Mark Schilling - The Japan Times

Today's print edition

Subscribe for more access

Meta

Mark Schilling

Japan Times

CULTURE / Film / Wide Angle

Mar 7, 2019

Seeking out Japanese movies at a film festival in Bangalore

Going to Bangalore, a city of more than 10 million people in India's south, to spend five days watching movies is not the sort of thing I usually do. Which is exactly why I agreed to serve on a jury for the Network for Promotion of Asia Pacific Cinema (NETPAC) at the 11th Bengaluru International Film...

Japan Times

CULTURE / Film

Mar 6, 2019

'Running Again': Solving problems with a good run

Running scenes have been a staple since the start of the movies, but in the silent days the fleet-footed hero was usually trying to outrun the police. Now, competitive running in its various forms, from the ekiden relay to the marathon, has become a subset of the feel-good sports film in Japan, with...

Japan Times

CULTURE / Film / Heisei Icons,Heisei Icons

Mar 1, 2019

Takeshi Kitano: From manzai comic to giant of Japanese film

Many Japanese filmmakers try to promote their films and talents abroad but stumble more than they succeed: Either Cannes rejects their latest masterpiece or Hollywood turns down their J-horror script.

Japan Times

CULTURE / Film

Feb 27, 2019

'The Island of Cats': Stress-free living with furry friends

Japanese movies about cats and their human companions are by now an established local genre — or rather a feel-good-movie sub-genre since nearly all try to leave the audience with warm smiles and lowered blood pressures. This has proven to be a reliable box office strategy: The owners of Japan's nearly...

Japan Times

CULTURE / Film

Feb 20, 2019

Localization 101: How to release a Steven Soderbergh film in Japan

Hollywood sends its products all over the world but global audiences can have widely different experiences of the same Hollywood movie. In Italy, dubbing foreign films is standard; in Japan, subtitling is, though dubbing has become more common, especially for films targeted at younger audiences.

Japan Times

CULTURE / Film

Feb 20, 2019

'Fly Me to the Saitama': Tokyo takes on its revolting neighbors

Japan Times

CULTURE / Film / Wide Angle

Feb 14, 2019

Could 'Shoplifters' or 'Mirai' pick up an Oscar? The chances are slim but real

The 2019 Oscar race is entering its final stretch, with prognosticators already unveiling their lists of winners. This year two Japanese films are up for Academy Awards — Hirokazu Kore-eda's "Shoplifters" (best foreign language film) and Mamoru Hosoda's "Mirai" (best animated feature film).

Japan Times

CULTURE / Film

Feb 13, 2019

'Born Bone Born': A family reunited by a skeletal bath

Having attended a few funerals here and seen dozens more on the screen, I thought I knew a bit about the ceremonies and rituals surrounding death in Japan. But "Born Bone Born" by comedian and director Toshiyuki Teruya (aka Gori) proved me wrong — at least about his native Okinawa.

Japan Times

CULTURE / Film

Feb 6, 2019

'Whistleblower': Corporate drama dialed up to 11

Japan is justly praised for its law-abiding citizenry. Drop your wallet on the street here and a kind local is likely to come running after you to return it. On the corporate level, though, scandal follows scandal. One of the most common sights on Japanese news shows is company bigwigs bowing in apology...

Japan Times

CULTURE / Film

Jan 30, 2019

'12 Suicidal Teens': Teen suicide film deeper than most

Youth suicides hit a 30-year high in Japan in fiscal 2017, with 250 kids of high school age and under taking their own lives. Ijime (bullying) was a factor in many of these deaths, but there were others, as well as many unanswered questions.

Japan Times

CULTURE / Film

Jan 29, 2019

Perennials aside, 2019 promises movie classics in Japan

As a program advisor for the Udine Far East Film Festival in Udine, Italy, I have spent the last few months scouting Japanese films for the next edition, which will be held April 26 to May 4. This doesn't mean I've seen all the upcoming releases — sales companies are often not ready to screen their...

Japan Times

CULTURE / Film

Jan 23, 2019

'Divine Justice': The surprises behind closed doors

Love hotels feature in many Japanese films, including those, like Ryuichi Hiroki's "Kabukicho Love Hotel" and Izuru Kumasaka's "Asyl: Park and Love Hotel," that make such establishments a central focus. Typically guests drop their social masks within their walls, while employees get an up-close view...

Japan Times

CULTURE / Film

Jan 16, 2019

'Chiwawa': An enigma wrapped in a riddle

Edie Sedgwick was an Andy Warhol "superstar" and Bob Dylan muse who died at age 28 after bouts with mental illness and drug addiction — and has had a long afterlife as a legendary 1960s "it" girl.

Japan Times

CULTURE / Film

Jan 9, 2019

'Kono Michi': A biopic heavy on sentimentality

Biopics are a Hollywood staple, though poets don't usually get a lot of play, with the Beats (Allen Ginsberg, Jack Kerouac and company) among the prominent exceptions. The same is true in Japan: Notorious criminals are more likely to be the subjects of biopics here than famous wordsmiths.

Japan Times

CULTURE / Film

Jan 2, 2019

'Astral Abnormal Suzuki-san': YouTube comedy series makes it to the big screen

What is the future of films in Japan? Bigger spectacles backed by media conglomerates? Maybe at the top end of the industry. At the lower end, though, indie filmmakers have to find other ways to draw audiences and finance films. Crowdfunding helps some get made, while ceaseless and creative PR on social...

Japan Times

CULTURE / Film

Dec 28, 2018

'It Comes': The bogeyman cometh in Tetsuya Nakashima's horror debut

Tetsuya Nakashima has been filming the darker sides of human nature for more than two decades, the most commercially and critically successful example being his 2010 murder mystery, "Confessions."

Japan Times

CULTURE / Film

Dec 19, 2018

As two rule breakers gave the Japanese film world hope in 2018, elsewhere eyes turned to China

The Japanese movie business is something like a restaurant where new cooks and waiters arrive as old ones retire or die, but the menu remains much the same, decade after decade.

Japan Times

CULTURE / Film

Dec 5, 2018

'jam': Comedy with a touch of 'Misery'

The films of Sabu — the pseudonym of actor-turned-director Hiroyuki Tanaka — are typically about guys on the move, be it as a troubled soul on a journey ("Blessing Bell") or a crook on the run ("Unlucky Monkey"). The object is usually laughs, though Sabu has also forayed into the serious ("The Crab...

Japan Times

CULTURE / Film

Nov 27, 2018

'Killing': A modern take on a samurai staple

Screening in competition at this year's Venice Film Festival, "Killing" is veteran provocateur Shinya Tsukamoto's first venture into the samurai genre. Made, like most of Tsukamoto's films, on a tiny budget and tight schedule, it does not attempt the scale of classics like "Seven Samurai" (1954) or "Yojimbo"...

Japan Times

CULTURE / Film

Nov 21, 2018

'Gangoose': A modern take on old-school heists

Heist movies play to everyone's dream of easy money, earned by criminal smarts and daring. But a convention of the genre, going back to Stanley Kubrick's 1956 film "The Killing" and beyond, is that the big score is also a big trap for the heroes. They over-reach, under-estimate or otherwise screw up,...

You can often see generations of families enjoying performances together at Fuji Rock Festival.

Japan’s summer music festivals are feeling the heat in more ways than one

Akiko Trush says her experience with the neurological disorder dystonia left her feeling like she wanted to chop her own hand off.

The neurological disorder that 'kills culture'

By Tomoko Otake

SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

Omron helping firms achieve carbon neutrality

Omron helping firms achieve carbon neutrality

SPECIAL SUPPLEMENTS

SUPPLEMENTS BINDER

international-reports