Added to inquiry!
TRAVEL

The 40th Otsuna Festival -Invigorating a Community-

TRAVEL 2018 30 mins Episode(s): 1 english English
[Festivals of Japan Season 2]

Half-naked men pull on a giant white rope. Eighty meters long and about a ton in weight, the rope is the central focus of the Tosa City Otsuna Festival.

Originally an Edo Period tradition, the festival was brought back by people hoping to energize a community struggling to adapt to the increasingly commercial economy around them. Forty years since its revival, the festival has grown to become the pride of its community. We follow this milestone year of a community that managed to regain its spirit through...

A tug-of-war festival?!

Click here to preview the program!

Part of "Festivals of Japan- Season 2"!

  •  

    Onyudo -Japan's Largest Mechanical Doll-
    2017 30 mins

    [Festivals of Japan Season 1] The "Onyudo", the largest mechanical doll in Japan, is the symbol of Yokkaichi City in Mie Prefecture. Every year at the Yokkaichi Festival in August, the Onyudo entertains many people with its humorous and silly movements. Placed on a large float, its gigantic body sways...
    more details
  •  

    Father and Son -Buddhist Statue Carving-
    2015 30 mins

    [Craft Masters of Japan] The Buddhist statue carvings of Nagakute, Aichi Prefecture, are elaborately decorative and have been passed down for many generations. The Eba Buddha Wooden Sculpture Studio practices this crafting tradition and is owned by a father and son sculpting duo. Under the same roof, father Rinzou Eba,...
    more details
  •  

    In Their Own Words
    2025 98 minutes

    In 1932, Japan established the puppet state of Manchukuo in northeastern China, where 270,000 Japanese farmers settled. Yet, as Japan's defeat in WW2 neared, the Japanese army retreated, leaving the settlers to be attacked. The Kurokawa settlers turned to the Russian army ーtheir enemy ー for help, offering 15 young,...
    more details
  •  

    Ode to Joy: A Chorus for Life
    2008

    Gold Winner, Entertainment Category, 11th World Media Festival, 2010. It is summer in the hilly port city of Ootaru. The singing of the Ootaru Ladies Chorus group comes through the dusk from a room of the Minami Ootaru Community Center. They are absorbed in rehearsals for their upcoming 20th anniversary...
    more details