Archive for 'Drama' Category

“Kochi-kame” ,the world’s longest manga series finished

“Kochira Katsushika-ku Kameari Koen mae Hashutsujo”(/This is the Police Box in front of Kameari Park in Katsushika-ward.) , the world’s longest manga series, which won Guiness Record, finally put an end to its 40- year history. The final book was the “200th book” and published on Sep.17th.(https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kochira_Katsushika-ku_Kameari_K%C5%8Den-mae_Hashutsujo)

The grand finale of one of the most popular manga works draws a huge attention of  a lot of  fans of the manga and its ramified works of anime and TV drama series.

Tokyo Game Show 2016

Tokyo Game Show 2016 was held Sep.15-18 at Makuhari Messe in Chiba. (http://expo.nikkeibp.co.jp/tgs/2016/)

At this TGS 2016, the number of the paticipant businesses made the record high of 617 and the event was full of lively energy and passion of the new games and visitors. And, there held the special live concert of “PSN meets Secret Artist” ,at which  EGOIST, a popular “fictitious singer” from  an anime work, sang songs.

 

International Tokyo Toy Show 2016

The International Tokyo Toy Show 2016 was held at Tokyo Bigsight Jun.9-12. This was the 55th of the event series.(http://www.toys.or.jp/toyshow/2016_files/company_html/name_a.html) 

The first two days were for business meetings and stage shows and the latter days were for open for public and lay visitors and shows, such as concerts and release of new information about new toy products or TV anime programs.

 

About 30 toy related businesses,such as toy manufacturers, animation studios, amusement parks, and so forth  particiated in the show preparing booths to promote their products and activities.  And totally about 160,000 people visited this event.

“Movie Campus”, the 12th Movie Week of Agency for Cultural Affairs Symposium

The special symposium, “Movie Campus” of  “the 12th Movie Week  of Agency for Cultural Affairs”  is to be held at Kaguraza in Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo on this Oct.24th. (http://bunka-cho-filmweek.jp/symposium.html)(http://www.walkerplus.com/event/ar0313e123255/)  (http://www.bunka.go.jp/english/)

The Week is Oct.22-25 at the above avenue. At the event well-known movie directors and personalities particiate in panel discussions and “Gamera vs. Barugon”(1966, Daiei),an old special effect Japanese monsters movie will be run.

 

Super Kabuki “One Piece”

“One Piece”, one of the most famour and popular Japanese manga is now dramatized as “Super Kabuki” play. (http://www.kabuki-bito.jp/theaters/shinbashi/2015/10/ii_1.html)

The play is performed at Shinbashi Enbujou, one of the major kabuki theaters in Tokyo Oct. 7- Nov.25. “Kabuki” is a traditional stage performance of Japan with more than 400 year history and most of its subjects have been tradtional stories or period dramas. However, these days, modern stories or even manga, anime works have become the plots. Thus happy fusion of old traditional arts and modern or contemporary culture are enhancing the both and attractions seem to be even progressing.  For example, parents and children or grandparentens and  their grand children  go see the work together, as  the older generations are fans of kabuki,while  the younger generations are fans of One Piece or other manga works. Thus cultural fusion also work   to  connect different generations and broadens the cultural zones.

StarWars characters at the Nebuta Festival

The Nebuta Festival, one of the six major festivals of Tohoku region, was held and new type images such as thoses of Star Wars series were displayed  among other traditional images of floats in Aomori City, Aomori Pref.  Aug.2-7. (http://www.nebuta.or.jp/)

 

Japan Academy Prizes 2015

The 38th Japan Academy Prizes 2015 was held at a hotel in Tokyo and The Best prizes were given to the nominated works.(http://www.japan-academy-prize.jp/index.php)

“The Eternal Zero”, (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Eternal_Zero)a work describing a zero fighter’s pilot killed in the war won the Best  Picture prize and other seven best prizes, which was the first situation in the event’s history.   Jyunichi Okada, who starred in that film won the Best Actor prize, also won the Best Supporting Actor prize with “Higurashi-no-ki”(/The diary of the higurashi cicada). Okada’s record was also the first one in the event’s history.  The Best Animation Picture was given to “STAND BY ME, Doraemon”. And other works and staff won various awards there.

The 20th anniversary of “1.17”,the Great Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake

This year we Japanese people commemorated the 20th anniversary of the Great hanshin-Awaji Earthquake on the January 17th.  In the damaged areas, municipalities hosted special commemorative ceremonies and private societies also hosted events sush as charity music conserts and so forth.  Kobe City, Nishinomiy City, Itami City and others in Hyogo Pref,  Osaka, Kyoto and other rigions and areas in the western part of Japan keep helping sufferers and their bereaved  families of the victims.  ( http://19950117hyogo.jp/other/),(http://www.city.kobe.lg.jp/foreign/index.html)

Children who were born in that year of disaster now have come of age this year. TV shows, dramas, articles and even personal blogs featuring this anniversary and related events are around. Though all the places and areas have miraculously recovered from the damages and rebuilt so well, we still retain the sadness and would keep consoling the souls of the victims and strive for improving the situations for even better.

 

 

4,029 people received decorations on the Culture Day

Nov.3rd is the Culture Day, and  4,029 people including some foreigners who were considered to have made a huge contribution to the Japanese society or nation were conferred of decorations by the emperor. Some of them are such as,  Kirin Kiki,an popular actor, Yuzo Kayama, a famous singer, actor,and lylicist, and  Sumitaiyu Takemoto, a great master pappeteer of Bunraku, the traditional Japanese pappet theater.    

TIFF 27 being held

Tokyo International Film Festival 27 is being held Oct.23-31 at some venues, Roppongi, Nihonbashi and so forth in  Tokyo.(http://2014.tiff-jp.net/en/)

At the festival’s opening, special program of featuring works of  Hideaki Anno, the director of Evangelion series and other popular anime works and also known as the voice actor who played the main part of “The Wind Rises” was supplied. (http://khara.co.jp/hideakianno/personal-biography.html)

A suspense film, “Paper Moon” was run and the main part’s actor,Sae Myazawa appeaered on the stage. And Ultra Seven and tthe old actors of “Ultra Seven”, an old popular Sci-fi TV drama turned up on the stage.

 

“World Cosplay Summit 2014” in Nagoya

“World Cosplay Summit 2014” is  hosted by the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs and other bodies Jul.26-Aug.3 in Nagoya. (http://www.worldcosplaysummit.jp/en/)

This WCS is the 12nd and this time representatives join the event from  22 countries or regions. The  event includes several programs such as a coaplay parade, cosplay championship, visitations of the representatives to city offices and MFA, anime-song festival, and so forth. Six representatves of the event from China, Mexico, and Finland officially visited Seiji Kihara, the vice-minister at MOFA in Tokyo giving presentations over attaractions of cosplay. Kihawa made a speech saying, pop culture has power to bind countries together and expect the representatives to support strengthening rapport with Japan. The Chinese representative said cosplay had a role to enhance cultural exchange.

 

“The Wizarding World of Harry Potter” in USJ grand open

Universal Studio Japan  in Osaka opened a new theme area of the worldwide popular fantasy series, “Harry Potter” on Jul.15.  (http://www.usj.co.jp/harrypotter/)

The theme area is 40,000 ㎡ with re-enacted facilities of those in the stories, such as the magic school that wizard children go, and at restaurants and stalls where special food described in the stories  are available.

On the grand opening day, about 3000 people visited the area  and  everyday it receives a lot since then. USJ made the record high of the number of visitors there with more than 10 million last year and now it expects to have more than 12 million this year with these new attraction services.   About 45 billion yen (≒$440 million )which is equal to  the half amount of an annual budget of USJ  was spent on building this new area.  Some hotels expand their capacities expecting a huge increase in  visitors and job opportuniies are expected to increase as well in Osaka, kobe, Kyoto, and other areas in Kansai, which will surly invigorate economy there.

“Ju-on; The Beginning of The End”” released

The newest  installment movie of “Ju-on”, the most scary horror work series according to some survey, released at theaters on Jun.28. (http://www.juon-movie.jp/) , (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ju-on_(franchise), (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ju-on:_The_Beginning_of_the_End), (http://eigapedia.com/movie/ju-on-owari-no-hajimari)

The newest work is “Ju-on, The Beginning of The End”(Juon, Owari-no Hajimari) and is the seventh installment to the series.  “Juon” means  a “grudge” and basic story is that people who visit a house where brutal murders took place before are cursed to death by the infuriated vengeful ghosts that were the victims of the murders. A victim of the curse to death becomes a new vengeful ghost to kill other people and stories of those chain reactions of curses and deaths  spreading out are described in such a manner of somewhat independent episodes. Three of the currently released works, “The Grudge”,”The Grudge 2″, and “The Grudge 3 ” were made in Hollywood as US versions and the first two made a huge success as movies run at theaters and the third was released as a dvd software.

Osamu Tezuka’s imcomplete posthumous items found

Osamu Tezuka’s posthumous drawings, manuscripts, and some personal items such as half-eaten sweets were found from a long locked drawers of his desk in his office by  his daughter, Rumiko Tezuka on March 27th.

 

Osamu Tezuka (1928-1989) was one of the top manga artist and thought to have been the greatest pioneer to develop and promote the manga culture not only in Japan but worldwide.  A lot of his works,such as “Atom Astro Boy”,”Jungle Emperor Leo”  have been dramatized, made to be anime, or other measures ,all of which have been loved by people all over the world for long years. His activities and works have influenced innumerable cartoonists, anime staffers, film makers, and other artists.

The desk drawers that had been locked for about 25 years because the key had been long lost after Tezuka’s passing was finally unlocked by his daughter  who said finally she had successfully made a copy of the key. A manuscript written about comments of Katsuhiro Otomo who is the creater of  a popular manga and movie works of “AKIRA” was one of the found items.  Some hand drawings of his are quite arousing which might be a bit different from general images of  his manga works. These newly found works may give us new impressions about Tezuka’s works and his art world.

The U-can New words & Buzzwords Awards 2013

The U-can New words & Buzzwords Awards, which is held once a year at its end and I have referred to here, was held Dec.2nd. (http://singo.jiyu.co.jp/) For the first time in its history, four words have been chosen as Grand prix at the same time this year.

The Buzzwords  Grandprix  2013 are as follows;

●”Omotenashi” (/Japanese hospitality)

●”Baigaeshi”(/double the pay back)

●”Jejeje”(/Wow)

●”Imadesho”（/Now,right?）

“Omtenashi” was used in the speech of  Christel Takigawa for presentation for Olympics games in 2020. “Baigaeshi” is a pet phrse  of the main character of a popular TV drama “Hanzawa Naoki” who tries to make a vengeance for his father against a bad boss in a influential bank in 2013.   “Jejeje” is a “wow!” for a surprize and a kind of a dialect word of  Iwate pref., which was often used in a dialogue of a very popular TV drama “Amachan” in 2013.  “Imadesho” is a well-known pet phrase of  Osamu Hayashi a popular teacher of a renowned clam school for entrance exams for universities.