Minamata in Kumamoto Prefecture has long been known mainly for a deadly industrial pollution debacle that occurred decades ago, but a dancing teacher hopes he can help reinvent it into the city of samba.
Masashi Ito, who prefers to go by his first name, has been teaching the Brazilian dance to local women since November and hopes to eventually produce a movie about his efforts.
Masashi, who moved to the nearby city of Kumamoto in 2012 from Tokyo, first traveled to Minamata in January last year and fell in love with the Yatsushiro Sea, which Minamata faces.