour in a very long time.
For more photos from this special event visit MoreThingsJapanese.com
WIT Life #242: End of Japan Cuts 2013
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WIT Life is a periodic series written by professional Writer/Interpreter/Translator Stacy Smith (Kumamoto-ken CIR, 2000-03). She starts her day by watching Fujisankei’s newscast in Japanese, and here she shares some of the interesting tidbits and trends along with her own observations.
Author with the venerable Tatsuya Nakadai at a recent screening of Ran
Yesterday Japan Cuts 2013 came to a successful close, with a jam-packed schedule of four films in a row. I only caught the middle two, Japan’s Tragedy and Dearest, both of which deal with the theme of death (like the earlier screened I’M FLASH, and they all do this deftly in their own unique ways). Japan’s Tragedy stars the amazing Tatsuya Nakadai, an 80-year old actor who I had the honor to interpret for at an event last month at the Museum of the Modern Image when his film Ran (directed by Akira Kurosawa) was featured and he participated in a Q&A following the film.
Nakadai’s downtrodden character in Japan’s Tragedy is in direct contrast to his genkiness in real life. The father he plays has recently lost his wife and has also been diagnosed with lung cancer on the morning of 3/11. After going through one operation he decides that he doesn’t want any more treatment, and furthermore that he will board himself up in his room and die beside the altar for his late wife. His son who is living with him since leaving his wife and daughter, as well as his job, is surviving on his father’s pension and taking care of him. Unsure of how to react to his father’s pronouncement, he initially tries to Read More
JQ Magazine: Citizens of the Bay Area, Film Buffs, and Lovers of All Things Japanese, Lend Me Your Ears!
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Catch the U.S. premiere of Evangelion 3.0: You Can (Not) Redo as part of NEW PEOPLE’s fifth annual J-POP Summit beginning July 27. (© khara. Licensed by FUNimation Productions, Ltd. All Rights Reserved.)
By Preston Hatfield (Yamanashi-ken, 2009-10) for JQ magazine. Preston received a BA in English literature with an emphasis in creative writing and a minor in Japanese at the University of California, Davis. After spending an amazing year on JET in Yamanashi, he spent a year writing and interning with book publishing companies in New York. He currently lives in Marin County, where he continues to cover local Japan-related stories for JQ, and teaches English as a second language at an international school in San Francisco.
Mark your calendars for the weekend of July 27 when NEW PEOPLE and the San Francisco Japantown Merchants Association kick off the fifth annual J-POP Summit. With a special thematic focus on the kawaii phenomenon, this extravaganza promises to be bigger and better than the last one (not unlike the stages of an RPG boss fight).
“Each year we strive to present a comprehensive cross-section of the latest in hot J-POP trends across fashion, film, art, music, anime/manga and pop culture that are happening in Japan NOW!” says event publicist Erik Jansen, who has been promoting the event since the beginning.
The weekend at NEW PEOPLE and Union Square promises a spectacular showcase of live music. In addition to performances by iconic pop star Kyary Pamyu Pamyu and LoVendoR, the new band featuring former Morning Musume star Reina Tanaka, you’ll also have the chance to hear Kylee, an American-born teenage singer whose stock has been rising steadily in the pop music scene. In case you’re worried if all that cutesy music is going to turn your brain to pudding, rest assured that a punk rock show by the Akabane Vulgars and Daichi’s beat boxing and vocal mix mastery will sculpt it back to its normal Jell-O consistency.
And if music isn’t your thing? “We always receive a wide variety of attendees, from ages 7 to 75 and from across all walks of life,” Jansen promises, and this year there will also be an array of other events, including a Harajuku-inspired fashion show, a Pop Gourmet food festival, a sake tasting hosted by the Japanese Consul General of San Francisco, a rebooted edition of the Real Escape Game, the Vocaloid Dance Contest and a full lineup of special guests including guest of honor Katsuya Terada, one of Japan’s greatest illustrators, who will be doing freehand drawings and signing autographs to promote his new art book at the Kinokuniya bookstore.
Justin’s Japan: Japan Society Serves Up Summer Film Festival
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By JQ magazine editor Justin Tedaldi (CIR Kobe-shi, 2001-02) for Shukan NY Seikatsu. Visit his Examiner.com Japanese culture page here for related stories.
Summer’s here, and that means a new season of JAPAN CUTS: The New York Festival of Contemporary Japanese Cinema, running at Japan Society from July 11-21.
Now in its seventh year, JAPAN CUTS offers 25 titles, all of which are a mix of New York, U.S. and International premieres. Highlights include the smash-hit samurai blockbuster Rurouni Kenshin, the multi-Japan Academy Prize-winning The Kirishima Thing, and the latest horror film from Takashi Miike, Lesson of the Evil.
“In contrast with the past few years, the selection of titles for JAPAN CUTS is much leaner, and more focused on art house productions and film oddities, though there is still a number of ‘mainstream’ crowd-pleasers in the lineup,” says Japan Society’s chief film programmer Samuel Jamier. “Rather than a ‘best-of’ list, this year’s crop brings a block of dark matter, and provides an unblinking look at the dark side of Japan.”
Co-presented with the New York Asian Film Festival (which itself is now in its 12th year), JAPAN CUTS has attracted over 30,000 filmgoers and presented over 150 feature films—many never before seen in the U.S.—as well as a number of panels, post-screening parties, and exclusive Q&As with filmmakers and actors. Past guests have included Koji Yakusho, Masami Nagasawa, and Sora Aoi.
For a complete listing of films and appearances, visit www.japansociety.org/japan-cuts-2013.
WIT Life #241: The Ravine of Goodbye
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WIT Life is a periodic series written by professional Writer/Interpreter/Translator Stacy Smith (Kumamoto-ken CIR, 2000-03). She starts her day by watching Fujisankei’s newscast in Japanese, and here she shares some of the interesting tidbits and trends along with her own observations.
Last night’s Japan Cuts feature film was Tatsushi Omori’s The Ravine of Goodbye, which just received the Special Jury Prize at the Moscow International Film Festival. This movie is based on the book by Shuichi Yoshida (who also wrote the chilling Villain, later made into a 2010 movie), and depicts the life of a couple whose next door neighbor’s young son was found murdered. As the police begin their investigation and reporters start gathering facts for their stories, it becomes revealed that the husband was involved in a gruesome gang rape when he was a college student. As more information is found, the deeper layers are peeled back to reveal the truth of the incident’s aftermath.
There were several scenes that were left a bit vague and I had some unanswered questions while watching, though I have a hunch they could be cleared up by reading the original source material. I thought the movie was really engaging in the first half, but later on as the truth was being uncovered things seemed to slow down almost uncomfortably. I found Omori’s work reminiscent of the recent Sundance miniseries “Top of the Lake,” both theme and pacing wise. Although much of Ravine was disturbing, it is without a doubt a polarizing film that will lead to much discussion, as I heard many disparate reactions from viewers exiting the theater. And for that alone, perhaps it is worth seeing.
WIT Life #240: Japan Cuts 2013: Week 2
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WIT Life is a periodic series written by professional Writer/Interpreter/Translator Stacy Smith (Kumamoto-ken CIR, 2000-03). She starts her day by watching Fujisankei’s newscast in Japanese, and here she shares some of the interesting tidbits and trends along with her own observations.
The amazing lineup at Japan Society’s Japan Cuts 2013 continues, and last night I had the chance to catch two films with the themes of loneliness and love. The first movie was I Have to Buy New Shoes, which is set in Paris and features a three-day romance between the main characters Aoi and Sen. The film’s title comes from their initial encounter, in which Aoi tripping over Sen’s passport causes the heel to come off her shoe and his passport to be ripped. She is a longtime resident of France, and he is visiting for the first time with his sister (who has abandoned him to find her boyfriend who is living there). Reminiscent of Celine and Jesse from Richard Linklater’s Before trilogy, Aoi and Sen fall into an easy rhythm as they find themselves spending all their moments together.
But with Sen’s departure three days away, there is a deadline to their relationship. Over this short period of time, they become close enough to confide in each other about Read More
