DOCUMENTARY
Laugh It Away and Say Goodbye
DOCUMENTARY
2010
55 min Episode(s): 1
english
English
english
English
Winner of Best News Documentary at Monte-Carlo TV Festival 2011
Grand Prize at The Age of Regionalism Video Festival 2011
Grand Prize at “Era of Local” TV Festival 2010
Small and medium-sized businesses are the back bones of Japan that support the economy from the bottom-up. However, as work decreased sharply after the Lehman Shock, many life changes were in order for smaller businesses.
Without the work of numerous subcontractors, the manufacturing of Toyota cars, Japan’s top brand, would simply not be possible.
This documentary takes an up-close and personal look at a tiny Toyota subcontractor, four steps down the supply chain. In a 7.5 square-meter factory, the owner, a lively 56-year-old woman, works with two other housewives who live nearby. This work consists of gluing small parts together.
All seems well in this cozy factory until one day in the fall of 2008, a global recession is triggered by the fall of Lehman Brothers. Suddenly, sales of Toyota cars dry up.
How does the owner of this tiny factory deal with the crisis?
Despite the grim reality, the factory is always filled with laughter.
What can we learn from this upbeat story of business closure?
Click here to preview the program!
Grand Prize at The Age of Regionalism Video Festival 2011
Grand Prize at “Era of Local” TV Festival 2010
Small and medium-sized businesses are the back bones of Japan that support the economy from the bottom-up. However, as work decreased sharply after the Lehman Shock, many life changes were in order for smaller businesses.
Without the work of numerous subcontractors, the manufacturing of Toyota cars, Japan’s top brand, would simply not be possible.
This documentary takes an up-close and personal look at a tiny Toyota subcontractor, four steps down the supply chain. In a 7.5 square-meter factory, the owner, a lively 56-year-old woman, works with two other housewives who live nearby. This work consists of gluing small parts together.
All seems well in this cozy factory until one day in the fall of 2008, a global recession is triggered by the fall of Lehman Brothers. Suddenly, sales of Toyota cars dry up.
How does the owner of this tiny factory deal with the crisis?
Despite the grim reality, the factory is always filled with laughter.
What can we learn from this upbeat story of business closure?
Click here to preview the program!
Customers who watch this video also watch
-
Professor in a Spiritual City- Ise City, Mie Prefecture
30 mins[Beauty of Japan Season 2] The Kogakkan University, located in the holy city of Ise, offers programmes which teach students Japanese traditions and history based on Shintoism. This is where Christopher, an American Professor, gives his lectures. What are the main ideas he wants to teach students studying in this...more details -
Enchanted by the San'in- Daisen, Tottori Prefecture
2019 30 mins[Beauty of Japan Season 2] San’in, considered to be a mythical home of Gods, is a sacred place where the natural landscapes of Japan prevail. Richard Pierce was enthralled by its charms and has been organizing tours and acting as a guide. In 2017, he even cooperated with the locals...more details -
NEXT5: the future of Sake makers Akita city, Akita Pref.
2014 30mins[Beauty of Japan Season 1] 'NEXT5' is a team of 5 young Sake brewers from Akita city who stood up against the decrease of national Sake consumption. They are not only entrepreneurs but also physically use their own hands to brew their Sakes, while Sake makers generally rely on the...more details -
Valens's Return Home - A Rwandan Genocide Offender, 22 Years On
2017 49minIn 1994, the conflict between the Tutsi and Hutu lead to the Rwandan genocide where more than 800,000 people were killed. Now in Rwanda, a country with no capital punishment, offenders that were involved in the genocide have been released one after another after their sentences. Can they coexist with...more details