This Saturday I attended the Center for Japanese Studies’ screening of Nippon: Furuyashiki Village, a film by director Shinsuke Ogawa. This film is a part of the Center for Japanese Studies’ series of film screenings, which take place at the Natural Science Auditorium Fridays at 7pm. The Natural Science Auditorium is an excellent venue for film viewing, with its large seating section and a screen large enough to give a theater a run for its money. (A schedule of CJS’ film screenings can be found here)
Nippon is a long documentary film about rice farmers in a small Japanese village. The three and a half hour documentary is an ambitious attempt to characterize not only the Furuyashiki Village, but also to capture Japan’s evolution from the dawn of modernity to the 80’s, during a period of severe economic recession. Ogawa’s goal is to the transformational influence of modernity on Japan’s national identity.
Furuyashiki Village is a compelling choice for the documentary. A small town isolated from urban Japan, a traditional and cultural reservoir—the metaphorical heartland of Japan. Although Ogawa focuses on a single location for his film, his documentary uses a variety technical and aesthetic approaches.
As I learned prior to the screening, coincidentally, during the production of this documentary, harsh weather conditions created extreme crop, and consequently, economic damage to the village. Ogawa begins with a methodical survey of the land, interviewing specialists who explain the agricultural and economic impacts of weathering on Furuyashiki. The conflict between the farmers and the weather serves as a framing metaphor for the film as a whole—Japan’s struggle to maintain a coherent identity and culture in the face of powers beyond human control.
The struggling farmers are not only preserving their livelihoods, they are fighting to maintain a lifestyle. This parallel develops through an intimate interviews with the townsfolk. These interviews have a personal element gained only through familiarity—it is evident Ogawa and his crew spent a great deal of time understanding the city and its inhabitants. Farmers interviewed talk about their daily routines at first, but eventually delve into family history and their most valued traditions.
Ogawa’s familiarity with the town is also evident in the aesthetic of the film. The shots of Furuyashiki are destinations a local resident would show to a visiting friend—the inner nooks of the city. The meticulous dedication necessary to create this personal aesthetic. The sense of intimacy created by Ogawa’s film touched me personally. Furuyashiki puts a face on the Japanese identity. I became increasingly invested in the farmers’ struggles, the challenges associated with adapting to an ever-changing world, even if this adaptation threatens decades of familial legacies.
Nippon is not a carefree film you can sit down and watch to pass the time. It’s meant to be watched on a philosophical mood. Or just have the movie on in the background, the shots of scenery are fantastic.
