Interpreter/Translator/Writer Stacy Smith (Kumamoto-ken CIR, 2000-03) presents WIT Life, a periodic series about aspects of Japanese culture such as art, film, food and language. Stacy starts her day by watching Fujisankei’s newscast in Japanese, and here she offers some interesting tidbits and trends along with her own observations.

Yesterday I had to chance to stop by the event MANGA in New York, presented by Ginza Sony Park Project. This free Chelsea exhibition features work from six groups of Japanese artists who use diverse forms of expression to create original manga. According to the enthusiastic staff member who greeted me at the door and kindly provided an explanation of the exhibition, this is one of several experimental activities being tested out for next year’s expected completion of the second phase of Ginza Sony Park (it opened in 2018). They’re looking to receive feedback from visitors and potentially incorporate it into their new project.

There are two floors of manga to enjoy, and enhancing the visitor experience is a free vending machine with specially designed MANGA-CANs exclusive to the event. When you put in the letter and number of your choice, you receive a can of tea with a label showing a scene from one of the manga in the exhibition. The label is actually a commemorative sticker, so you can peel it off to save when you’re done with the tea. I picked UEDA & SASAMI from illustrator Hikaru Ichijo, a manga depicting the story of an aspiring painter named Ueda and the hamster Sasami who lives in her stomach. Ueda derives her energy from Sasasmi running on her hamster wheel, and Sasami is in turn is powered by eating sunflower seeds. But what happens when Ueda discovers that she can be the source of her own strength?

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Posted by Sydney Sparrow. Click here to join the JETwit Jobs Google Group and receive job listings even sooner by email.

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Position: Local Staff – Political & General Affairs Division
Posted by: Consulate General of Japan in New York
Location: Greensboro, NC and Lexington, KY, USA
Contract: Full-Time

Thanks to Roy Harrison (Saitama-ken, 2004-2007) for passing along the following job opening.

You’ll provide daily communication/interpretation support to engineers at a
leading automotive manufacturing facility during visits from Japan for equipment installation. You’ll assist with the translation of written and verbal correspondence to facilitate achieving project goals. You’ll be the conduit connecting US engineering teams to their Japanese counterparts. This project will provide you with professional opportunities to fine-tune your skills across several areas, including:

• Learning automotive-specific terms
• Managing in-person small and large group interpretation projects in an industrial setting
• Managing teleconference interpretation projects between engineers based across the US and Japan.
• Translating emails, memos, manuals, training, budgets, specification packages, and other automotive manufacturing-related documents

Application Process: To apply, please email rharrison@csi-ky.com

Interpreter/Translator/Writer Stacy Smith (Kumamoto-ken CIR, 2000-03) presents WIT Life, a periodic series about aspects of Japanese culture such as art, film, food and language. Stacy starts her day by watching Fujisankei’s newscast in Japanese, and here she offers some interesting tidbits and trends along with her own observations.

This month Time magazine released its list of the world’s 100 rising stars designated as the “TIME100 NEXT,” and two Japanese women made the cut. Both have very interesting stories, so I’d like to share them here for those who might have missed checking it out.

34 year-old Arfiya Eri is an LDP member of Japan’s House of Representatives with Uighur-Uzbek heritage. She grew up in southern Japan and spent some of her childhood in China, where she attended an American school. She went on to study at Georgetown University and eventually work at the Bank of Japan as well as the UN. Her platform is one emphasizing diversity, inclusion and female representation in politics, which might be surprising considering her political party. However, Eri aligns with the LDP on security and diplomacy, and a Japan Times profile says this mixture of being progressive regarding civil rights and diversity “while being conservative on defense issues could help boost the LDPs profile and appeal among younger voters.”

The other Japanese woman profiled is Rina Gonoi, a former member of the Self-Defense Forces (SDF) who endured physical and verbal sexual abuse for over a year while serving. After leaving the SDF in 2022 and appealing to the authorities but being ignored, she took her case to social media when traditional media also dismissed her. Thanks to her efforts, five servicemen were dishonorably dismissed and four others punished. In addition, Gonoi received a public apology from the Ministry of Defense, as well as apologies from several officers. She also filed charges against the government and her assailants in both criminal and civil cases. In the former three perpetrators were indicted on sexual assault charges, but in the latter four of the five accused denied the charges. Gonoi continues to battle sexual harassment in Japan’s male-dominated military.

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Posted by Sydney Sparrow. Click here to join the JETwit Jobs Google Group and receive job listings even sooner by email.

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Position: Administrative Assistant
Posted by: Quick USA
Location: Beaverton, OR, USA
Contract: Full-Time, No Visa Sponsorship

Thanks to Quick USA for passing along the following job opening.

【Position】
　Administrative Assistant　★パートタイム(フルタイム希望も歓迎)

【Essential Duties】

(Not Official: Please ask the interviewer for more details)
日系非営利団体でのアドミアシスタント業務
具体的には、オフィス業務全般および経理(データ入力など)
イベントのお手伝いをしていただくこともあります。(ホリデーパーティなど)
・Issuing checks and Journal Entry using QuickBooks
・Invoicing and receiving membership fee, advertisement fee, and collect overdue payment
・General Administrative duties
・Assistance duties of other members of the office

【Working Hours, Working style】
月～金　9:00～17:00の間　
※時間曜日はご希望お伺いします。隔週で希望シフトをご提出いただきます。
※基本的にオフィス出社

【Working Location】
Beaverton, OR

【Salary】
$17~20/hour

【Qualifications】
・日本語で丁寧な対応ができる方
・基本的なPCスキル
・チームワークを大事にお仕事に取り組める方
・英語力は日常会話ができればプラス
・QUICKBOOKSの使用経験はbig plus(必須ではありません)

【Qualifications】To apply, please send your resume to yamagishi@919usa.com.

Posted by Sydney Sparrow. Click here to join the JETwit Jobs Google Group and receive job listings even sooner by email.

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Position: Executive Assistant/Translator
Posted by: Quick USA
Location: Mooresville, IN, USA
Contract: Full-Time; No Visa Sponsorship

Thanks to Quick USA for passing along the following job opening.

This position will report directly to the President of the company. Will be responsible for translation from Japanese to English and English to Japanese, in both a verbal and written format. This form of communication will also require the following: attend and translate one on one/ group meetings, translate documents, attend, and translate appointments, if needed, attend and translate phone calls, translation of various types of documents, and all other forms of communication to be translated as required.

Essential Duties

•  Good Attendance
• Translating documents and verbal communication
• Translate confidential information
• Preparing and managing correspondence, reports and documents related to production and TOA Winchester HR Organizing and coordinating meetings, conferences, travel arrangements and events
• Maintaining schedules and calendars for President and Japanese members
• Arranging and confirming appointments
• Translating incoming/outgoing emails for President and Japanese members
• Making necessary calls/sending text messages to check production related questions to Manager/Senior Managers/Plant Managers, and Vice President at TOA(USA) and TOA Winchester
• Translate Meetings

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By JQ magazine editor Justin Tedaldi (CIR Kobe-shi, 2001-02). Justin has written about Japanese arts and entertainment for JETAA since 2005. For more of his articles, click here.

As the summer winds fade into fall colors, the weeks ahead are shaping up with these exciting events, ready to be enjoyed after Labor Day.

This month’s highlights include:

Friday, Sept. 1, 5:00 p.m. 

Book Signing Meet & Greet with R.L. Stine

Sag Harbor Books, 7 Main Street

$25

Join acclaimed international author R.L. Stine (Goosebumps) for the release of his new book Stinetinglers 2: 10 More New Stories by the Master of Scary Tales! Two kids embark on a field trip to the zoo…and stumble upon a creature they never expected to meet. A boy makes a machine that puts kids in charge…but at what cost? A child is sure his new house is haunted…but is it just in his head? Laced with Stine’s signature humor and a hefty dose of nightmarish fun, Stinetinglers 2 is perfect for fans who want even more scares. These chilling tales prove that Stine’s epic legacy in the horror genre is justly earned. Dive in, and beware: you might be sleeping with the lights on tonight!

Tuesday, Sept. 5, 7:00 p.m.

PassCode

Gramercy Theatre, 127 East 23rd Street

$41.75

Metal girl group PassCode are playing their first ever stateside tour this September, kicking off a three-show U.S. mini-tour! Their metal-style arrangements are in stark contrast to their pop idol styling and dance moves, and lead singer Arima’s harsh vocals give the band a unique sound that is winning fans around the world. Incorporating a wide range of musical genres, PassCode’s debut album ZENITH was released via Universal Music. The band has received love and support from both rock fans and idol fans throughout Japan, and have performed at several major music festivals including Summer Sonic and the Vans Japan Warped Tour, and played a sold-out show at Nippon Budokan last year For more info, visit their website and see their new music video “GROUNDSWELL.”

Sept. 6, 7, 9-10

Perfect Blue

Various locations

$20

Anime Expo Cinema Nights invites you to revisit Perfect Blue, the groundbreaking and rarely screened first film from legendary director Satoshi Kon (Paprika, Paranoia Agent) as it returns to theatres for its 25th anniversary! Rising pop star Mima has quit singing to pursue a career as an actress and model, but her fans aren’t ready to see her go. Harboring feelings of guilt and haunted by visions of her former self, Mima’s reality and fantasy meld into a frenzied paranoia. As her stalker closes in, in person and online, the threat posed is more real than even Mima knows in this iconic psychological thriller that has frequently been hailed as one of the most important animated films of all time.

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Posted by Tom Baker

JET alum Susan Laura Sullivan will be part of a troika of writers discussing the concept of hybridity at this year’s Japan Writer’s conference. The conference, which is free, will take place in Nagoya on Oct. 14-15.

Here’s the official description of her presentation:

Jane Joritz-Nakagawa, Susan Laura Sullivan, & Marcus Grandon
Collisions, Collages, Collaborations: Using Hybridity Effectively in Your Writing
Panel Discussion

This session will focus on how to employ the concept of hybridity to make fiction, memoir, essay, journalistic writing, poetry, or cross-genre work more exciting for its audience. Examples will be given using excerpts from various published writers, including but not limited to works of the presenters. Things that can be added to a work include visuals, quotations, work in a different genre or language, sound, metaphor, musicality, any type of found work, dialogues, and more. This session is intended to benefit any writer working in any genre or style at any level.

Jane Joritz-Nakagawa has lived in Japan since 1989. Currently she lives in Hamamatsu. She is working on her eleventh full length poetry collection, a novel, short stories and essays. She teaches part time at Shizuoka University but frequents Yatsugatake (Minami maki mura, Nagano) whenever possible.

Susan Laura Sullivan publishes across all genres. Co-editor and contributor to the award-winning Women of a Certain Age (Fremantle Press), she was shortlisted for the 2012 TAG Hungerford prize. Her most recent poetry will appear in Limina: A Journal of Historical and Cultural Studies in the near future. She resides in Japan.

Marcus Grandon is a multimedia artist, writer, musician, researcher, and educator. His work has been exhibited internationally and won awards in multiple genres. He’s a Teaching Fellow at the University of Birmingham, UK, and a university instructor in Japan. Marcus’ artwork is in private collections of people around the world. Marcus presents at conferences internationally and travels frequently. He makes his home in Shizuoka City, Japan. www.marcusgrandon.com.

Posted by Sydney Sparrow. Click here to join the JETwit Jobs Google Group and receive job listings even sooner by email.

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Position: Counsular Staff, Visa Officer
Posted by: Counsulate General of Japan in Los Angeles
Location: Los Angeles, CA, USA
Contract: Full-Time

The Consulate General of Japan in Los Angeles is seeking a full-time Consular Staff (specified in VISA-related matters). For those who are interested, please send your response via email by Sep. 22nd. 

Job description General consular matters including security issues Visa-related responsibilities, which include: 

• Adjudicate immigrant and non-immigrant visa applications for non-Japanese travelers traveling to visit, work, live, etc. in Japan 
• Answering phone calls including inquiries such as simple application procedures and complex cases regarding Japanese consular policies and regulations, etc. 
• Assist visa applicants in completing necessary forms and documentation
• Review visa applications based on criteria set forth by the office 
• Interview applicants to ascertain information pertaining to their visa applications 

Working Environment 

• Venue: Consulate General of Japan in Los Angeles 
• Hours: Mon-Fri (except holidays) 9:30am-5:00pm (There could be over-time duties when necessary) 
• Salary: $50,000～$55,000 per year (The salary of newly hired staff will be determined depending on their background, experiences, and skills) 
• Benefits: Group Medical insurance policy is available with “NIPPON LIFE” (80% of the premium is paid by the Consulate)

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Posted by Sydney Sparrow. Click here to join the JETwit Jobs Google Group and receive job listings even sooner by email.

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Position: Assistant News Producer
Posted by: TV TOKYO America, Inc.
Location: Washington, D.C., USA
Contract: Full-Time; $45,000.00 – $50,000.00 per year

Thanks to TV TOKYO America, Inc. for passing along the following job opening.

Description:

TV TOKYO America has an immediate opening for a new assistant news producer in our Washington DC bureau, covering a wide range of issues including US politics, foreign policy, economics, and general-interest stories. This full-time position involves working closely with correspondents from Japan to assist in all aspects of the reporting process. Join us to cover press conferences of U.S. government agencies, international conferences abroad, and next year’s presidential election.

You should have:

Familiarity and interest in topics related to US domestic politics and foreign policy, East Asian regional affairs, and current events.
Strong English communication skills and the ability to quickly digest a lot of information.
Ability to work under deadline pressure.

You will be expected to:

• Attend regularly-scheduled press briefings (including the White House, congressional hearings, and panel discussions around DC, taking note of pertinent information and conveying that to correspondents.
• Do research and fact-checking for breaking news and day-of stories.
• Work with Japanese correspondents to conceive and develop ideas for long-form feature stories.
• Book interviews, arrange shoots, and facilitate logistics for domestic and international travel, accompanying camera crews to other locations as necessary.
• Assist with on-site news production and in-house recording, logging, and editing of video feeds.
• Have conversational level Japanese language ability.

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Interpreter/Translator/Writer Stacy Smith (Kumamoto-ken CIR, 2000-03) presents WIT Life, a periodic series about aspects of Japanese culture such as art, film, food and language. Stacy starts her day by watching Fujisankei’s newscast in Japanese, and here she offers some interesting tidbits and trends along with her own observations.

I’ve been on the road for the majority of this month interpreting for the Department of State’s International Visitor Leadership Program. I’m traveling with a six-person group from Japan here in the U.S. to study technology transfer and commercialization of biotechnology. Our three-week journey is an East Coast tour that has taken us from Washington D.C. to Boston and Philadelphia, followed by our current final stop of Orlando (where we were almost derailed by Hurricane Idalia!).

During our time in Philly, I was delighted to discover a previously unknown Isamu Noguchi sculpture. Philly has a robust public art program, including a wide variety of murals all throughout the city. This Noguchi work called A Bolt of Lightening refers to Benjamin Franklin’s famous experiment flying a kite in an electrical storm. It rises above what seemed to be a construction site so at first I thought it was some sort of crane, but upon closer look it revealed itself to be a stainless steel structure supported by cables.

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Posted by Sydney Sparrow. Click here to join the JETwit Jobs Google Group and receive job listings even sooner by email.

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Position: Part-Time Assistant Director
Posted by: Kobe Trade Information Office (KTIO)
Location: Seattle, WA, USA
Contract: Part-Time ; No visa sponsorship; Starts at $20/hour and increases to $23/hour after 90 days.

Thanks to Kobe Trade Information Office (KTIO) for passing along the following job opening.

Description:

• Perform secretarial duties including answering phones, scheduling meetings, responding to inquiries and emails, managing payroll, tax filings, and bookkeeping, and assisting the Director with any events, exchanges, or domestic business trips.
• Facebook, Linkedin, email newsletters, website updates for articles and contact information.
• Work duties are not very difficult.
• Work within 20 hours per week.

Application Process: For more information and to apply, please click here – https://www.linkedin.com/posts/kobe-trade-information-office_job-recruitment-seattle-activity-7099907894329966592-r5lE/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_ios

Posted by Sydney Sparrow. Click here to join the JETwit Jobs Google Group and receive job listings even sooner by email.

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Position: Client Services Associate
Posted by: Preqin
Location: Tokyo, Japan
Contract: Full-Time; No visa sponsorship

Thanks to JET alumnus, Andrew James (Miyazaki-ken, 2015-2018) for passing along the following job opening.

Description: Our Client engagement strategy involves close and consistent relationship building with our clients, to have a deep understanding of their work processes and requirements and from there ensuring they have access to the best and most suitable tools on our platform.

We are seeking an analytical and organised individual with knowledge of the financial markets, client-facing experience and proficiency in Microsoft Office (specifically Microsoft Excel). Our ideal candidate would have a strong consultative approach to effectively engage with clients in these markets.

We are continuing to invest in our customer-oriented strategy and this role will report to the Head of APAC Client Services. The position is an important part of implementing Preqin’s client-focused approach.

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Posted by Sydney Sparrow. Click here to join the JETwit Jobs Google Group and receive job listings even sooner by email.

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Position: Part-time Event Manager
Posted by: Fever
Location: Osaka/Kyoto/Kobe, Nagoya or Sapporo, Japan
Contract: Part-Time

Thanks to Fever for passing along the following job opening.

Act as the main point of contact onsite for Candlelight events and staff; communicate directly with Fever Originals manager. See more at the link below.

Application Process: For more information and to apply, please click here – https://careers.feverup.com/jobs/4105181101/event-manager-part-time/

Posted by Sydney Sparrow. Click here to join the JETwit Jobs Google Group and receive job listings even sooner by email.

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Position: Sales Team Leader
Posted by: Inside Travel Group
Location: Broomfield, CO, USA
Contract: Full-Time ; No visa sponsorship

Our Values

In everything we do at Inside Travel Group, we strive to deliver a Quality and Friendly service with Integrity, Determination and Passion using our collective Knowledge. This is at the heart of the organization, and the company looks for every individual to demonstrate this daily. Each member of the team is expected to exemplify the company values through their work and professional conduct. We expect everyone to set an example to those around them and to be conscious that they are representing the company when working with customers and partner organizations.

Our Culture

You’ll be part of a fun, friendly team of employees, all of whom share a passion for our destinations, a belief in our brands and a strong collective sense of values and purpose. Our work culture is supportive, creative and dedicated, and it’s at its best when we all try to lead by example; the more you put in, the more you and the team get out, and it’ll be important that you play your part.

Job Purpose

To maximise the performance of your team of Travel Consultants, driving them to hit individual and team targets in productivity, sales, service and profit.

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Posted by Sydney Sparrow. Click here to join the JETwit Jobs Google Group and receive job listings even sooner by email.

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Position: Project Manager
Posted by: Fever
Location: Osaka, Japan 
Contract: Full-Time

Thanks to Fever for passing along the following job opening.

As a Project Manager, you will work with your team lead to develop, launch and manage your events, from A to Z. Together with the other departments, you will define the way to scale this event to new cities across Japan.

Application Process: For more information and to apply, please click here –  https://www.linkedin.com/jobs/view/project-manager-at-fever-3641791637/?originalSubdomain=jp