RIE FUSE Othering Finland in Japan Representation of Aki Kaurismäki´s Films in Reviews in Japanese Magazines Tampere University Dissertations 443 Tampere University Dissertations 443 RIE FUSE Othering Finland in Japan Representation of Aki Kaurismäki’s Films in Reviews in Japanese Magazines ACADEMIC DISSERTATION To be presented, with the permission of the Faculty of Information Technology and Communication Sciences of Tampere University, for public discussion in the auditorium 1096 of the Pinni B building, Kanslerinrinne 1, Tampere, on 13 August 2021, at 12 o’clock. ACADEMIC DISSERTATION Tampere University, Faculty of Information Technology and Communication Sciences, Finland Responsible Associate Professor supervisor Katja Valaskivi and Custos Tampere University Finland Supervisor Professor Juha Herkman University of Helsinki Finland Pre-examiners University Lecturer, docent Professor Shinji Oyama Mari Pajala Ritsumeikan University University of Turku Japan Finland Opponent Academy Research Fellow, docent Outi Hakola University of Helsinki Finland The originality of this thesis has been checked using the Turnitin OriginalityCheck service. Copyright ©2021 author Cover design: Roihu Inc. ISBN 978-952-03-2032-4 (print) ISBN 978-952-03-2033-1 (pdf) ISSN 2489-9860 (print) ISSN 2490-0028 (pdf) http://urn.fi/URN:ISBN:978-952-03-2033-1 PunaMusta Oy – Yliopistopaino Joensuu 2021 For my family who has supported and encouraged me. iii iv ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Over the years that I have prepared this dissertation, I have received support and advice from many people. This work would have not been completed without their support. I would like to thank for their contributions and express my gratitude to all of them. First and foremost, I wish to express my deep gratitude to my two supervisors, Associate Professor Katja Valaskivi and Professor Juha Herkman. Katja has encouraged me with continuous and patient support and advice. As she knows well the differences in cultural customs between Finland and Japan, her advice has always been essential and supportive for me as an international student in Finland from Japan. Her guidance pushed me onwards during many moments of despair. Juha kindly agreed to supervise me when my plans were still unfocused, and also introduced Katja as a supervisor to me. I cannot forget the happy feeling I experience when I received a reply from Juha; I wrote many inquiry emails to researchers when searching for opportunities to conduct my research in Finland. His support to write a reference letter to me while I was applying for a CIMO Finnish Government Scholarship was one of the most important factors for me in making my plan come true. A third person who must be mentioned here is Professor Mikko Lehtonen. He supervised this thesis at the beginning of my doctoral study. I have received insightful comments and encouragement from him. All in all, the unswerving support of my supervisors during the process made it possible for me to complete this thesis. In addition to my supervisors, I would like to extend my most heartfelt thanks to my preliminary examiners of this dissertation, University Lecturer Mari Pajala and Professor Shinji Oyama, for their insightful comments and suggestions for improving my dissertation. Their encouraging evaluations helped me to finalise this thesis. I am also deeply greatful to Academy Research Fellow Outi Hakola for agreeing to be an opponent of my thesis. I cannot praise enough the help I received from the librarians at the Japanese libraries I attended to collect material. My material consists of magazine articles, which can be hard to come by in library collections. The useful advice and suggestions of the librarians made it possible for me to find and collect the necessary v materials. I would especially like to thank the librarian of Kawakita Memorial Film Institute, Ms. Yuko Wachi; the librarian of the National Film Center, Ms. Mariko Sasanuma; and librarians at Oya Soichi Library. I also gratefully thank the people who kindly game me interviews. Additional thanks go to Kuniko Shimomura, who introduced some of my interview subjects to me, and Etsurō Endo, who lent me some Kaurismäki’s film brochures that are usually difficult to obtain after the films’ screenings. I am greatly indebted to academic communities in Finland. Research seminars at the Doctoral Programme of Communication, Media and Theatre at the Tampere University offered a research community in Tampere and a research environment in Finland. I would especially like to thank Professor Seija Ridell, Professor Janne Seppänen, University Lecturer Sanna Kivimäki, Leonardo Custódio, Sanna Kopra, and Anna Rantasila. Seija and Janne offered me opportunities to participate into Finnish-language seminars in a flexible way. Sanna answered to my questions with insightful comments at the beginning of my doctoral study. Her work of Kaurismäki’s films also inspired and influenced me. Leonardo encouraged and supported me at the beginning of my project when I was confused and could not find a landing point in the Finnish academic environment, and gave me useful, practical suggestions and advice. With Sanna, I shared interests and worries about research. Anna listened to my concerns and problems towards the end of my research process and game me practical tips and advice. I have also received many helpful comments at the Finnish University Network for Asian Studies. In addition, I would like to thank researchers in the international academic community: Associate Professor Ewa Machotka (Leiden University at that time, currently at Stockholm University), who commented on my paper at NAJS; Professor Fabian Schäfer (University of Erlangen-Nürnberg), who commented on my work at the EAJS doctoral students’ workshop; Laura Ipatti at the University of Turku, Finland; Professor Mikako Hata at Hanazono University, Japan; and Motoko Ishikawa at the University of Helsinki (currently at Ehime University, Japan). I also wish to thank my colleagues Riikka Länsisalmi and Sachiko Sōsa at the University of Helsinki, who were always interested in my research. In addition, my grateful thanks go to all of my Japanese language students at the University of Helsinki. They gave me passion and courage to proceed with my research and inspiration to reflect on my work and life in Finland as a Japanese. I would like to acknowledge the many grants which have secured the execution of my doctoral project. The Finnish Government Scholarship helped me to come to Finland for my doctoral project. The Kone Foundation granted me scholarships for vi conducting my trip, for collecting material and for writing the thesis. The School of Communication, Media and Theatre at the University of Tampere offered travel grants that provided opportunities to participate in international conferences. Without this financial support, I would not have been able to complete this undertaking. Suurkiitos Aki Kaurismäelle: hänen teoksensa ovat inspiroineet minua tekemään tämän tutkimuksen. Finally, I would like to express my deep gratitude to my friends and family. My warm thanks go out to all my friends for understanding my interests and giving me support. Moreover, my father, Hidenori Fuse, has always been supportive of me in what I have chosen to do. I am also very happy to thank my mother, Michiko Fuse, who died 25 years ago. She would be surprised to hear that I now live in Helsinki and have completed my doctoral dissertation project in Finland. I am sure, however, that she would be very happy about my current life. I am also thankful to my sister, Chie Arika, and her family for their support. Without Chie’s babysitting my son, I could not have done my work in collecting research material in Tokyo. Last, but not least, I wish to express my heartful thanks to my son, Eiki Julkunen, and husband, Eero Julkunen, for their support. Without them, I could not have made this research journey and complete it. This dissertation has been a big part of my life in different ways, with research interests emerging through my current life, yet research materials reminding me of my past. My son came to our life when I was beginning this study, and he has grown into a nine-year-old. When I said to him that I would soon complete my dissertation, he noted, ‘You won’t need to worry about it anymore!’ The biggest thanks of all go to my husband, Eero, who has always stood by me and continuously supported and encouraged me during this long process. In Helsinki, 31 May 2021 Rie Fuse vii viii ABSTRACT How are Aki Kaurismäki’s films interpreted in Japan, and how are these representations involved with the construction of Finnishness in Japan? This doctoral dissertation is about the othering of Finland in Japan via media representation. The wholesomeness of Finland’s social institutions has been a focus of Japanese interest since the 1960s. Since around 2003, the Japanese media have used the term Finrando būmu (Finnish cultural boom or Finland boom) in reference to their representations of Finland. This term describes the growing interest in Finland and implies that Finland deserves attention because it is a ‘fascinating’ country. Whereas previous research on the idea of Finnishness in Japan has mainly focused on the period during and after the Finland boom, this study focuses on the period before the Finland boom as well, particularly by examining representations of Finnish director Aki Kaurismäki’s films in Japanese magazines. This research examines how the idea of otherness, such as Kaurismäkiness and Finnishness, is constructed, produced, articulated and circulated in contrast to the idea of Japaneseness in reviews of Finnish director Aki Kaurismäki’s films in Japanese magazines. The study also addresses how film reviews in Japanese magazines – not only cinematic magazines but also general and popular magazines – involve the construction of otherness. In addition, it contributes an empirical analysis of how Kaurismäki’s films have been interpreted in Japan.