[Craft Masters of Japan] Taro Yamamoto is a professor at the Akita University of Art, but also a young painter who uses traditional Japanese techniques to create paintings with a ‘modern’ and humorous twist to them. This new art style is called  ‘Nippon-ga’, and has currently been attracting a lot...

[Festivals of Japan Season 2] The "Toriou Festival" of Imari City, Saga Prefecture dates back to the mid-to-late 14th century. It is said to have originated from the defeat of warrior Kikuchi Takeshige against Ashikaga. Fleeing to the Ozato Region, Takeshige trained to withstand fire, originating this fiery and dangerous...

[Beauty of Japan Season 1] ‘Tanchozuru’, or red-crowned cranes, are designated as a special national monument which are seen in Kushiro wetland. In the Ainu language, they refer to this elegant and graceful bird as the 'sarurun kamuy' (god of wetland). The camera follows those working to preserve the environment,...

[Festivals of Japan Season 2] The stage is set in hell. Demons curse and berate the sinner who has committed a terrible crime. The only play in Japan ever to be set in hell, the "Kiraigo" of Yokoshibahikari Town, Chiba Prefecture, has had a history of 800 years. Yet despite...