Fall 2009 JETAANY.org/magazine 1 Table of Contents Fall 2009, Vol. 18, Issue No. 4
3 Letters From the Editor, Treasurer 4 Nippon News Blotter / CJ’s Wedding 5 Comings & Goings / JETAA National Conference in Chicago 6 JETAANY Annual Softball Tournament 7 Working the Written Word By Alexei Esikoff 8 Nihonjin in New York – Featuring JETRO’s Maya Eiki-Law By Joe Marucheck 8 Actor Jun Kim Talks heavenly BENTO By Adren Hart 9 Americans on Fuji: Talking with Author Sara Backer By Veronika Ruff 10 International Visitor Leadership Program Interpreting By Stacy Smith 11 JQ&A with New York Anime Festival’s Peter Tatara By Justin Tedaldi 13 Anvil with Sacha Gervasi: The JQ Interview By Justin Tedaldi 14 What We Did This Summer - Photos 15 Theatre Review: A Recipe for heavenly BENTO By Adren Hart 16 Film Review: Hayao Miyazaki’s Ponyo By Lyle Sylvander 17 Book Corner: The China Lover By David Kowalsky 18 Ace Frehley: Back in the New York Groove By Justin Tedaldi 20 New York Anime Festival Photos 21 Film Review: The Cove By Elizabeth Wanic 21 Book Corner: Japanese Kitchen Knives / Food Carving By Yukari Sakamoto 23 Top 12 List / Life After the B.O.E. / Sponsors Index
Special thanks to this issue’s proof- readers for sticking to the drafts like a 2D lover on a body pillow:
Ann Chow
Pamela Kavalam
Nichole Knight
Crystal Wong
Aly Woolfrey
2 Fall 2009 JETAANY.org/magazine Letter From the Editor
This is our last issue of JQ for the year, so I want to go forward by looking back. Five score and sixteen months ago, I penned an op-ed for my school paper entitled “The New Decade in Review,” which chronicled a year-to-year list of humorous happen- ings that the future supposedly had in store for us. While some of that stuff remains on hold (The Tonight Show Movie, etc.), on a personal level, life provided me with plenty more seminal opportunities, and entering the JET Programme rates high on that scale.
If there’s a theme for this issue, it’s about chasing your dreams instead of just waiting for things to happen. I’d especially like to thank all the writers and contributors who believe in this magazine, and I’m looking forward to working with you when we return in Janu- ary. See you in 2010, and good luck in Tokyo, Aya!
Justin Tedaldi (Kobe-shi CIR, 2001-02) [email protected]
Letter From the Treasurer
I’m sure all of the alumni fondly recall the fi rst sprigs of sakura announcing that Japan’s season of “new beginnings” has sprung—a rightly congruous association between nature and the nation’s overall feeling of renewal. However, as oxymoronic as it may be, I for one cherish autumn and all the ways we celebrate new starts, even as the world around us begins to fade and decay. As summer’s oppressive humidity falls away and we breathe in the crisp change in the air, I’m sure many of us begin to feel that surge of excitement for the possibilities that this season brings. For some, the excitement comes in the form of embarking on a new scholastic journey; for others, it could be in the anticipation of the many fall activities that sweep through during October and November. Apple picking, state fairs, weekend escapes into fall foliage, the start of the holiday season—each week brings so many opportunities to carry on traditions, as well as opportunities for new experiences and endeavors.
I personally began a new endeavor last autumn when I applied and was accepted to begin training for JETAANY’s treasurer position. So far, this has been an invaluable experience—which has not only taught me a lot about the legalities of running a non-profi t, budgeting, doing grant proposals and the like—but has also increased my dexterity, both with recordkeeping and Excel (oh, dearest love of my left brain, Excel!). As I became more involved with JETAANY, I also began contributing my fi rst pieces to JQ–which, in my opinion, all of our members should consider using as an outlet for creativity, as a chance to develop published writing samples, or simply as a way to contribute to our chapter’s voice.
As usual, JETAANY has a slew of events in the works for fall, and then well on through the end of our fi scal year in March. We welcome and encourage fresh ideas from our members for events and activities which will strengthen ties across our chapter as well as with the New York community. If you have any suggestions, please get in touch with one of the JETAANY offi cers, so that we can discuss how your idea can be carried out (and worked into our budget!).
Once again this fall, JETAANY welcomes back our newest alumni members who have just begun the latest chapter of their lives, many of whom may be turning over a new career leaf. Knowing full well the challenges that many of our new members are facing in their career search, we are excited about the possibilities that can emerge during our upcoming annual Career Forum and Welcome Home Reception in October. Next spring (in a nod to our beloved Japan), JETAANY will bring back our highly successful and popular Meishi Exchange networking event. However, it is my hope that everyone in our chapter will fi nd his or her own exciting new start this autumn. Then perhaps when next spring rolls back around, there will be very little need for new beginnings.
Kelly Nixon (Iwate-ken, 2003-06) [email protected]
Cosplay singer Reni contributes to JQ. How about you? “Nothing comes between me and my hard copy of JQ!” Send your ideas to [email protected]. E-mail [email protected]. Fall 2009 JETAANY.org/magazine 3 Nippon News Blotter
8/17/09: Japan emerged from recession when 8/28/09: The new H1N1 swine fl u has reached its economy grew by 0.9% in the April-to-June epidemic levels in Japan, signaling the early quarter after four consecutive quarters of con- start to what may be a long infl uenza season this traction. Correspondents say the rise is due to year, and it is also worsening in tropical regions, a huge government stimulus package, and it is the World Health Organisation said. Every year, unclear whether the momentum will be sus- seasonal fl u infects between 5% and 20% of a tained upon conclusion. Recent fi gures show given population and kills between 250,000 other economies coming out of recession, in- and 500,000 people globally. (Reuters) cluding Germany, France and Hong Kong, a sign the global slowdown is easing. (BBC) 8/30/09: For only the second time in postwar history, Japanese voters cast out the long-gov- 8/18/09: Sony Corp. will delay the launch of erning Liberal Democratic Party in elections, 9/23/09: Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama its next-generation ultrathin television organic handing a landslide win to the Democratic Party sent a letter to International Olympic Commit- light emitting diode, or OLED, TV because mass of Japan. “This has been a revolutionary elec- tee members assuring them that government producing the new displays would exacerbate tion,” said Yukio Hatoyama, the party leader support for Tokyo’s bid to host the 2016 Olym- losses at its TV division, according to people fa- and presumptive new prime minister. “The pics “remains as strong as ever.” The city last miliar with the matter. (Wall Street Journal) people have shown the courage to take politics hosted the Olympics in 1964, and is competing into their own hands.” (New York Times) with Chicago, Madrid and Rio de Janeiro. (AP) 8/26/09: Japanese and South Korean auto- makers registered the biggest market share 9/2/09: Miyuki Hatoyama, the wife of Japan’s 9/28/09: Japan’s transport minister said he gains in the U.S. government’s “cash for clunk- next prime minister, claimed to have had a close will not force the struggling Japan Airlines, ers” program that ended this week. Overseas encounter with another world in a book pub- Asia’s biggest airline, into bankruptcy. The air- manufacturers dominate in car sales, while U.S. lished last year entitled Very Strange Things line incurred its biggest-ever quarterly net loss companies have been stronger in the light truck I’ve Encountered, in which she wrote, “While of ¥99 billion ($1 billion) in the three months to segment. Cars outsold trucks 2-1 under the my body was asleep, I think my soul rode on June. JAL has sought public funds for survival. “clunker” initiative, with Toyota’s “clunkers” a triangular-shaped UFO and went to Venus.” Its request for taxpayer money came months market share leading at 19.4%. (Reuters) Her husband was once nicknamed “the alien” after it received ¥60 billion ($668 million) in for his prominent eyes. (Reuters) loans from the government-owned Develop- 8/27/09: Former Nova President Nozomu Sa- ment Bank of Japan in June. (AP) hashi was sentenced Wednesday to 3 1/2 years 9/11/09: The number of Japanese people aged in prison by the Osaka District Court for his role 100 or over now exceeds 40,000, the Health 10/8/09: Typhoon Melor, the fi rst storm to in skimming off employee funds in 2007, just Ministry said. The number of centenarians make landfall in Japan since 2007, damaged before the foreign language school giant’s bank- rose 11% from 2008, reaching 40,399, of whom buildings and roads, halted train service, and ruptcy that October. (Japan Times) 86.5% (35,000) are women. Only the U.S., with canceled hundreds of fl ights as it swept across 96,000, has more centenarians. (RIA Novosti) the country. Four people died and more than 8/28/09: Japan’s unemployment rate rose to 100 were reported injured. (AFP) a record 5.7% in July and defl ation worsened, 9/16/09: Japan’s new Defense Minister, 71- dealing a blow to Prime Minister Taro Aso on year old Toshimi Kitazawa, is a strong opponent 10/10/09: China, Japan and South Korea will the eve of an election that polls indicate his rul- of the country’s military support for the U.S., seek to present a united front on North Korea ing Liberal Democratic Party will lose. The job- making it more likely than ever that the govern- when leaders of the three countries meet in Bei- less rate rose more than economists estimated, ment of new prime minister Yukio Hatoyama jing. China won an assurance from North Kore- surpassing the previous record 5.5% last seen in will withdraw its naval ships from the war in an leader Kim Jong Il that he is willing to return April 2003. (Bloomberg) Afghanistan early next year. (Times Online) to nuclear disarmament talks. (Bloomberg)
IN OTHER NEWS...
Congratulations to JETAANY Treasurer Emeritus CJ Hoppel on his marriage to Angela Tong!
The happy couple tied the knot August 8 in Pittsburgh with their parents and sib- lings in tow. After returning from an Ice- landic honeymoon in October, it’s off to Japan for the newlyweds as CJ pursues a career in law. We wish them the very best, and look forward to more exciting stories from Nippon in the future.
Go-kekkon omedetou gozaimasu!
4 Fall 2009 JETAANY.org/magazine Comings & Goings
THE JLGC WELCOMES A NEW DIRECTOR
Name: Shigeki Sonoda Furusato: Tokyo Interest: Public schools, parks and working style What’s your impression of New York? It’s full of discovery! I’m always inspired by people from all over the world. What kind of job did you have before being assigned to the JLGC? I worked for the Tokyo Metropolitan Board of Education. What’s your favorite place here so far? I visited the Green Market at Union Square. I think it’s the best place to see the daily life of New Yorkers. What are your goals here at the JLGC? I’d like to do what I can to strengthen the ties between local autonomies in the U.S. and those in Japan. What things are you most excited about doing here in the U.S.? I’m so excited about tackling what’s happening here every day in the U.S. Sonoda-san brings wisdom, experience and a great desk view to the JLGC. JETAA U.S. Conference in Chicago
From August 20 to 23, JET alums gathered for the annual National JETAA Conference in Chicago, which invites delegates from all 19 of JETAA’s U.S. chapters, along with country representatives and CLAIR and MoFA offi - cials. Attending on behalf of JETAANY were CR Shree Kurlekar, Vice Pres- ident Monica Yuki, President Megan Miller and Community Relations Of- fi cer Chau Lam, at below left. New York is hosting next year; see you then!
JET participants with Chicago Consul General of Japan George Hisaeda (front).
Fall 2009 JETAANY.org/magazine 5 JETAA Softball Tournament 2009
On September 12, JETAANY dusted off its trusty banner and braved some early morning rain en route to Red Hook, Brooklyn for its annual soft- ball tournament. Joining the New York JETs for some friendly competition were TV Japan, Mit- subishi, Quick USA, Kintetsu, Docomo, CJEB and the JLGC/Consulate. After the games and awards ceremony ended, everyone enjoyed bar- becue and drinks, bringing another summer to an enjoyable close. An extra-special tip of the cap to JETAA’s team captain and coordinator Monica Yuki and all participants. See you next season! Photos by Francis Lee/Monica Yuki
6 Fall 2009 JETAANY.org/magazine double culture shock for the Ameri- ous degrees and certifi cates in the Working the Written Word can reader.) The story echoes the fi eld, or you could just try one of How I Got Into Publishing real-life case of Lucie Blackman, the their continuing education courses and Advice for Those Getting Started English hostess at a Roppongi club, in copy editing or proofreading. It murdered by one of her clients. In might be especially helpful to con- By Alexei Esikoff (Fukushima-ken, 2001-02) this story, teenage Adam’s sister centrate on digital media, as fewer Charlie has disappeared from one people now get their information I came to publishing, like much of interesting books than I remember such club, and he travels to Tokyo from print. Scoring a job in editing what I do, in a roundabout way. Un- as a 10-year-old. Growing up, I read to fi nd her. can be dependent on who you know. like many people in the publishing young adult classics like Where the Work your contacts and offer your universe, I have an MFA in fi ction, a Red Fern Grows, as well as com- This being a teen book, Charlie does skills to anyone who needs help. degree solely for personal use. MFA mercial crap. (Oh, Baby-sitters not meet the same end of Lucie But if you don’t “know” anyone in degrees impress nearly nobody. I Club, how much money I wasted on Blackman. But the teenage reader the industry, don’t despair. I landed didn’t have delusions that an MFA your monthly editions!) gets an age-appropriate, authentic both my current and previous edito- would lead to a well-paying job or a view of another culture. In a nice rial gigs by blind application. Web book contract. I just wanted to ex- Certainly, I don’t remember read- touch, the chapter titles are all in sites like Publishers Marketplace, plore what made good writing. ing anything age-appropriate about genuine Engrish the author found mediabistro.com and bookjobs.com Japan. Surprisingly, my familiarity in Tokyo, like “Food/Drugs/Fish/ all have legitimate postings. My fi rst real publishing job was with the country has been helpful at School/Etc.” and “Flavorous and with a small, independent press. It work. With the explosion of inter- delicious communication.” It’s Once you build up some experi- was less than two years old, and I ence and contacts, you may fi nd the was their fi rst full-time employee. freelancing route is right for you. I was hired under the vague no- Personally, I like the comfort that tion that an editorial assistant was comes from a steady nine to fi ve needed, and I essentially made up with benefi ts, but there are many the position as I went along. How people who fi nd that the fl exibility did I even score such a job? Let’s of freelancing suits them more. (It just say that you don’t go into pub- must be nice to buy groceries dur- lishing to get rich. In exchange for ing the day when everyone else is low pay, I learned a lot: how to look at work.) There’s no shortage of at a book commercially, how to deal freelancers in the JETAANY world; with distributors, how to write mar- see jetwit.com for some bios and keting material. Most importantly, how to contact successful freelanc- from the publisher, I learned how ers. It’s not just for editing, but also to make a book readable. Often, the translating, grant writing, etc. Be story is there, but the language of prepared when you start freelanc- the piece is what makes a book. Is it ing—many places will ask you to overly dependent on passive verbs? take a test before they hire you for Is the structure rich and varied? projects.
Here’s what I discovered: I got a Any and all experience you had creative thrill making other peo- The Waking: Dreams of the Dead and Missing in Tokyo, published by Bloomsbury. while on JET can be parlayed into ple’s work better. That’s probably a writing/editing career. Think of not typical of MFA graduates, who, est in Japanese culture since I was working on interesting books like documents you translated, or the understandably so, want to concen- a teen, it’s natural that young adult these that make me love being an speech you rewrote for an English trate on their own writing. But I feel novels follow suit. One of my fi rst editor. On any given day, I explore contest, or the English section of real pleasure at taking something assignments at Bloomsbury was to not just Japan, but New England your school’s Web site you main- that’s not quite working and fi nding copy edit a book called Dreams of prep schools, vampire lore, schizo- tained. This is the tangible proof the missing piece. As a little kid, I the Dead, the fi rst in a series of teen phrenia and scuba diving. So how you need to show potential employ- did puzzles often; this just strikes horror books set in Japan. The se- do you earn a living like this? ers to prove your interest in lan- me as a grown-up version. ries, called The Waking, by Thomas guage—even when your main job Randall, follows a gaijin named Despite the low pay, editorships are was teaching, look at everything I now have my second publishing Kara who moves to Miyazu Bay with hard to come by. And it’s not getting else you did! job. I suppose that makes it a real her teacher father after the death of any easier, with the ongoing switch career now. As the production edi- her mother. Kara speaks fairly good from traditional print forms to digi- And you may score a project or po- tor at Bloomsbury USA and Walker Japanese, but she still has gaijin tal media. (E-books are an article sition that on the surface has noth- Children’s, I see everything—every- moments: hey, I sure am tall here! all their own.) That said, it can be ing to do with Japan. But the day thing—before it goes to press, from done, even in a lousy economy. If will come when your knowledge teen novels to the simplest picture The author drops little cultural you’ve never edited before, unfor- does come back to help you: “Yeah, books. A production editor is basi- nuggets before veering into the su- tunately you must pay your dues, I’m pretty sure Akira is not a girl’s cally the last stop before a book goes pernatural. Unlike many teen hor- and this usually means editing for name…because I had several hun- permanent. My job is to catch last- ror books, the otherworldly bits free. Find an internship (publishing dred students, and only boys were minute typos and check for incon- are rooted in Japanese culture: a companies live on the unpaid labor named Akira. Yeah, you’re wel- sistencies. I also check art—a new character awakens a vengeful spirit of interns), or volunteer your ser- come.” experience. Are the colors correct? named Kyuketsuki. Indeed, the sec- vices for a student or independent Has the font size changed midway ond book of the series is Spirits of publication. You can even try this With enthusiasm, perseverance, through? (You’d be surprised how the Noh. very magazine—I’m not exaggerat- and a bit of luck, you can make a liv- often that happens.) ing when I say this is where I got ing off the written word. Meet peo- Another book published by Blooms- started. ple and get your name out there— Working with teen books lets me bury is Graham Marks’s Miss- you never know where it will lead. indulge my inner kid nerd; the girl ing in Tokyo. (This was originally There’s also the education route. And yes, my company does have who would rather curl up with a published by the British Blooms- I’ve come across quite a few edi- internships. good read than play sports. It seems bury—famous for the Harry Pot- tors with MAs in English literature, to me there is more variety in teen ter series—and all its British-isms but far fewer MFAs like me. NYU’s Contact Alexei at alexeisensei@ novels these days; certainly more were left intact, leaving a sort of Center for Publishing offers vari- gmail.com. Fall 2009 JETAANY.org/magazine 7 provides a win-win situation for Nihonjin in New York U.S. companies and Japan: U.S. JETRO’s Maya Eiki-Law companies can profi t from our ser- By Joe Marucheck vices, and once established, mutu- ally benefi t the Japanese economy. (Iwate-ken, 2004-07) If you know any companies that would like to use JETRO’s free ser- Maya Eiki-Law is a business de- vices, please contact me through velopment representative for the JETRO any time! I am more than Japan External Trade Organiza- happy to travel to support your tion (JETRO) in Manhattan. JQ company’s future success in Japan. talked with her to learn more about her position and thoughts on life in What challenges has the econ- New York. omy presented, and how are you dealing with it? Tell us about yourself. Because of the recession, many I was born in Fukuoka, and raised companies have delayed their proj- Maya and B.O.B. talk business at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. in Kobe, Switzerland and Kyoto. ects to enter the Japanese market. I came to the U.S. in 2001, so it’s While it’s understandable in this been eight years since I left Japan. economy, some companies have ex- Cast Call: Actor Jun Kim When I was a university student at pressed that now is a great opportu- Talks heavenly BENTO Fordham University, everyone said nity to establish an offi ce in Japan By Adren Hart that I do not look like a typical Jap- due to the lower costs for offi ce rent. (Nagano-ken, 1998-2000) anese person because of my height, Additionally, many talented Japa- and also my personality, as I am nese people are looking for new ca- neither shy nor quiet, but outgoing reers, and this provides companies Japan Society launched its fall and talkative. I was tall ever since with a great chance to fi nd highly 2009 performing arts season in elementary school, so my teachers qualifi ed staff. In the past, JETRO’s September with the U.S. premiere made good use of my height on fi eld Business Development Team was of heavenly BENTO, an interac- trips and after school sports activi- focused on direct investment, but tive performance that engages ties. If you see two 5’10” tall women as of March 2009, we have started all fi ve senses by showcasing live- speaking Japanese around Mid- to provide service and support for generated projections, dance, text town, it should be my sister and me. mergers and acquisitions between and real food. Based on the epic U.S. companies and Japanese com- story of Sony Corp. founders Akio Can you describe your job panies as well. We are hoping that Morita and Masaru Ibuka, the play function and what you do? this M&A service will open new op- chronicles their dream of forming I am a business development repre- portunities for both U.S. companies an internationally successful con- to develop organically. In preparing sentative for JETRO in New York. and Japanese companies. sumer electronics company amidst for the role, I watched a lot of his As you may already know, JETRO is the reconstruction of postwar Ja- video tapes, listened to interviews, a government-related organization How do you like living in New pan. JQ spoke with actor Jun Kim, and met with his fi rst secretary here that works to promote mutual trade York? who plays Morita. in New York. and investment between Japan and I like the diversity of this city. I al- the rest of the world. JETRO’s Busi- ways wonder how many people in Tell us about heavenly BEN- Tell me what you found most ness Development Team is focused the subway are gaikokujin. I believe TO. enjoyable about this play. on helping North American compa- the mixture of different cultures It is based on the true story of the This is totally multimedia theater— nies set up offi ces in Japan quickly and people makes New York one of founding of Sony. And what makes lights, projections, etc. The idea and cost-effectively by providing the world’s greatest cities. the play special is that although behind the set is to give the audi- expertise, resources and industry there are a lot of books about Sony ence the feeling of being in a typical connections to foreign companies. I What would you bring to Ja- and its founders, Ibuka and Morita, Japanese-style executive meeting. believe that the strength of JETRO pan from New York and to this is the fi rst time an American The stage is set up like a conference lies in the fact that since we are an New York from Japan? writer gives a portrait of the com- table with members of the audience independent agency of the Japanese Mmm—this is diffi cult! I would pany and its founder. sitting around it. I won’t say what’s government, we are able to provide rather have an airplane that could inside, but in front of each person many of our services for free to our fl y between Japan and New York in Tell us about your character in sitting at the table is a bento box. qualifi ed clients. I travel all around two hours or so. A Dokodemo Door the play. At the end of the play, we say “ita- the U.S. to attend conventions to [from the manga Doraemon that There are only two characters— dakimasu,” then Morita and Ibuka fi nd companies that have plans to can take you anywhere] would be Ibuka and Morita. Ibuka is more of begin to eat. And, it’s interesting expand their operations into Japan, great to have. an engineer, not really focused on to watch how the audience reacts. and support such companies with money. I play Morita, the founder Some people eat just a little; some a wide variety of business support For more information on JETRO, of Sony. Morita is also an engineer, eat it all. services to facilitate market entry visit their homepage at jetro.org but has more business sense. and offi ce setups in Japan. This job or jetro.go.jp. Why do you think American What were some of the chal- audiences would be interested lenges of making the Morita in seeing this production? character come to life? After America won the war, it be- This play is not a portrait of Morita, came number one in the world. but more of a telling of how these Everything was “America!”; Japan two young Japanese people try to had nothing. Most people thought build one of the top tech companies very little of Japan and even less of in the world after World War II. So, its products. That’s where the play my goal was not to look or behave begins. But, by the end of the play, like my character, but rather to everything is upside-down. To- become him—a young, ambitious, day, Sony is seen as one of the top business-minded engineer from companies in the world for technol- Japan. That allowed the character ogy and electronics. [Cont. on 15]
8 Fall 2009 JETAANY.org/magazine it—I didn’t know I’d be the fi rst American and but few of them have been there. Women seem Americans on Fuji the fi rst woman in the position. There were only to like it; there isn’t much literature from the two other female professors at the entire uni- women’s perspective of Japan. I’ve found that Talking with Sara Backer versity. One was very old-school and wore a ki- the one group that doesn’t seem to like the book By Veronika Ruff mono; the other became my best friend. In one is American men who have lived in Japan—the (Shizuoka-shi, 2002-03) scene, there’s a staff meeting where the profes- novel is pretty tough on those gaijin men who sors suggest that unmarried women shouldn’t go there to pick up Japanese women. As Gaby be permitted to teach at the university—that says in the book, “Japan is where men go to free The fi rst care package I received after settling really happened! The book is set in early ’90s their inner jerk.” I wanted to acknowledge their into my new teacher housing in Shizuoka-shi Japan, before the recession hit. I don’t think I viewpoint, and show how different it often was included several boxes of Kraft Macaroni & would’ve been hired if Japan hadn’t been roll- from that of a gaijin woman. Cheese, photos, peanut butter, Sex and the ing in yen in those days. Women were defi nitely City DVDs, and a brand new paperback called the fi rst to be fi red. I also described my rather Why did you decide to come home after American Fuji. Since I had fl at-out asked for simple apartment as hers verbatim. You know, three years? everything but the book, I was intrigued. My if I had been a man, would I have had univer- They asked me to renew my contract for another mom had tucked the write-up from the New sity housing? But I ended up being happy about three years. I loved my job, but life in Shizuoka York Times Book Review inside; the novel that. I had a Western toilet—squatting is fi ne if was very hard, and I knew that staying there about an American professor living in Shizu- you grow up doing it, but I was too old to retrain would make me lonely forever. Those gaijin oka-shi was written by Sara Backer, the fi rst my body for that! I also didn’t have to deal with who stayed more than fi ve years were basically American—and the fi rst woman—to serve as living among my colleagues. I bequeathed many homeless, which is a phenomenon I explore in visiting professor at Shizuoka University. That the book. was 10 years prior to my arrival in the prefec- ture known as the home of Mount Fuji, the mi- How did your transition home go? kan capital of Japan, and not much else. It was a hard period. I missed more than I thought I would. I missed those nice, deep I dove into the quirky story, and it turned out bathtubs, and still do! I missed the ability to I wasn’t the only one mystifi ed by shops selling speak my heart in poetry, which I did because nothing but various measuring instruments, I couldn’t master the language, but it worked. I the man singing “o-yakiimo” from his rusty old hated being pointed at while I was there, but I truck, and the proper way to air out one’s futon even missed the celebrity when I got home. And without drawing stares from the neighbors. I defi nitely noticed how fat Americans were! I As the Times review wrote, “there is…con- didn’t start teaching again for quite a few years, siderable knowledge and appreciation of the but being able to go back to writing American ways Japan forces the foreigner toward self- Fuji whenever I could helped me enormously refl ection, a heightened sensitivity to gesture with the transition. and an earnestness unencumbered by irony.” I learned more about what to expect in day-to- What is it like to have your fi rst novel re- day life from American Fuji than I did from the issued? entire JET orientation process (perhaps CLAIR It’s so hard to get things published these should add it to a suggested reading list!). Author Sara Backer. (Blanche Milligan) days; giving a novel a second chance is really an honor. I’m glad to know that the book has Though the book went out of print a few years of my experiences to my characters. Their night meant something to readers. But it’s tough, ago, Penguin reissued American Fuji this fall, climb up Mount Fuji was very much how I re- too—I’ve written two other novels and felt like a relatively rare occurrence in the publishing membered my own. I had moved on. My writing has evolved, but I world. JQ caught up with Backer, who now couldn’t change a single word. And Japan has teaches English at the University of Massachu- Your Fuji climb sounded a lot like mine evolved as well, though it’s funny: the DPJ last setts at Lowell, from her home in New Hamp- as well. Your details are so vivid. Did won an election when I was there. The market- shire. you write the whole book while you were ing around books has changed a lot, too. I’m do- there, or diligently journal, or… ing a blog for American Fuji. It’s not like most I remember when I received my place- I wrote about four chapters in Japan, but I blogs, though—I don’t tell you what I had for ment packet from JET. Shizuoka? Nani?? worked on the book, on and off, for about eight breakfast, though it defi nitely wasn’t nattou. Nobody had heard of it! What were your years. I did keep a journal and wrote a lot of It’s basically a behind-the-scenes look at the impressions of the city? notes, but I also asked my friends for the letters real-life places and experiences that informed When I was there, from 1990 to 1993, Shizuoka I sent them while I was there—this was pre-e- the book. So I put up pictures of Shizuoka and was a big city—one million people, a Shinkan- mail!—which helped remind me exactly how I explain how the things I did led to plot points sen stop, a national university, and a huge plas- was feeling and what I found strange at fi rst. I and character development. I’m running out of tics industry—but it didn’t mesh with my imag- wish I had taken more pictures, though. photos, though—I’d love to incorporate experi- es of cosmopolitan or rural Japan. I’ve decided ences and thoughts from the JET community. that Shizuoka is the Palm Springs of Japan. It’s Who was your intended audience for a rather conservative retirement spot that’s not American Fuji? Special thanks rustic, but feels out of touch. There are no sig- I began writing it for myself, really. The isola- to Caitlin Mul- nifi cant temples, no thriving arts community, tion was tough and everything was so disori- rooney-Lyski at but an intense pride in natural resources: deli- enting—things are literally smaller, the food is Penguin Group cious water, fresh local green tea, and of course, totally different, the language is unsettling, and for photos and Mount Fuji. Living there felt like a string of fi re- the sky is never quite as blue as it should be. I interview assis- crackers—surprise after surprise after surprise. needed to write the book to reassure myself that tance. things were real. I felt like I was losing touch, How closely does your protagonist Gaby like I was hallucinating even when I was totally For more on Stanton’s experiences teaching at “Shi- sober. I went to the Orient and became disori- American Fuji, zuyama University” mirror your own at ented! I think people expected more of a mem- and to reply to Shizuoka University? oir, but this is not a multicultural good-for- Sara’s blogposts A lot of Gaby’s more political interactions at the you-book. It’s funny, character-driven fi ction. about the book university were based on actual experiences, al- It’s about Japan, but it’s not just about Japan. and life in Japan, though I wasn’t fi red. My being there was much I’ve found that most of the people who gravi- visit saraback- more groundbreaking than I realized going into tate to the book have some interest in Japan, er.com. Fall 2009 JETAANY.org/magazine 9 The JET Legacy Lives On Int’l Visitor Leadership Program Interpreting By Stacy Smith (Kumamoto-ken CIR, 2000-03)
Since becoming a freelance Japa- and would guide Texan groups as nese translator/interpreter/writer, well as other visitors during their one of the opportunities that I stay. I also interpreted at various have enjoyed the most has been international events, thereby serv- interpreting for the Department of ing as both a linguistic and cultural State’s International Visitor Lead- bridge between Eastern and West- ership Program (IVLP). IVLP is ern cultures. In my current role as an exchange program designed to an IVLP interpreter, I also perform build mutual understanding be- these dual functions, so I often tween the U.S. and other countries think back to my JET days and through carefully designed visits how they helped bring me to where that refl ect the participants’ (the I am today. titular IVs) professional interests and to support U.S. foreign policy I began this work a year ago, and goals. For IVs, it involves meet- have completed six assignments ing professional counterparts and since then. The themes have A nomikai is the offi cial way to end the three-week journey. Otsukaresama, IVs! learning to appreciate America’s ranged from disaster prevention to aged to get out and explore on their to enhance the IVs’ experience. Af- ethnic, cultural, political and socio- female entrepreneurship to prison own as much as possible, allowing ter my time with the prison man- economic diversity. management, and IVs have come them to make their own discover- agement group, they teased me from all walks of life (lawyers, ies and give the interpreter a much- that I’m probably the only person IVs are established or potential professors, shachos, civil servants, needed break. For someone who who can give bilingual lectures on foreign opinion makers in govern- etc.) as well as locations ranging loves traveling as much as I do, this both countries’ prison systems and ment, public policy, media, educa- from Shimane to Hokkaido. The kind of work is ideal. I feel extreme- has also had fi rsthand experience tion, labor, the arts and other key programs are typically three weeks ly lucky to be able to go all around at such infamous federal and state fi elds, and after being nominated in duration, kicked off by a week in the country, meeting many kinds of correctional facilities as Leaven- by someone they are selected by D.C., and concluded with a short people and seeing new places that I worth and San Quentin! American embassies abroad. Since stay on the West Coast. would not have had the opportuni- the program’s inception in 1940, ty to take in otherwise. It’s a bonus One of my favorite aspects of my there have been over 140,000 par- In between, there are stops in three to take IVs to places as amazing as chosen profession is learning about ticipants (about 5,000 each year), or so cities that are selected with the Grand Canyon and Frank Lloyd a wide variety of topics and inter- including 290 current and former the purpose of incorporating geo- Wright houses across the country! acting with different people, mak- heads of government such as Tony graphic diversity (like with JET, IVs ing me a perfect fi t for IVLP. This Blair and several Japanese prime can submit the destinations they Professionally, with a different program is a use of taxpayer dollars ministers. However, here in the desire). They meet with groups like theme each time, there is extensive that few people know about, but I States all IVs are considered “hon- federal, state and local government preparation and research that must think it’s a wonderful example of orary Americans.” This means that agencies, NPOs and corporations, take place before the assignment grassroots international exchange no matter what their rank is back and are also able to visit with aver- even begins. In this way, I’m able to (sound familiar?) and soft power home, everyone is of equal status age Americans through something develop a solid base of new Japa- that will benefi t America’s future during the program. This takes called Home Hospitality. This in- nese and English vocabulary which relationship with the world. I just quite a bit of pressure off the low- volves sharing a meal at someone’s at the start may not be familiar, but received word that the theme of my ly interpreter (who of course has house or going out to dinner with becomes like second nature by the next IVLP assignment is human hopes of being fondly remembered the family at a local restaurant. If end. I come away with a signifi cant traffi cking, which promises an- when her former participants go on requested, one-night homestays awareness of an area that mostly other exciting trip and the chance to become big shots!). can also be arranged in one of the was previously unknown. Especial- to delve into a completely new fi eld. cities. ly in the beginning of the program, Although different in nature, IVLP I often spend nights preparing for For more on the International Vis- makes me feel like I’m continu- As an interpreter, this is one of the the next day’s meetings, making me itor Leadership Program, visit ing the work I did on JET in a new most fulfi lling jobs I have. As three feel like I’m back in school! How- exchanges.state.gov/ivlp/ realm. As a coordinator for inter- weeks on the road is admittedly a ever, this time around the payoff is ivlp.html. national relations (CIR) at Ku- long haul and the program is not greater than a high test grade; I am mamoto City Hall, I was involved just nine to fi ve, it is not for every- facilitating both professional com- Visit Stacy on the Web at with our sister city, San Antonio, one. However, the IVs are encour- munication and informal exchange stacysmith.webs.com.
A meeting of the minds between two female entrepreneurs, facilitated by the author. Visit to an emergency management center with the disaster prevention group. 10 Fall 2009 JETAANY.org/magazine Misako Takashima. works with a number of partners Have you ever been to Japan? JQ&A with NY Anime to extend the experience. We work What would you do there if Festival’s Peter Tatara What were some of your per- with partners, including Kinokuni- you were to visit for the fi rst By Justin Tedaldi sonal highlights of this year’s ya Bookstore, Japan Society and time? event? Webster Hall to take the experi- (Kobe-shi CIR, 2001-02) I’ve never been. There are various A few things stand out. First was ence outside of the convention events in Japan that NYAF is in- our pre-party, held in conjunction center and even beyond the days of volved in, but—every time—I send Fans of anime, manga and Japa- with Del Rey Manga. Celebrating the show. One of the most unique another staff member in my place nese pop culture gathered at New NYAF’s third year and Del Rey’s things about the NYAF community because I just can’t get time out of York’s Javits Center for three days fi fth, we featured a manga-shaped is that it’s a year-long community. the offi ce. I will go eventually, and in September as the annual New cake from Charm City Cakes, the We host monthly meet-ups for fans while it’s totally touristy, Tokyo York Anime Festival returned bakery made famous on Food Net- so that they’re never more than a Tower is at the top of my to-do list. for another season of screenings, work’s Ace of Cakes TV series. We few weeks away from an anime- signings and special guest stars. packed Dave & Buster’s in Times themed event in NYC. To you, what’s an anime or JQ caught up with NYAF’s Peter Square on September 24 for this manga that’s criminally over- Tatara for a post-event recap. event with a few hundred fans and What makes New York’s an- rated? How about one that friends. The scene was intense, and ime fans stand out from other you think deserves more at- What do you do, Peter? the cake was delicious. Next up ones? tention? I’m the director of industry devel- was our Friday Cencoroll screen- With there being so much Japanese Golly. There’s no safe way to re- opment with New York Comic Con ing. Looking at anime fans today, culture and pop culture in NYC, spond to this, right? I will say that and the New York Anime Festival. it’s no secret that a large number New York anime fans have the abil- I’m very impressed that Verti- That means I’m the guy respon- download titles, so it’s hard to do ity to embrace and explore their cal is releasing Chi’s Sweet Home sible for the shows’ guests, panels, in America, and I’m hoping and screenings, concerts and special praying it connects. It’s a fantastic events. Basically, if it’s outside the manga, and I really want it to fi nd exhibition hall, I have my hands in its audience here. it. An anime that you would How did you get into anime? have most liked to have seen Vampire Hunter D, Robotech released here in the U.S. but and Ronin Warriors. Like any never saw the light of day is… kid, I grew up watching car- I’d love to see more Macross of- toons. There were some, though, fi cially in the U.S. I’d love to see that seemed different—deeper, Macross Seven, Macross Zero and stronger, stranger—than most of Macross Frontier in the U.S. what was on Saturday morning, and it’s these titles that got me I’m curious if you’ve ever seen into anime, even though at fi rst the fi lm Otaku Unite? Was I had no clue what anime was. Johnny Otaku ever a guest at NYAF? Briefl y summarize the history I’ve seen Otaku Unite. I worked of the New York Anime Festi- for Central Park Media when they val. distributed the documentary. I The New York Anime Festival be- actually took all the cosplay pho- gan in 2007 as a spinoff of the Peter (left) strikes the proper pose when sporting one’s Death Note. (“TheBigTog”) tographs on the cover and in the New York Comic Con. We had DVD’s extras, too. As for Johnny about 15,000 attendees in 2007 an actual premiere anymore. If fandom in a way fans from many Otaku at NYAF, nope. Otaku Unite and 18,000 in 2008. We also had you’re showing something at a con, other parts of the country can’t. was made more than a few years a number of large guests in 2008 odds are most of the audience has NYC fans live out their fandom in ago while NYAF was still a very including Hideyuki Kikuchi, Yoshi- already seen it. Cencoroll was dif- the streets of the city. Rather than young con. taka Amano, Iron Chef Masaharu ferent—it’s a half hour animation staying home and watching anime Morimoto, and Baby, The Stars drawn entirely by one man, and we in a friend’s bedroom, NYC fans are In the last two years, Holly- Shine Bright. In 2009, we aimed to presented the U.S. premiere. This out in bookstores, in karaoke bars, wood has released long-await- top it with Yoshiyuki Tomino, the is a title that’s just begun show- in museums, in toy stores, in movie ed fi lms based on popular creator of Gundam. ing in Japanese theaters and isn’t theaters and in other hot spots of anime like Speed Racer and anywhere else yet. This is some- Japanese culture. Japan is part of Dragonball Evolution, but How was the attendance? thing you can’t download; this was the pulse of New York City. they were met with indiffer- 2009 was our biggest year yet. We a legitimate premiere, and it was ence at the box offi ce. In your had 21,000 attendees and 120 ex- fantastic! Last up, there were at What can Americans learn opinion, what should they hibitors. The show was packed ev- least three attendees cosplaying as from anime? keep in mind in order to im- ery day, with Saturday stretching our mascot. It was just so, so awe- I’d love more Americans to experi- prove the next wave of fi lms in the seams of the convention center. some seeing fans dressed up as this ence the works of masters like Mi- the pipeline? Yet for all the crowds, the show held original character—not Ichigo or yazaki, Oshii and Kon. Anime is a I really want the folks helming the together thanks to an amazing vet- Naruto—coming to the con as our medium to tell stories—bigger sto- next batch of anime remakes to re- eran team of staff and volunteers. mascot to support us! ries, grander stories, and stranger alize what makes them so big in the For guests, the biggest name with stories than you can in live action— fi rst place. Why are these stories so us this year was Yoshiyuki Tomino, What kind of things make and I’d love for more Americans beloved in Japan? Rather than cut- but he wasn’t alone. Tomino-san NYAF different from other an- to see these stories and appreciate ting out all the weird, odd, eccentric was joined by idol group AKB48, ime cons held in the U.S.? the beauty in them. Anime isn’t bits and standardizing the stories voice actress Yui Makino, the entire First and foremost, we’re in NYC. something intrinsically American, to traditional Hollywood structure, U.S. voice cast of Soul Eater, bands This means NYAF has to be dif- and I’d love to expand the minds I hope the fi lmmakers digest the Kokusyoku Sumire and Swinging ferent to survive. Most anime cons of so many people across the U.S. meaning and the appeal of these Popsicle, and other luminaries, don’t shut down at night; they keep for just a few hours by having them titles. Bring that something special including [JET alum and Japana- on running from Friday to Sunday. witness the works of some of anime to the screen instead of stripping merica author] Roland Kelts and We can’t do this. Instead, NYAF cinema’s greats. the remakes of every-[Cont. on 20] Fall 2009 JETAANY.org/magazine 11 12 Fall 2009 JETAANY.org/magazine Gold Metal: JQ Interviews Anvil with Sacha Gervasi By Justin Tedaldi (Kobe-shi CIR, 2001-02) Cover Photo by Brent J. Craig
We wish all our cover subjects were this cooperative.
The fi lm opens with you doing a stadium to the unit production manager that I’d love to show in Japan 25 years ago. What were fi nd a place where Lips and Robb can go and the circumstances of you going there, and explore; a really traditional Japanese location. Japanese fi lm poster for the hit documentary Anvil! what were your feelings upon arriving? I looked at photos [of a garden] before that—we The Story of Anvil. (Ross Halfi n) LIPS: The label we were signed to at the time wanted a place near Tokyo where there weren’t had a relationship with a man who ran a pro- too many people around, and we needed to One of the best-reviewed fi lms this year is a motional company in Japan. They had worked have the ability to do whatever we wanted. documentary called Anvil! The Story of Anvil, out a deal that was able to bring the Scorpions, This was a public place, and luckily, the day we about a down-and-out (but doggedly optimis- Whitesnake and Bon Jovi, among others, along were there, there was hardly anyone there. It tic) Canadian metal band’s quest to make it af- with us over there for the Super Rock Festival. was amazing; we had total fl exibility. In terms ter decades of obscurity. We’ve been lucky to have been playing festivals of Shibuya, it was in the movie Lost in Trans- for a long period of time. The fi rst time we were lation, and people know it very well. It’s really Their persistence paid off. After bowing at there [in 1983], we were supporting our fi rst impossible to get permits to shoot there, and the Sundance Film Festival in 2008, the fi lm three albums. we’d been warned that the local Yakuza would became a sleeper hit on the art house circuit probably stop us from fi lming. We were really this past April, followed by a spot at Cannes in How about being in Japan as guests? concerned about this—all these people [were] May. In October, it premiered in Japan. LIPS: It was like being in a different world. saying, “You’ve gotta pay them cash.” So we had To me, I was creating a history from my past. all this cash just in case, ’cause I knew that se- Now enjoying a second shot at stardom with Being able to get over there was a big deal, be- quence was gonna be critical, and when we ar- the rerelease of their latest studio album This cause not everyone gets a chance to play over rived, the light was just perfect—it was like you is Thirteen and the DVD debut of the fi lm, Anvil there. It meant a lot to me, and it still does. couldn’t devise it; it was just magical. And so founders Steve “Lips” Kudlow (guitar/vocals), we caught it just at the end of the day as it was Robb Reiner (drums) and British-born director What’s one thing you noticed that sepa- sort of turning into night, and ended up shoot- Sacha Gervasi (former Anvil roadie-turned- rates the Japanese fans from everyone ing for an hour and it went from day to night. Hollywood screenwriter) spoke with JQ about else? But when we got that shot around them in the life after the fi lm’s release and the role Japan LIPS: Their dedication, no question about it. middle of the crosswalk, we basically stole that plays in it all. footage. I mean, we didn’t have an offi cial per- It must be surprising to see people who mit; we were told that we would get shut down, You opened three shows this summer for don’t speak English singing along to that the Yakuza would show up. And you know, AC/DC. What was it like performing at your songs. the magic of Anvil, man: not a peep. Giants Stadium? LIPS: They are extremely friendly over there ROBB: It was like we’ve been living for the and they are super-dedicated. Anvil’s return to Japan is completely un- dream, and now we’re living the dream. expected watching the fi lm. For the festival in Japan that you guys ROBB: It was foreshadowing because [origi- How many people did you play to in all? appear in at the fi lm’s climax, who else nally] there was no Japanese gig; it came out of ROBB: Over 150,000 people—I’m still there. was on the bill? left fi eld. We were wondering how we were go- We made a lot of new fans, to say the least. Let’s LIPS: It was a festival called Loud Park [’06, ing to get the ending made, and then out comes do more. in Saitama]. They had three days of acts and this trip to Japan. we ended up on one of the days. Anthrax, Dio, I heard that [AC/DC guitarist] Angus Megadeth, Slayer, so many bands… I was touched by the fi lm. Usually these Young put a call through to get you guys kinds of documentaries are about ath- on board. Filming in Japan, was it different from letes overcoming obstacles and we rare- ROBB: He saw the movie and opened his heart any of the other countries you shot the ly see the same thing about musicians. to Anvil. That’s basically how we looked at it. movie in? LIPS: That’s a great observation that I’ve been Angus said that he loves Anvil. SACHA: Japan is really well organized. I said trying to tell everyone, especially [Cont. on 17]
Fall 2009 JETAANY.org/magazine 13 What We Did This Summer
Justin enjoys some okonomiyaki in Melbourne with JETAA Victoria/Tasmania/South JET kayaking at New York’s Pier 96. Left to right: Peter Katz, Kate Clute, Mayumi Australia newsletter editor/treasurer Jens Rumoller, secretary Sonia Morison (left) and Matsumoto and Olivia Nilsson. Friend of JET (and avid JQ reader) Vero Chen.
Akihabara-based idol/theater group AKB48 made its U.S. debut at Webster Hall as Harumi Kurihara, Japan’s answer to Martha Stewart, launched a rare weeklong tour part of the New York Anime Festival, promoted by New York-Tokyo. According to one of the Tri-state area for her new book, Everyday Harumi, wrapping up with a lecture JET participant, they also sang and danced in furry animal costumes. (© AKS) at Japan Society.
14 Fall 2009 JETAANY.org/magazine [Cont. from 8] For American people to see this As an actor or performer, New York is “the place Why do you think there are so few Asian play, and learn how a small company from a to be.” Everyone comes to New York to fi nd all theater groups or production companies small island nation that was defeated in war different types of people. So, I think it is one of in the city? developed into a world leader, may be very in- the best places to fi nd Asian actors, other than First of all, money. Second of all, putting a teresting. Also, a lot of people know about Sony Tokyo, who can speak English. Of course, one group together requires a lot of other things products, but they may not know how the com- can fi nd Chinese American or Japanese Ameri- that are less obvious. In my experience, many pany began. The story of Sony is a great one, be- can actors easily. But in my case, I was born and Japanese actors come here for a short while, but cause it illustrates how hunger, determination raised in Japan, and therefore have more core then have to return to Japan. This makes it re- and focus can lead to success. Japanese culture, which is what I believe Post ally diffi cult to develop a solid team of actors. was seeking. How did you get involved with Post The- What’s next for Theatre de Moon? ater and heavenly BENTO? Tell us about Theatre de Moon, your the- We are working on an Off Broadway production They came from Berlin to New York to look for ater company. of Kutsukake Tokijiro to be done in Japanese an Asian actor, and I auditioned for the part. I have directed plays for theater festivals, but with English subtitles. The music will be com- since Kutsukake Tokijiro [based on a 1920s posed by Ryō Yoshimata, who also wrote the mu- Really? New York and not Tokyo? Japanese popular literary play] was my fi rst full sic for the 2008 NHK drama Atsuhime. We don’t [Laughs] I guess New York is closer [to Berlin]. production, my wife and I decided to start The- have a date set, but are looking at spring 2010. They were looking for Japanese actors and tried atre de Moon. to fi nd someone in Berlin, but couldn’t. So, they For more on Theatre de Moon and upcoming researched and decided to hold auditions in Are there many other Japanese theater performances, check out kurotamakikaku. New York. groups or production companies in the webs.com. city? Is New York a good place to fi nd Asian They are trying, but not many. And the ones Visit Japan Society online at japansociety. actors, or Japanese actors in particular? that exist are still small. org.
Theatre Review A Recipe for heavenly BENTO By Adren Hart (Nagano-ken, 1998-2000)
Over the PA system, a voice proudly declares, “We want to reconstruct Japan and to elevate the nation’s culture through dynamic techno- logical and manufacturing activities.” Sudden- ly, we hear the sound of radio static and planes fl ying overhead. A dropped bomb whistles as it speedily descends to its target. Then, boom— a loud roar is heard as it explodes on impact. Thus begins the opening scene of Post Theater’s production of heavenly BENTO, a play based on the epic journey of the Sony Corporation’s founding.
A collaborative effort by Japanese media artist Hiroko Tanahashi and director Max Schumach- er, the play recounts the story of Akio Morita (Jun Kim) and Masaru Ibuka (Alexander Schro- eder) from their initial meeting as engineers at Alexander Schroeder and Jun Kim star in the multimedia play heavenly BENTO at Japan Society. (Thile Beu) Japan Precision Instrument Co., testing and never seen.” a platform where a dancer glides across with producing new military equipment for World graceful and, at times, frantic movements il- War II-era Japan, all through to their establish- Later, he saves Morita from a life of boredom as lustrating Sony’s growth and progress; it serves ment of the world’s leading electronics com- he’s being groomed to become a “fi fteenth gen- as an atlas where Ibuka and Morita move from pany, Sony. eration sake brewer who doesn’t drink” by invit- city to city across the globe recounting the com- ing him to join his company. This proves to be pany’s entrance into various markets; and as The main characters appear from a hole in the a masterstroke on the part of Ibuka, as Morita’s the play ends, it transforms into a boardroom center of the stage. Morita confi des in Ibuka marketing and business savvy helps create and conference table, where members are invited to that he joined JPI to “avoid being drafted as a develop a demand for Ibuka’s creations, one partake in the futuristic bento lunch boxes that kamikaze pilot.” Ibuka shares the fear and awe that would span the globe. they’ve been sitting in front of since the curtain he feels when refl ecting upon the weapons pos- opened. sessed by their enemies, the American military Worthy of the high-tech giant that Sony is to- machine, saying, “I have seen their radios, re- day, the play is full of multimedia innovation. heavenly BENTO gives the audience encom- frigerators, their Victrolas, their planes...” There are no props, just a boxing ring-sized passing insight into the story of Sony. And it platform onto which cutting edge graphics and does so with a state-of-the-art, avant-garde ap- The war ends and Japan is defeated. Now it’s moving images appear on cue, supported by proach, pushing the limits of the theater experi- time to pick up the pieces and build a “new” high quality surround sound. It could be argued ence. The play enjoyed a three-day run at Japan Japan. Ever the visionary, Ibuka proclaims in that the stage itself is the third player in this Society in September, but will be staged in a few his prospectus for the newly formed electrical two-man show. other countries. If you happen to be in town, engineering company: “Now we can start some zehi mi ni itte kudasai! real work. We can build useful things. We will For this audience member, the stage is an in- build radios…nicer and more beautiful than any tegral part of the production. It provides visu- For more on heavenly BENTO and other pro- of those American ones. The likes the world has als while the actors tell their stories; it becomes ductions, visit posttheater.com. Fall 2009 JETAANY.org/magazine 15 Mermaid, Miyazaki fi lls his tale with his usual spirit of Andersen’s original story. Unlike Dis- Film Review environmental concerns. Ponyo’s father Fu- ney’s own fi lm adaptation, wherein the mer- Ponyo, An Earthbound Sea Tale jimoto (Liam Neeson) is a human wizard who maid’s quest carries a positive and heroic By Lyle Sylvander has turned his back on humanity for its careless connotation, Andersen and Miyazaki offer a treatment of the ocean and disrespect to nature. cautionary tale about the naïve pursuit of child- (Yokohama-shi, 2001-02 ) ish self-interest. Humanity has its costs, and By settling down with a sea goddess, he has cre- while it offers many attractive benefi ts, it also For three decades now, the Japanese animator ated a whole species of tiny part human/part carries the burden of maturity and responsibil- Hayao Miyazaki has consistently delivered his fi sh creatures protected from the human world. ity. trademark phantasmagorical narratives while When Ponyo escapes from this world to live on defying the brutal economics of the business Miyazaki’s fi lm is clearly aimed at younger audi- cycle. Unlike any other fi lmmaker, animated or ences compared to his past work. In fact, this otherwise, Miyazaki is incapable of producing a fi lm recalls My Neighbor Totoro (1988) in its fl op or misfi re. simple, streamlined story. While this makes it more accessible for the little ones, older chil- Every three to four years, he and his team at dren and adults are likely to miss the more Studio Ghibli reliably produce a smash hit at the psychologically complex concerns of Porco Japanese box offi ce (although nothing is likely Rosso (1992), Princess Mononoke (1997), Spir- to eclipse 2001’s Spirited Away’s $365 million ited Away and Howl’s Moving Castle (2004). gross, the highest in Japanese history). It is no These fi lms also offered a more engrossing vi- surprise to learn that his newest fi lm, Ponyo on sual schematic, incorporating both Eastern and the Cliff by the Sea, continued the trend and Western mythological and architectural images grossed, despite the global economic downturn, from Miyazaki’s endlessly creative mind. $195 million in Japan last year. Despite these shortcomings, Ponyo still offers For its U.S. release, Walt Disney Pictures, which classic Miyazaki touches. The opening sequence has distributed all of Miyazaki’s fi lms stateside is stunning, as it introduces us to Ponyo’s un- since 1997, hired the team of John Lasseter (Toy derwater home with light blue and green fi lters Story, Cars) and Frank Marshall and Kathleen displaying vibrant jellyfi sh and other colorful Kennedy (from Steven Spielberg’s Amblin En- marine creatures. tertainment) to produce an English-language version. Released in August simply as Ponyo, Later, when the natural order becomes dis- the fi lm had the largest U.S. opening ever for a turbed, the tides take on a disturbing look as Miyazaki fi lm and has grossed a respectable $15 the previously calm waves anthropomorphic- million to date. ally evolve into dark, pitch-black beings with menacing eyes. Such scenes remind one of Mi- While most movie lovers and Japanophiles yazaki’s unique brilliance and why audiences would prefer to see Ponyo in its native lan- fl ock to his fi lms. guage, Disney’s version is an admirable attempt at making the fi lm accessible to American au- Having sworn never to use 3D computer anima- diences. Since animation lends itself to re-dub- tion, Miyazaki understands that his art neces- bing more readily than live-action, the initial sarily depends on the hand drawn craft. Despite awkwardness of Japanese characters speaking land as a human, she not only endangers herself not being among his best, Ponyo is a welcome English soon dissolves in the audience’s sus- (she can only go so long without water), but up- respite from the overabundance of CGI anima- pension of disbelief. sets the delicate ecological balance between the tion fl ooding the marketplace, and reliably dem- land, sea and sky, as well. onstrates that it is not the technological tools at Ponyo follows the eponymous character’s one’s disposal, but the creative mind behind the (Noah Cyrus) quest to leave her underwater Ponyo’s actions pull the moon closer to the art that produces truly great animation. home and live on the surface as a human. Along Earth and the ocean’s tides rise, chaotically the way, she meets Sosuke (Frankie Jonas), a swallowing everything in their path. When Fuji- Visit Ponyo’s offi cial U.S. site at disney. boy who becomes her surrogate older brother moto, the would-be villain, sets out to bring his go.com/disneypictures/ponyo. and protector. daughter back to sea, he is in fact saving both Ponyo and humanity itself. For those interested in the Japanese-language While this brief sketch of plot obviously re- version, JAS MART at St. Mark’s Place rents calls Hans Christian Andersen’s The Little In this sense, Miyazaki remains closer to the the DVD with an English subtitle option.
16 Fall 2009 JETAANY.org/magazine in a suicide attack. [Cont. from 13] those who say, “What’s so spe- Book Corner: The China Lover cial about this movie?” I can’t remember any The complexity of The China Lover cannot be rock band that’s showed the real McCoy, as it By David Kowalsky overstated. One theme is the power of cinema happens. Usually when you see these types of (Hiroshima-ken ALT/CIR, 1991-93) as a political tool, fi rst by Japan in China, and movies, they’re retrospective pieces. No scripts, then America in Japan. Yamaguchi’s own story all in one take. [laughs] Whatever happens ac- is a metaphor for modern Japan: shifting from a tually happens. It’s really important to get the Many years ago, I read Ian Buruma’s two excel- military dictatorship to postwar American-con- message out there. You don’t have to be an An- lent Japan-related books Behind the Mask and trolled chaos, and fi nally revived as an eventual vil fan or a heavy metal fan to get this movie. Wages of Guilt: Memories of War in Germany economic giant. This movie’s main message is all about follow- and Japan. Both are unfortunately now out of ing your dreams and living it out to the fullest print, but not impossible to fi nd. While Buruma Throughout the book, we never get to know extent. is better known for his 2007 book Murder in Yamaguchi quite as closely as we might like. Amsterdam: The Death of Theo Van Gogh and Based on the way the fi lm has been re- the Limits of Tolerance, now out in paperback ceived, do you feel like a lot of those is his 2008 novel The China Lover, a rare de- dreams have been achieved? parture from his career as a journalist and non- LIPS: I think it’s going as well as I expected. It’s fi ction author. hard to anticipate what comes next—it’s getting bigger and taking on a life of its own. Trust me The book is a fi ctionalized account of the ex- when I say we’re enjoying every second of it and traordinary life of Yoshiko Otaka. Born in 1920 taking advantage of every opportunity coming in Manchuria to Japanese parents, the now- our way. We’ve waited over 30 years for it, and 89-year-old Otaka has been a master career re- we’re going to ride the wave. [laughs] inventor (singer, actress, journalist and politi- cian) and identity changer (known by the names What places are you most excited to play Yoshiko Yamaguchi, Li Xianglan/Ri Koran and that you haven’t seen properly yet? Shirley Yamaguchi). LIPS: Coming to Japan is one of the greatest experiences. There are many places we’ve never Forced to keep her Japanese identity a secret, had a chance to visit, and I’m very excited to Otaka rose to fame as a 13-year-old Chinese head there. I’m also just as excited to head to singer, and later, actress, making propaganda places we have played, now that we have a sec- fi lms intended for Chinese audiences during Ja- ond chance to go back. pan’s occupation of China (1932-45). After Ja- pan’s surrender from the war, she was arrested Are there any Japanese artists or fi lms by the Chinese government, but by proving she that have inspired you or infl uenced your was ethnically Japanese, was exonerated and al- own works or lifestyles? lowed to go to Japan. LIPS: As far as Japanese movies, Mothra was a point of interest, considering we wrote a song After the war, Otaka starred in some pro-Amer- about it [on 1982’s Metal on Metal]. Other than ican fi lms in occupied Japan and B movies in that, not really. However, it’s an honor that our Hollywood. In the 1960s in Japan, Otaka host- music is so loved and revered in Japan. ed a television talk show, and in the 1970s she served in the Japanese parliament’s House of Instead we hear about her as the narrators Do you have any stories from previous Councilors. dominate with their own stories. There is also visits? Any entertaining moments from a long parade of celebrity guest “appearances” “reverse culture shock”? The China Lover tells Otaka’s life story in three including Truman Capote, Akira Kurosawa and LIPS: Being caught in a traffi c jam at 3 a.m. in parts, by a different narrator for each. This Toshiro Mifune. Tokyo was pretty bizarre. [laughs] Seeing cof- unconventional approach starts with Daisuke fee and cigarette machines out on the streets Sato, a Japanese native living in Manchuria One of the real joys of reading The China Lover is something you don’t see in America. Elec- who works as a talent scout for the Manchu- is that it may spark your interest into reading tronically, they always seem to be ahead of the ria Picture Association, the propaganda arm of more about the last 75 years or so of Japanese curve. Having automatic doors in the cabs was the Japanese military government. Sato helped history. One good place to start is with Donald pretty shocking—the driver can open and close launch Li Xianglan’s fi lm career. Richie’s The Japan Journals: 1947-2004. In the door for you without even reaching for it; fact, The Washington Post’s Wendy Law-Yone I thought that was pretty outrageous. [laughs] The next narrator is Sidney Vanoven, an Ameri- noted that “Sydney Vanoven bears a striking re- It’s as close as you can get to landing on another can originally from Ohio. After a stint as a gofer semblance, in character and career, to Donald planet. One interesting thing that I remember on a Frank Capra movie in Hollywood, Vanoven Richie, the renowned American Japanophile our promoter over there telling us was that Ja- works in occupied Japan for the U.S. Military and fi lm critic, who is credited in the author’s pan had the highest suicide rate amongst high Civil Censorship Detachment to make sure Jap- acknowledgments.” school and university students; I guess there anese fi lm content is pro-democratic. He gets to were students who weren’t making their grades. know Yoshiko Yamaguchi, Otaka’s alias at the Another book to consider is Robert Whiting’s time. Tokyo Underworld, in which the real-life Tokyo Were there any surprises or discoveries pizza restaurant owner Nick Zappetti clearly re- that you made while visiting record shops The fi nal narrator is Kinkichi Sato, a postwar sembles The China Lover’s Tony Lucca. in Japan? Did you guys have enough time pink eiga (soft porn) fi lmmaker, who gets a job to do some sightseeing? making television documentaries about world Also, be on the lookout for the eventual fi lm ad- LIPS: I defi nitely had time to visit some music politics for Japanese housewives. He works aptation of Night-fragrant Flower. Directed by stores. I ended up picking up some distortion with Yamaguchi, who by this time has made the Hirokazu Kore-eda (best known in the U.S. for pedals for my guitars that I wasn’t able to fi nd career-changing move into journalism. 2004’s Nobody Knows (Daremo Shiranai), the in America. The variety of equipment that you movie focuses on Li Xianglan’s Manchuria years can fi nd over there is far superior to American This fi nal section of the novel, narrated by the of the 1930s and 1940s, the period she went stores. Seeing their 35 millimeter cameras in second Sato, is the most political, with Sato be- from legendary fi lm star to suspected traitor. the 1980s was really exciting—leaps and bounds ing a supporter of the Palestinian cause. He be- over what you could fi nd here in America. comes a terrorist with the Japanese Red Army Visit the author’s homepage at ianburuma. and ends up in prison after being a participant com. What have your peers said to [Cont. on 22] Fall 2009 JETAANY.org/magazine 17 about? Ace Frehley: Back in The fi rst thing that comes to mind the New York Groove when you talk about the Japanese By Justin Tedaldi fans was that a lot of the female fans would bring us dolls. I still have a (Kobe-shi CIR, 2001-02) collection of Ace dolls that they’ve Photos by Kevin Britton given me since the 1970s.
This fall welcomed the fi rst album I’m curious if you’ve heard in 11 years from American rock leg- about the band X Japan? ends KISS, and it also saw original Yeah, I think so. member and former lead guitarist Ace Frehley release his fi rst solo I just thought of this now, but I album in 20 years, Anomaly, which remember [their late guitarist] notched a top 30 debut on the Bill- Hide did a song called “Rocket board charts in September. Prior Dive,” which is his personal to its launch, the Bronx-born Space homage to [Ace’s 1978 song Ace talked to JQ. with KISS] “Rocket Ride.” If you can, try to fi nd a copy of it; First question—and I think ev- I think you’ll get a kick out of it. eryone has been asking this Awesome. Is it hard and heavy? one—why did it take you 20 years to do another solo al- I would consider it a cross be- bum? tween KISS, Metallica and Möt- I’ve been asking myself that ques- ley Crüe. tion for a very long time. [laughs] Okay, cool. Originally it was supposed to come out before the KISS reunion tour Going back to Anomaly, were [in 1996]. I was scheduled to record there any recording techniques in Europe, but then I was offered that you haven’t previously the reunion tour and had to cancel used that you tried out on this those plans to go to Los Angeles to record? rehearse for the tour. Since then, The biggest difference was that a lot I’ve been struggling with trying to of the tracks were recorded into Pro make this happen. And—it’s done. Tools. [laughs] Did you fi nd that easier? Congratulations on fi nally get- As far as the editing process was, ting it done. As the Japanese absolutely. I remember back in the say, you must be very tired, early days that the editing process right? was so time-consuming. Once you Actually, no, I have quite a bit of en- get into digital recording, it moves ergy and I’m real excited about the “The Japanese people are passionate. I always felt very comfortable visiting Japan.” things along so much easier. way the record turned out. Now I’m mainly focused on packaging and You fi rst toured Japan with though, you would notice the Japa- I have a question about “Geng- planning out a tour. KISS in 1977. When you re- nese fans becoming more loose and his Khan.” You’ve listed it turned for the reunion tour uninhibited. as your favorite track from Did you consider having Ed- twenty years later, what Anomaly. What’s the origin of die Kramer produce this new changed about Japan to you? What can you tell me about the song, and why do you like it album since you two had great From the early times, it became a your relationship with Japan? so much? success with your 1978 solo al- little more westernized. Whenever I Was it ever your dream to play It was a song that was written on bum? go to Japan, I love to go to the elec- there or see some of the sites acoustic guitar, but it took a while to I was thinking about it, but I had tronics stores, because they have so that you’ve only read about? get together due to all the different trouble tracking him down. But I many products that never make it to I’ve been to Japan a half-dozen parts in the song, using different in- don’t think it would’ve worked in the United States. times and I’ve seen a lot of the sights. struments in various spots. Thanks this scenario, because I didn’t have However, I’ve yet to climb Mount to Pro Tools, we were able to add a all the songs ready when I fi rst went What kind of Japanese prod- Fuji. [laughs] The bullet trains are a lot of parts to the song, and editing it into the studio, as I was constantly ucts or technology have you trip. Have you ever been on a bullet together was easier. Marti Frederik- writing and changing songs around. been a fan of? train? sen and Anthony Fox did a bril- Sony, for one. I remember buying liant job with the mix, and I’m very Is there any place that you three Nikon cameras at one point. I Yeah. I used to live in Kobe pleased with the end results. haven’t played yet that you remember there being a big toy store City, but I would take bullet would like to hit on this tour? in Tokyo where I bought radio-con- trains to visit friends in various Is that a song you wanted to go I would love to play Japan, since I trolled gadgets. places. into making it ambitious or did haven’t played Japan with this line- At fi rst, I loved the food. I eat sushi it just evolve that way? up yet. I know it would be a treat for How about culture shocks? all the time. I notice in Japan you I knew it was a special song when me and a treat for the Japanese fans. How did you cope with them in don’t see too many fat people, as op- I wrote it. The vibe was there right the beginning? posed to America. away. And I thought that Anton Fig Have you ever toured Japan The language barrier was tricky, as did an amazing drum track to it. He outside of KISS? was the food. I know Japanese food In the KISS DVD The Second has a way of carrying just behind the The last time I was there—and I’m in America is pretty popular. Also, Coming, you talked about a lot beat with his playing, which I always kinda bad on the dates [laughs]— when we perform in Japan, the fans of the great gifts you would re- liked. other than KISS, I was there with are a lot more reserved than Ameri- ceive from Japanese fans. Are [Ace’s solo band] Frehley’s Comet can fans, who normally like to jump there any in your mind that Besides “Genghis Khan,” do [in 1993]. up and down. As time went on, stand out that you can tell us you have any personal favorite 18 Fall 2009 JETAANY.org/magazine son lose their temper. I always felt very comfort- able while visiting Japan.
Do you have a favorite spot in Japan? Tokyo is the most fun for me—I love going to the shops and the different restaurants. I get crazy over there. [laughs] I have boxes of stuff from the last time I went over there. It’s like no place in the world.
A buddy of mine was curious to know what your honest reaction was to play with a KISS tribute band while KISS themselves were being inducted at the VH1 Rock Honors special in 2006. Did it bother you to be guesting with an all-star tribute band while the actual band was being honored? That was so much fun. It was a great time work- ing with those gentlemen. [New York-based ra- dio and TV personality] Eddie Trunk called me up and said that I should be represented while KISS was being inducted, and he came up with the idea for that supergroup. From the outset, everyone was very excited about it and thought it was a cool idea. It was fun rehearsing in Los Angeles, then fl ying to Las Vegas. Classic cosplay: Ace (second from left) on KISS’s fi rst tour of Japan, spring 1977. (Bob Gruen) It’s also great to see your relationship solo tracks? I thought it was a fun idea. I’m kind of a silly with Eddie Trunk still going strong after One of the special songs on Anomaly that ties person and I thought our fans would get a kick all these years, as he’s been one of your my solo work together is “Fractured Quantum,” out of it. I actually watched it not that long ago and KISS’s biggest supporters for de- the continuation of the “Fractured” series. I’m and got a kick out of it. cades. real happy with the way it came out. I like the Eddie is a great guy and I always love helping [end] of “Fractured Quantum”; it reminds me of When did you last see it? him out whenever I can, whether it’s birthday the way that “Fractured Mirror” [from the 1978 About a month ago. A friend and I were watch- parties or the [9/11-related] New York Steel album] begins. ing it in our hotel room during the mixing of benefi t. Anomaly. Prior to that, the last time I watched I remember the last show you did in Ja- it was about fi ve years ago. I think it’s a period Any last words for the JQ readers and pan with KISS, in 2001 with Eric Singer piece; it is what it is, ya know? I didn’t realize your fans in general? on drums, being a great night. The peo- that it was playing in the movie theaters in Can- I’m very happy that the album is done and am ple I was standing with during the show ada when we traveled there after the movie’s extremely pleased with the fi nal product. I know were actually crying because they were release. That was a trip. I think fans defi nitely my fans will truly enjoy it and I look forward to caught up in the emotion. For you per- enjoy it. performing in Japan with my current lineup. sonally, do you have any special memo- Keep checking my Web site and MySpace and ries of that show? Do you have a favorite KISS costume? Facebook and... [laughs] I remember the vibe in the air; a lot of electric- I would have to say the Destroyer-era costumes ity. I remember it being a really good show. were my favorite. Not just mine, but my band- You have all your bases covered, it seems. mates, as well. And my least favorite were from Absolutely. Well, you know how much I love They must’ve thought so, too, because I The Elder. I thought those looked the silliest. computers. You can always teach an old dog remember going into a record store the new tricks. following week and I saw a whole stack Since your KISS character is a popular of bootlegs from that tour on the shelves. Halloween costume, what does Ace Fre- Special thanks to Kymm Britton at 60 Cycle Yeah, you can never get away from those boot- hley dress up as for Halloween? Media for interview assistance. leggers. Nothing really comes to mind, although I did go out as Frankenstein one year. Anomaly is in stores now. Visit acefrehley. For the years that you weren’t in KISS, com for more details. did you listen to the albums that they put Did you ever go out on Halloween as your out? Did you follow what they were do- KISS character? ing? Before our fi rst album came out, we went and Honestly, not really. [laughs] I really didn’t pay saw the New York Dolls on Halloween. I wore too much attention to them after I left. Not re- my makeup out for that. ally in a bad way, but I just didn’t have much of an interest. Going back to your fi rst tour of Japan, I noticed the band’s photo shoots were at Do you have any plans to hear the new parks and shrines. Whose idea was it for KISS album? you to go to those places? I’m sure I’ll check it out. Maybe they’ll be nice We never decided; we had press people do that enough to send an advance copy. [laughs] for us.
I have a few questions about [the 1978 I remember a photo from [KISS bassist] made-for-TV movie] KISS Meets the Gene Simmons’s memoirs that had you Phantom of the Park. When you fi rst guys posing with kids. heard the idea for the fi lm, what was The Japanese people were passionate, but soft- your initial reaction to it? spoken. Very rarely do you see a Japanese per- Fall 2009 JETAANY.org/magazine 19 [Cont. from 11] -thing that made them special in kawa [from Martian Successor Nadesico]. It readjust. We’ll still have big tentpole titles like the fi rst place. was my freshman year of college. I ruined three Bleach and Naruto, but it’s going to be very in- shirts that night. teresting to see where the market is in both the What anime would you most like to see U.S. and Japan in fi ve years. Will fans still buy get the Hollywood treatment? What’s this I hear about NYAF and Comic DVDs? Or will digital distribution have fi rmly I’m a huge fan of Gurren Lagann and My- Con merging next October? become king? And if so, will the industry have HiME. I can’t see how either of these would Due to NYC convention center logistics and is- successfully found a model to monetize it? transfer into live-action, but I’d love to see some sues with securing dates, NYAF will be co-locat- talented storytellers try. ed with the New York Comic Con in 2010, and What’s the fi rst thing you do when the probably the next few years following it. While it endless running around that goes with a Who’s on your wish list when it comes to means changes, it means good changes. Beyond new con is fi nally over? securing future guests? taking over the entire Javits Center, it means Sleep. I slept until noon on Monday. After that, I imagine I need to start the list with Tite Kubo NYAF gets access to the convention center’s I spent the day catching up with my friend Net- [Bleach] and Masashi Kishimoto [Naruto], but biggest room—the 3,000 seat IGN Theater—for fl ix. the two names I’d personally love to have at our main events. NYAF more than anyone else are [J-pop super- Any other message for JET alums and JQ star and JQ interviewee] Hikaru Utada and What do you feel is the future of anime readers? Shoji Kawamori [The Vision of Escafl owne]. in America? Never stop studying. We’re in a state of fl ux right now. And it’s not Tell us a memorable cosplay story from just us; anime all over the world is in a state of For more commentary and photos, visit the your past. transition. Fans aren’t consuming anime the New York Anime Festival’s homepage at I’ve only cosplayed once in my life: Akito Ten- way they used to, and the business needs to newyorkanimefestival.com.
On Location at the New York Anime Festival - Photos by Eric M. Chu (ericmchu.com)
Fans line up for a screening at the New York Anime Festival...or is it the bathroom? Fortunately for Patty, it wound up raining on day three.
“Anybody lose a watch?” Voice actress/musician Yui Makino. “Of course I liked your acting! But the movie...” That is one well-placed lock of hair.
20 Fall 2009 JETAANY.org/magazine schoolchildren, whale eaters, dolphin lovers, Film Review surfers and you, the viewer, are just a few people The Cove Swims with Secrets affected or even indicted by this fi lm. The Cove By Elizabeth Wanic is a beautiful, sad and poignant look at a tragic (Kagoshima-ken, 2003-06) situation—not just the circumstances in Taiji, but the state of our oceans in general.
I’m sure not many people remember a few years Like all fi lms with an agenda, The Cove comes ago when Heroes star Hayden Panettiere got at you from only one perspective. The makers publicity for trying to save some dolphins. The try to offer some rationale for why their oppo- incident was barely a blip on the radar of inter- sition acts how they do, but this clearly takes national news, but gave headlines to the likes of a backseat in the scheme of the fi lm. Japanese Yahoo’s omg! for a few days. However, nobody people are interviewed throughout and some mentioned that she was part of a larger opera- defend what takes place in the cove, while oth- tion to stop the sale and slaughter of dolphins in ers are ignorant of this controversy. Some of the small Japanese town of Taiji, Wakayama. In the people in Taiji are made to look despicable, fact, I had completely forgotten about the event while others come out as heroes; for example, until I went to see a new fi lm from the Oceanic the Japanese councilmen who campaign to re- Preservation Society, The Cove. move the mercury-laden dolphin meat from school kyuushoku menus. Not quite sure what to expect, I approached my viewing of the fi lm with some skepticism. I am These men risk their jobs and reputations in not one who typically enjoys movies with a bla- an effort to save their children, and those from tant agenda, and The Cove clearly has one. But other families, from the permanent and harm- remembering my days driving along the coast ful effects of mercury poisoning. Overall, it’s of Kinko Bay in Kagoshima, watching pods of a one-sided fi lm, but it doesn’t pretend to be dolphins frolic in the surf, I thought I’d give it otherwise. The Cove gives the information that a chance. And when the fi lm started rolling, my Flipper, O’Barry began to travel the world res- its makers want to give and viewers can, and skeptical attitude began to change. cuing dolphins from cruel situations and speak- should, of course watch and listen with a dis- ing out against keeping them in captivity. criminating mind. Essentially a documentary of how director Lou- ie Psihoyos’s Oceanic Preservation Society and His crusade brought him to the town of Taiji, I highly recommend viewing The Cove, but Ric O’Barry, the world’s most famous dolphin where the rest of the story begins to unfold. This please note that the fi lm contains some ex- trainer and activist, attempted to discover just tiny hamlet is the largest supplier of dolphins tremely disturbing footage. At the beginning what was happening in the hidden cove on the to aquariums and dolphinariums worldwide. of the fi lm, the narrator says that they tried to coast of Taiji, the fi lm slowly changes course When O’Barry arrived in Taiji, he had plans to take all of the footage legally, but that it was not and its impact widens as the crew gets in deeper push his anti-captivity campaign, but he had possible to do so because of regulations and re- and deeper. no idea of the horrors he would uncover in this strictions on the land surrounding the cove in quiet town of 3,500 people. question. The part that’s hard to get your head The fi lm opens by introducing O’Barry, who be- around, especially during the last scene, is the gan his involvement with dolphins early in his Aside from the problem of trapping these fact that the act of taking some of the footage life—he was the offi cial trainer for the 1960s peaceful creatures and placing them in captiv- was illegal, but what it shows is not. TV show Flipper. Having caught, trained and ity, the fi lm touches on many other issues and lived with these cetaceans for decades, O’Barry exposes a shocking array of cover-ups, decep- The Cove completed a limited theatrical en- understands just how intelligent and self-aware tions and dishonesty. The fi shermen and police gagement earlier this summer in New York these creatures are. After a traumatizing inci- department of Taiji, the International Whaling and Los Angeles. For more information on fu- dent with Kathy, the main dolphin who played Commission, the Japanese Fisheries Ministry, ture screenings, visit thecovemovie.com.
depending on the species. Book Corner That’s a Knife! The book is sprinkled with reci- By Yukari Sakamoto pes that are not too complicated. (Chiba-ken, 1989-1990) There is also a tutorial on keeping your knives sharp using Japanese water stones. This book will be- Japanese Kitchen Knives by Hi- come an invaluable reference tool romitsu Nozaki with Kate Klip- for any kitchen. As JET alums, we pensteen, Kodansha International, have all had the pleasure of enjoy- 2009, 160 pp., $29.95. ing authentic Japanese cuisine and surely have an appreciation for the Japanese knives are revered around technical skills of Japanese chefs. the world and the defi nitive guide This book enlightens readers on the has just been published. Renowned breadth and depth of working with chef Hiromitsu Nozaki and Kate Japanese knives. Klippensteen have documented working with the three most popu- Kodansha site: lar knives in the Japanese kitchen, Where the book shines is in the looking to upgrade their skills and kodansha-intl.com/books/ the debabocho, usubabocho and gorgeous detailed photos showing wanting to work with seafood; san- html/en/9784770030764. yanagibocho. Nozaki starts off not step-by-step directions for classi- maioroshi and gomaioroshi for fi l- html with the knife, but with the proper cal Japanese cutting techniques. leting fi sh, hiraki to butterfl y a fi sh, stance for facing the cutting board. Cuts include katsuramuki, the fi ne and even complete instructions on Recommended knife shop: Simply changing the way you ap- cut most often seen with daikon as preparing crab. If you can get your nymtc.com (these knives are sold proach the board may make a big garnish for sashimi, and shavings hands on sashimi quality fi sh, No- by New York Mutual Trading at change in how easy it is to work of sasagaki, so you can make kin- zaki demonstrates seven specifi c the Japanese Culinary Center in with the knives. pira gobo at home. For those really cuts to bring out the proper texture Midtown) Fall 2009 JETAANY.org/magazine 21 The Decorative Art of Japanese Food Carving will impress your friends. And on the practical cludes photos and descriptions of tools one by Hiroshi Nagashima, Kodansha Interna- side, there are many simple tips on cutting veg- would purchase if you are inspired to recreate tional, 2009, 112 pp., $24.95. etables for quick canapés at home. these at home.
The presentation of food in Japan is a skill that The book starts off with simple accents such As JET alums, if you have enjoyed creating includes not only the selection of pottery and as twists and curls of vegetables, progressing origami or working with your hands, then this lacquer, but the fi ne detail of carved fruits and to knots and food cups. Much like origami, the book will give you inspiration for the fi ne art of vegetables used as garnishes. The Japanese eat fi rst basic projects are easy and you quickly gain Japanese food carving. with their eyes, and food carving is an art that confi dence working with the knife. You then continues in kaiseki restaurants. Kodansha In- quickly build on these basic techniques to more Kodansha site: ternational has come out with a new book that complicated designs, but the book carefully kodansha-intl.com/books/html/ captures this art in great detail. walks the reader through each of the necessary en/9784770030870.html steps. The book is fi lled with easy to follow instruc- Web site of Hongwanji Temple in Tsuki- tions and many photos, so that the reader can The author, chef Hiroshi Nagashima of Hoganji ji: recreate these at home. Challenging garnishes Temple restaurant Shisui in Tsukiji, transforms tsukijihongwanji.jp/tsukiji/index_e. from seasonal motifs of fall leaves to animals fruit and vegetables into works of art. He in- html
[Cont. from 17] you about the fi lm? the Rock ’n’ Roll Fantasy Camp? LIPS: Sacha got in touch with [Anthrax’s] Scott LIPS: It somehow evokes people to reevaluate ROBB: I personally would love to do it. Ian fi rst, and then Scott got in touch with ev- their lives and their values. Most people sacri- SACHA: [laughing] I would love to see you ap- eryone else after that. And they were very ex- fi ce their fun away and make their lives miser- ply to the fantasy camp! cited about getting involved, mainly because able, while I’ve refused to do it. This fi lm has ROBB: It’s all about music and getting them they loved our band. It’s not always about how caused people to second-guess things they’ve inspired and showing them new stuff—I’d be many records you’ve sold; it’s about the legacy been doing. perfect for that [Sacha laughs again]…I’ve been that you’ve left behind. For example, one of my educating people musically my whole life. favorite bands of all time is Budgie. They were Did you guys purposely go to Stonehenge LIPS: I guess I’d do it. It could be fun. never big like Deep Purple or Black Sabbath, but in the fi lm as a nod to This is Spinal Tap? they were an amazing underground band. SACHA: I wasn’t even there—it came from That belief in never changing who you those guys; I had actually left then. are and sticking with your core fan Any plans to make a sequel about what’s ROBB: When we were in England, Lipps and group, did you have that from the begin- happened to Anvil since the fi rst fi lm? myself wanted to go visit it anyway, just to ning, or was that something that devel- SACHA: It would have to be a great movie, and check it out. And Sacha just sent the camera- oped over time as you started to see what we’d have to all fi gure out if it can be as wonder- man along. That Stonehenge piece is a good- your legacy was? ful a movie as the fi rst one; then we’ll do it. If it’s feeling thing; there was no Spinal Tap thing LIPS: When you’re involved in something like just a roundup just for the sake of it, then I think about it at the time. It was really worth going this, you’re not thinking of things like that. I do that’s not so interesting. It would really have to to—I’d go back again. it because I love it, and everything else happens work as a movie and it has to be surprising and naturally, you know? We forge ahead no mat- it has to be, again, a great story. What about the Spinal Tap comparisons? ter what naysayers have to say. The minute you SACHA: [The press] has been saying Anvil is let a naysayer determine what you do, it’s like What’s next for Anvil? the real Spinal Tap, but we’ve been saying that swallowing poison. On the other hand, if you’re ROBB: We’re touring the UK in November, Spinal Tap is the fake Anvil. So that’s true; it’s hyped to ridiculous levels, you can’t let that af- America in January, and we’re touring Australia based on Anvil, really. fect your style, either. You keep trying as hard as in February. you can, as long as you can. The past is the past; LIPS: We are ready for anything that comes our You guys have admiration for that fi lm? it’s tomorrow that counts. And you always need way. SACHA: Absolutely, it’s really funny. We love that attitude that every day is better than the it. previous and that I’m going to take advantage of Special thanks to The Rick Sales Entertainment ROBB: It never bothered me, you know. The what I can, when I can. We’ve always been ready Group and 42West for interview assistance. movie’s about what really happened. I know for the future; either writing, recording, or tour- a lot of bands who watch it at home and say, ing. We’ve kept ourselves in top form because Catch “The Anvil Experience” on January 15 “That’s really painful to watch that,” you know? you never know when an opportunity presents at the Fillmore New York at Irving Plaza for a Our movie is really painful to watch, too, from itself. And if you don’t take advantage of it, you screening of the fi lm followed by a live concert that perspective—it’s not an all-perfect, easy, may be kicking yourself later on. That’s always by the band. Get tickets at livenation.com. glamorous thing. been our motto. We have such a great relation- Anvil! The Story of Anvil and This is Thirteen ship with our fans that, at certain places, we are in stores now. For more, visit anvilmetal. Describe your interactions with your don’t even need to stay at hotels or eat at restau- com and anvilthemovie.com. Japanese fans. rants. Fans have invited us into their homes and LIPS: They are an amazing group and are a taken care of us and we really appreciate that. pretty diehard following. Quite honestly, they Some bands try to branch out from their core are what have kept our fi res burning during all base, and I personally think that’s a mistake. these years. They are the reason we keep tough- ing it out. They stick with us because we’ve nev- Are there any bands that you looked up er sold out. As other bands get older, they tend to in terms of the way they were run, not to mellow up and move on to slower things. Us, just in terms of music, but in terms of on the other hand, seem to be getting louder leadership? and faster. [laughs] They stick with us as we LIPS: Black Sabbath, for one—they never had continue to bolster the image of heavy metal. real commercial success. They write music for We know that as soon as artists try to sell com- the state of the art, not for the big single. I think mercial music, their diehard fan base tends to [guitarist] Tony Iommi’s musicianship and leave them. We never did that, and we’re proud songwriting is fantastic. of that and our legacy of albums proudly states that fact. How did you get all those big-name rock- ers at the beginning of the fi lm to give Would you ever be interested in doing their Anvil testimonies?
22 Fall 2009 JETAANY.org/magazine The Funny Page
Fall is here, and that means it’s time for crazy costumes and over-the-top outfi ts. But even if you’re not Lady Gaga, there’s still Pumpkin Day for the rest of us to enjoy. Since it hasn’t completely caught on in Japan yet, we at JQ proudly present the…
Top 12 Reasons Japan Needs Halloween
12. “It’s trick or treat,” people, let’s get that hatsuon right if you want these mango-fl avored Kit Kats!
11. They need yet another Western holiday to twist into a campy, erotically charged “date” night.
10. The Hinomaru on the national fl ag becomes a cute lil’ apolitical pumpkin in a snap.
9. Your ultra-mint limited edition beaverskin Pikachu suit ain’t gonna wear itself.
8. It’s a valid reason to explain why the Japanese haven’t quite grown up yet.
7. “Sugoi purple hair!” “Thanks, I’ve had it since ’76.”
6. Because kabocha pantsu should look more like this:
5. Three words: onsen apple bobbing.
4. Those Harajuku kids could use some competition.
3. If you’re a hentai, it’s Christmas too!
2. Another excuse to drink. Only now in costume.
1. Because JETs everywhere deserve one day a year when someone else can be pointed to and gawked at, deshou?
Sponsors Index
Arda Wigs (p. 16) arda-wigs.com kingdom-arts.org
BeKyoot, Inc. (p. 12) bekyoot.com
Kintetsu International (back cover) 1325 Avenue of the Americas (bet. 40th & 41st) New York, NY 10019 1-800-422-3481 japanforyou.com
Peace Corps (back cover) 201 Varick St., Suite 1025 New York, NY 10014 1-800-424-8580 peacecorps.gov
Suteneko Kimono (p. 14) sutenekokimono.com For more Life After the B.O.E., visit lifeaftertheboe.com. Fall 2009 JETAANY.org/magazine 23 24 Fall 2009 JETAANY.org/magazine