The Hindu : Tamil Nadu / Chennai News : Cinema a "tool for cultural promotion"

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Tuesday, Jul 11, 2006

Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu - Chennai

Cinema a "tool for cultural promotion"

Staff Reporter

Four-day Japanese film festival inaugurated in Chennai

CULTURAL ETHOS: Sakura Ozaki, Vice-Consul, Culture, Information and Development Affairs, Consulate of Japan (right) at the inauguration of a Japanese Film Festival in Chennai on Monday. — Photo: R. Shivaji Rao

CHENNAI: A four-day Japanese film festival inaugurated on Monday will feature four films by four well-known filmmakers.

Inaugurating the festival, Sakura Ozaki, vice-consul, culture, information and development affairs, Consulate of Japan, said cinema was a tool for introducing a country, its culture and philosophy. The festival would focus on new generation Japanese filmmakers who showcase the country's cultural ethos.

Lead in technology

R. Veeramani, president of Indo Japan Chamber of Commerce and Industry and chairman of Gem Granite group of companies, recalled Japan's lead in technology and marketing techniques and the country's superiority in animation and quality of film making.

India is a beneficiary of Japan's overseas development scheme.

Addressing a gathering of film buffs at the South Indian Film Chamber theatre, Mr. Veeramani recalled that Rajanikant's film `Muthu', released as `Dancing Maharaja' in Japan, brought the film star a huge fan following. Film star Vinodhini also participated.

Monday's film, `After the rain,' is based on a short story by legendary director Akira Kurosawa and has been directed by Takashi Koizumi.

`Like Asura', a family drama, directed by Morita Yoshimitsu, will be screened on Tuesday.

Gakko series

`Fifteen' or Gakko IV, the latest of the Gakko (school) series, is the story of a boy at a regular junior high school, who leaves home and finds himself helping others in trouble.

Yoji Yamada has directed the film.

`The river with no bridge' by Yoichi Higashi is a period film of 1918, which deals with the class divide and the protagonist's struggle to end discrimination. The story is about residents in a village who suffer because they are `unclean.'

The plot traces the life of a boy and a few of his friends who are deprived of rice and are discriminated against.

The films will be screened every day until Thursday at 6.30 p.m. at the SIFC theatre.

The festival has been organised jointly by the Consulate General of Japan and Indo Cine Appreciation Foundation.

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