Tag Archives: Japan

Ecology, History, Short Films, Videos, Wilderness

Top Short Films: ‘Treeline’

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Directed by Jordan Manley

Patagonia Films presents: Treeline. Follow a group of skiers, snowboarders, scientists and healers to the birch forests of Japan, the red cedars of British Columbia and the bristlecones of Nevada, as they explore an ancient story written in rings.

Producers: Laura Yale, Monika McClure

Executive Producers: Alex Lowther, Jimmy Hopper, Josh Nielsen

Cinematography, editing, principal sound design: Jordan Manley

Additional Cinematography: Scott Secco

Associate Producers: Garrett Grove, Lisa Ida, Soichiro Uchino, Mie Sawatari

Editorial Advisors: Daniel Irvine, Chad Manley

Motion Graphics: Daniel Irvine

Additional Sound Design and Mix: Jeff Yellen / Ridgeline Sound

Cast & Athletes

Taro Tamai
Hidehiko Wajima
Kazushi “Orange Man” Yamauchi
Yuki Miyazaki
Alex Yoder
Leah Evans
Carston Oliver
Laura Yale
Connie Millar
Diane Delaney
Michael Cohen
Deb MacKillop
Suzanne Simard
Akihiko Tamaki
Konami Tsukamoto

Still Photographer: Garrett Grove

Additional Audio Recordings: Travis Rummel / Felt Soul Media

Adventure, Food, History, Travel, Videos

Travel & History: Source Of Water For ‘Kakigori’ Shaved Ice In Japan (Video)

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A geologist travels deep into Saitama Prefecture to investigate why whale fossils are being found so far from the nearest ocean and why the shaved ice there is so delicious.

The dessert is kakigori, a traditional Japanese shaved-ice specialty that has quickly become the dessert of choice at some of America’s most high-profile restaurants, and continues to grow in popularity. In its home country, however, kakigori has been popular for literal centuries: The idea dates back to the 11th century, when frozen blocks of ice from lakes would be preserved in the winter, only to be finely shaved and served with sweet syrup to Japan’s elite class in the summers. In the 19th century, when ice became more widely available, the public was able to try it, and now — thanks to electric refrigeration — kakigori is ubiquitous during warmer months.

Travel, Videos

Autumn Walking Tours: ‘Arashiyama Bamboo Grove’ In kyoto, Japan

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The Arashiyama Bamboo Grove is one of Kyoto’s top sights and for good reason: standing amid these soaring stalks of bamboo is like being in another world.Arashiyama Bamboo Grove
Arashiyama Bamboo Grove

If you’ve been planning a trip to Kyoto, you’ve probably seen pictures of the Arashiyama Bamboo Grove – along with the torii tunnels of Fushimi-Inari-Taisha Shrine and Kinkaku-ji Temple, it’s one of the most photographed sights in the city. But no picture can capture the feeling of standing in the midst of this sprawling bamboo grove – the whole thing has a palpable sense of otherness that is quite unlike that of any normal forest we know of.

Travel, Videos

Walking Tours: ‘Historic Town Of Mitarai’, Japan

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Mitarai is a port town on Osaki-Shimojima (Kure City, Hiroshima Prefecture) in the Seto Inland Sea. This area was selected as an Important Preservation District for Traditional Buildings in 1994.

Video timeline: 00:00 タイトル（title） 00:14 高速船（High-speed boat） 00:46 御手洗の町並み（Townscape of Mitarai） 01:27 天満宮（Tenmangu shrine） 01:59 菅公の井戸（Well of Kanko） 02:11 お宮のトンネル（Shrine tunnel） 02:24 御手洗の町並み（Townscape of Mitarai） 02:52 若胡子屋跡（Wakaebisuya Historic Place） 03:04 御手洗の町並み（Townscape of Mitarai） 04:40 常磐町とおり（Tokiwamachi Street） 07:02 御手洗の町並み（Townscape of Mitarai） 08:15 松浦時計店（Matsuura Watch Shop） 08:36 御手洗昭和館（Mitarai Showa Museum） 08:53 御手洗の町並み（Townscape of Mitarai） 09:12 乙女座跡（Otomeza Theater） 09:21 御手洗の町並み（Townscape of Mitarai） 10:19 おいらん公園（Oiran Park） 11:36 歴史の見える丘公園（The Rekishi-no-Mieru-Oka Park） 11:55 大東寺（Daitoji-temple） 12:40 御手洗の町並み（Townscape of Mitarai） 13:09 足長小学生？（Long-legged elementary school student） 13:12 満舟寺（Mansyuji-temple） 14:14 御手洗の町並み（Townscape of Mitarai） 15:23 恵美須神社（Ebisu Shrine） 15:42 御手洗の町並み（Townscape of Mitarai） 16:13 住吉神社（Sumiyoshi Shrine） 17:13 千砂子波止（Chisago Wharf）

Travel, Videos

Walking Tour: ‘Ashikaga Flower Park illumination 2020’ In Japan (Video)

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Held for the 19th time this year, the event was ranked among the TOP 3 biggest light up events in Japan in 2017. Ranked TOP by night view critics in Japan as best illumination event for five consecutive years, it has now become very popular. Over 5.0 million lights decorate the 100,000 ㎡ gardens touching the hearts of all visitors. Most of the 5.0 million light bulbs are LED type in an effort to consider the environment and to save energy.

Date recorded：December, 2020

Food, Travel, Videos

Top Street Food: ‘Crunchy Takoyaki’ In Osaka, Japan

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Takoyaki (たこ焼き or 蛸焼) a ball-shaped Japanese snack originating from Osaka – made of a wheat flour-based batter, filled with diced octopus (tako), tempura scraps (tenkasu), pickled ginger (beni shoga), and green onion (negi). Takoyaki balls are brushed with takoyaki sauce (similar to Worcestershire sauce) and mayonnaise, sprinkled with green laver (aonori) and shavings of dried bonito (katsuobushi).

Travel, Videos

Autumn In Japan: ‘Eikando Temple, Kyoto’ (Video)

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Eikan-dō Zenrin-ji is the head temple for the Seizan branch of Japan’s Jōdo-shū Buddhist sect, located in Kyoto, Sakyō-ku. It was founded by Shinshō, a pupil of Kūkai, and is famous for its fall foliage and for its prominence in the past as a center of learning.

Travel, Videos

Timelapse Travel: ‘Nippon 12k’ – Discovering Japan

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This is a timelapse film that depicts various parts of Japan in 12K (11520×6480 resolution). In order to achieve 12K resolution, we used various shooting methods, new workflows, and a lot of trial and error, and it took a long time to produce the film.

But even more than that, the COVID-19 made timelapse photography extremely difficult. 8K is the highest resolution, but the so-called “oversampling effect” made I feel that 12K images can be expressed in higher resolution. Although 12K is not yet an official standard, we will continue to work on further visualization as a new visual expression.

Culture, History, Travel, Videos

Culture: Merchant Town Of Omi-Hachiman, Japan

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Sail through the network of canals winding their way through Omi-hachiman, a once bustling castle town overlooking Lake Biwa. Retrace the steps of the past surrounded by a unique amalgamation of European and feudal Japanese architecture combined with carefully-preserved historic townscapes.