Monday, June 30, 2008
The Demise of Tartan Films: A View from the UK
A couple companies here have asked me about the closure of Tartan Films in the UK (following the shuttering of its US branch earlier this year). There have been articles in all the trades, but not so much in the way of analysis. My brother Jasper Sharp, who's well up on all things related to Japanese cinema in the UK, wrote some interesting thoughts on the KineJapan mailing list which he said I could reprint here. Discuss.
-----
There might be several reasons for the decline of Tartan. Here's a few
ideas that I've been bouncing around.
Firstly, Tartan have always been involved in the edgier side of the market,
distributing the films of Gaspar Noe, Michel Haneke, Catherine Breillat,
Carlos Reygadas etc. While I have to praise their bravado for this, the fact
is that this type of film is not popular with the general public. Sadly,
the type of cinemas that one might have once labelled as "arthouse" are now
owned by chains such as Picture House in the UK, whose idea of alternative
cinema is stuff like Little Miss Sunshine or There Will Be Blood.
Consequently, for the past 5 years at least, companies such as Tartan have had a
great deal of trouble getting their films onto screens, when there's only
venues like the Edinburgh Filmhouse, the Sheffield Showroom and the Bristol
Watershed that would book them. Look at the pitiful state of London's cinema
scene for example, where in the past ten years we've seen the closures of the
Lumiere, the Metro (latterly The Other Cinema), and the Lux, to name but
three; the ABC chain taken over by Virgin and the ICA's programming barely
worth a look at in recent years. Tartan were lucky with Audition, Ring and
Battle Royale, which managed to get widespread theatrical distribution, but
lets remember, this was way over 5 years ago.
The other thing is periods of high economic growth are not particularly
good for the arts. Rising building rentals squeezed the margins of exhibitors
and distributors alike, ticket prices went up, and so only the bigger
multiplexes were in a steady financial position. As for the DVD market, in the
UK its mandatory to submit all films to the BBFC, who charge to certify the
films, and a considerable amount too when you consider how many units you
can shift for specialist markets like Asian cinema. Companies like Artsmagic
and Tartan started up their US labels simply because they were losing money
on UK only releases, and unfortunately the economic situation in America
has had a severe knock on effect over here. (Freelancers are usually quite
good at spotting looming recessions, when their invoices start getting paid
later and later... Whatever Gordon Brown says, the UK is clearly only one
step away from recession).
But for me the biggest problem I had with Tartan was this whole "Asian
Extreme" thing. Now, I should point out that the company did also release all
the Ozu movies in the UK, and wasnt entirely fixated on horror. However,
distributors should remember that booms in anything are generally shortlived.
Audition, Battle Royale, Old Boy etc caught the publics imagination because
we hadnt seen anything like it before. When it comes 5 years later and
you're still trying to capitalise on their success with crappy Malaysian ghost
films, its no wonder you'll lose your audience, especially if you're
selling the disks at 15 pounds a pop - the price of a night in the pub, for
something you'll probably only watch once.
Tartan could have been building a sustainable market for Asian films if
they actually strayed away from the pure genre stuff. But I really have my
doubts about distributors. I invited a few people from a couple of companies
to Raindance last year to come and see Ryuichi Hiroki's Its Only Talk.
They'd never even heard of Hiroki, despite the buzz that has been building
around him over the past 5 years, and of course, they didnt come. The
screening was pretty full and everyone was asking afterwards how they could get
to see the film again. Ditto for Strawberry Shortcakes on the recent Japan
Foundation tour - a film whose international sales agents Uplink would
surely have given a better deal than Battle Royale's Toei or Ring's Asmik Ace.
I keep saying this till I'm blue in the face, but distributors of Asian
film over the past 5 years are so myopic its a wonder any of them are still in
business. Aside from effectively killing any new interest in the market by
constantly releasing the same blood guts ghosts and gangster films instead
of some of the great comedies and dramas that have been coming out over the
past 5 years, they never seem to actually have an eye out for any new
interesting trends any more. I don't understand it - in the 90s distributors
were putting out stuff like Hirokazu Koreeda, Takeshi Kitano and Wong Kar Wai.
These are hardly commerical directors, but they found their market.
All is not lost of course. A former Tartan employee left the company a year
or so ago and founded Third Window Films, because he saw how much good
Asian films were slipping by and not getting picked up by Tartan. A lot of the
releases, mainly of Korean films, still fall into the "cult" category, but
its great to see Memories of Matsuko and Kamikaze Girls also on his roster,
films which are indicative of wider trends in the Japanese industry at the
moment and which surely have a potential audience abroad. I only hope he's
successful and doesnt follow the Tartan model of putting all his eggs in
one basket.
Teruyo Nogami Speaks About Her Long Collaboration with Akira Kurosawa
There's an interesting article on Cinema Today where Akira Kurosawa's longtime "scripter" ("script/continuity supervisor") Nogami Teruyo (野上照代) speaks about her career with the late director, providing anecdotes about a couple of his most famous films as well as his suicide attempt. The interview was conducted during a recent event at New York City's Japan Society.
Nogami talks about being on the set of Rashômon -- how Kurosawa used light and shadow and about how it was rare for any movie to shoot that deep in the woods at the time. Nogami had only been working at Daiei Studios for three months when she got the chance to work on the film -- obviously the chance of a lifetime.
During Ikiru's iconic scene where Shimura Takashi is on the playground swing and starts singing, they tried things like changing the film speed and having Kurosawa himself sing the song to reflect the character's advanced state of cancer.
Regarding Kurosawa's well-publicized suicide attempt, Nogami states that only a person who's tried to take their own life can truly understand such a state of mind. While foreign journalists at the time tried to link it with Kurosawa's replacement on Tora! Tora! Tora! (the limited footage he shot will soon be made public), Nogami confirms that it had nothing to do with that. As with most biographies, she cites the period after filming Dodesukaden as having some kind of affect on Kurosawa.
I suppose all of these stories, and many more, are told in "Waiting on the Weather: Making Movies with Akira Kurosawa," which I've been meaning to read since it came out. It's regarded as a classic film book. Any opinions?
Nogami's autobiographical novel was the basis for Yamada Yôji's recent film Kabei: Our Mother.
Sunday, June 29, 2008
Exclusive Koji Wakamatsu Interview
Lately movie web sites are getting a little incestuous, a little cannibalistic, so exclusive web content is where it's at more than ever. Blake Ethridge over at Cinema is Dope has created his own 5-part video series around the Wakamatsu Kôji retrospective/Q&A session at this year's Berlin International Film Festival (see my coverage here and there).The moderator is Christophe Terhechte, Director of the Forum section and major Japanese film fan.
Part 1 can be found here, with links to the other segments on the same page. It is only in Japanese and German, so Blake is looking for translation help.
Wednesday, June 25, 2008
Nihon eiga 24 jikan vol. 1
No time to write full entries, but here are some images from the past 24 hours in Japanese cinema. Might do this once in a while, hence "vol. 1".
Director Kitano Takeshi returns home in a good spirits after his lifetime achievement award and retrospective at the Moscow International Film Festival (see June 13th entry). Did you know that Dolls was a long-running hit in Russia? "It'd be great if I had that kind of popularity in Japan," he said at Narita airport.
Director Kore-eda Hirokazu and the cast of Still Walking (Aruitemo Aruitemo, 『歩いても 歩いても』) gathered for the film's premiere at Shibuya's C.C. Lemon Hall yesterday evening. The film opens this Saturday. Export title might end up going back to Even If You Walk and Walk....
Stars Terajima Sususmu (nice style), Satô Kôichi and director Mitani Kôki deliver a special thank you to weekend audiences after The Magic Hour crossed the 2 billion yen mark. Mitani has been bashed in the media for his tireless (and endless) promotion of the movie.
Friday, June 20, 2008
Poster for Kitano's latest, Achilles and the Tortoise
We had Yakusho Kôji's "toad" yesterday and Kitano's "tortoise" today. This will be the main poster visual for Achilles and the Tortoise (Akiresu to Kame,『アキレスと亀』) as run on Variety Japan today. Credits aren't in place, obviously.
The film gets released on September 20th in Japan, but with Kitano's strong relationship with the Venice film fest, it wouldn't be a surprise if it had its world premiere on the Lido.
Below is my piece on the film for Screen back in April.
Update: I didn't think to check the Office Kitano site to see whether an official site had opened yet, but it has -- here. You can see a large format trailer (click the + sign next to the small video window). The Orthodox film Kitano has been threatening to make has arrived. Thanks to Nippon Cinema for the tip-off.
-----
Kitano unveils new project Achilles And The Tortoise
Jason Gray in Tokyo
11 Apr 2008 01:47
Award-winning Japanese writer-director-actor Takeshi Kitano has unveiled details of his latest feature film, entitled Achilles And The Tortoise.
Details of the production were announced at the Nikkatsu Studios in Chofu City, with the press invited on the soundstages.
Kitano, also known for his paintings, found inspiration in past canvas embarrassments for the bittersweet life story of a talentless artist and the family and friends that support him along the way.
Kitano plays the lead role in the present day scenes with Kanako Higuchi (Memories Of Tomorrow) as his wife. Yurei Yanagi, who starred in Kitano's Boiling Point 18 years ago, and Kumiko Aso (Dororo) play the respective characters in their younger years.
Achilles And The Tortoise went into production in mid-February, with Kitano alternating one-week periods between acting in the lead role and directing duties. Kitano also wrote the original screenplay. Shooting has included location work in the Kanto region and Okayama Prefecture and is expected to wrap in the next week.
While Kitano's previous effort, 2007's Glory To The Filmmaker, got considerable press at home and overseas, even having an award named after it at last year's Venice Film Festival, domestic box office returns were disappointing. 2005's Takeshis' also failed financially and critically. "After my last two films, I'm approaching this one more seriously. Sometimes I want to make movies that pack audiences in," stated the multi-faceted talent.
Kitano's previous achievements include a Golden Lion for 1997's Hana-bi in Venice, where Kitano has won several other prizes and nominations. Kikujiro competed for the Palme d'Or in 1999 and period actioner Zatoichi won the People's Choice award in Toronto in 2003.
Achilles And The Tortoise is slated for release this autumn.
Thursday, June 19, 2008
Koji Yakusho Makes Directing Debut
An article I wrote earlier today for Screen about Yakusho Kôji's directing debut. It sounds like an interesting project. And I'm glad to see it's an original script, rather than the typical gensaku adaptation route so common today. The production company told me that Gama No Abura is still a working title but will most likely stay that way. Toad Oil is a direct translation -- there's no export title yet.
-----
Japanese star Koji Yakusho makes directing debut
Jason Gray in Tokyo
19 June 2008
Japanese actor Koji Yakusho, who starred in 1996 hit Shall We Dance?, is making his directorial debut with drama Gama No Abura (Toad Oil), in which he also stars.
Based on an original idea by Yakusho, the film tells the story of a father (Yakusho) whose son is seriously injured in a car accident, his relationship with the son's unknowing girlfriend and the son's juvenile delinquent friend whom the family takes in.
The film also features dream-like flashbacks to Yakusho's childhood, with a character who sells the titular toad oil, once a popular ointment in Japan.
The cast, hand-picked by Yakusho, includes Eita (Dororo) as the son, Satomi Kobayashi (Megane) as Yakusho's wife, and the screen debut of professional fighter Jun'ichi Sawayashiki. Principal photography began on May 18 with filming set to wrap on June 30.
Producer-distributor Phantom Film has slated for the film for a 2009 release and is aiming for a slot at next year's Cannes Film Festival. "There was a lot of interest from both the festival and buyers when we introduced the project in Cannes this year," stated producer Keisuke Konishi. Yakusho previously starred in 1997 Palme d'Or winner The Eel and is a well-known figure on the Croisette.
Yakusho is perhaps best known for his role in Shall We Dance?, which grossed almost $10m in the US as one of the most successful foreign-language releases ever. His credits also include high profile foreign titles Memoirs Of A Geisha, Babel and Silk. He's also been a long-time collaborator of director Kiyoshi Kurosawa, appearing in eight of his films.
Monday, June 16, 2008
Unlikely Trio of Judges at SSFF&A
Last night was the closing awards ceremony for this year's SSFF&Asia at Meiji Jingu Kaikan. It was a good event, but very long at 2.5 hours. The above picture is of the unlikely trio that served as the jury for the new Stop! Global Warming category -- Tsuchiya Anna, Oshii Mamoru and Nakata Hidetoshi. My 18~55mm zoom doesn't cut it -- any suggestions for a reasonably priced F-mount?
Friday, June 13, 2008
Alien Asano Rocks Out on Route 246
Writing a small thing on the Short Shorts Film Festival & Asia for Screen so I took a quick break and ran out to catch Asano Tadanobu's segment in the omnibus film R246 Story (Twitch article here) at Laforet.
Asano is an alien named 246 that needs his drum kit or he'll die (Don't believe me? Look at him on the cover of this photo book). The script is by Aoyama Shinji and this could be Eli, Eli, Lema Sabachthani's mental punk rock cousin. Also shows influences from Ishii Sôgo to Tsukamoto. Spoiler (highlight with mouse to read): The cute little girl who can kill people with her guitar power chords steals the show. R246 Story opens this August in Tokyo.
Moscow Bestows Lifetime Achievement Award on Kitano
Time for one nugget of news. Director Kitano Takeshi will receive a lifetime achievement award at the upcoming Moscow International Film Festival. News release here, program details here. Above is the poster they've designed for it -- nice.
MIFF is also showing the latest film from 96-year-old director Shindô Kaneto, titled Teacher and Three Children (Hana wa Chiredomo, 『花は散れども』).
Wednesday, June 11, 2008
Miura Motive / Justice for Chizuko Shiraishi?
Although I haven't had time cover it further, I've been following the Miura Kazuyoshi case since writing about it at length in February and March (see collected posts here).
As you know, the big question is whether Miura will be extradited to the US to stand trial on charges of conspiring to have his wife Kazumi killed back in 1981. Miura has remained in custody since his arrest in Saipan almost four months ago.
This article in the Saipan Tribune posted just hours ago outlines the contents of an affadavit disclosed by L.A.P.D. detective Rick Jackson. The list of people Miura attempted to conspire with (in addition to Yazawa Michiko) is circumstantial evidence as far as the actual shooting, but the clarity of motive is blinding.
I had previously mentioned possible justice for another woman involved with Miura who met an untimely death, also in Los Angeles. Shiraishi Chizuko is the focus of this Saipan Tribune article published a day earlier.
Also in the interim, an association fighting for the release of Miura has been established.
Monday, June 09, 2008
Video from Tokyo Sonata Screening
I don't want the previous post to be the one that sits at the top of the page for an extended period so here's some video from the Tokyo Sonata screening/award ceremony I attended last week.
Be warned that the very end of this clip is an excerpt from the last scene of the film! Thanks to logboy for his constant vigil at Youtube et al.
Tragedy in Akihabara
「秋葉原通り魔事件 生中継中に背後にいた不謹慎なクソ野郎共」
Somewhat heavy-handed, but I have to agree.
Update: The video above has obviously been removed, which is probably a good thing after all. ..News programs continue to analyze Kato, with one criminologist proffering a theory that Kato carried out his plans as if he was directing and starring in his own film. More importantly, there are in-depth profiles of the victims, what their hobbies were and what their personalities were.
Friday, June 06, 2008
Flavor of Happiness at SIFF / NYAFF Full Lineup / Hiatus Hinjinx
Just a couple of quick updates before I barrel headlong into three months of almost wall-to-wall work before heading to Toronto for this year's festival (first time since 2005!).
Mihara Mitsuhiro's Flavor of Happiness (trace back from my May 23rd entry), starring Nakatani Miki, has received a special invitation in the Panorama section at this year's Shanghai International Film Festival (June 14-22), which has just announced its lineup.
On the other side of the planet, Grady and co are going for broke with New York Asian Film Festival's biggest selection of films yet. They've jumped up their Japanese titles, too, with extra goodies including Chanbara Beauty, Dog in a Sidecar, Tokyo Gore Police and the world premiere of Then Summer Came, which I wrote a little about back in April.
In Tokyo, this weekend is a pretty hearty one for hôga with Hashiguchi's All Around Us, Miike's God's Puzzle and Mitani's The Magic Hour to name a few.
Posts will be few and far between this summer, but you can stay on top of the Japanese cinema: rock up to Ryuganji, maul Maboroshii Productions, gawk at The Golden Rock, nozoki on Nippon Cinema, test out Tokyograph, toke up at Toronto J-Film Powwow, torture yourself at Twitch and of course mainline Midnight Eye.
Thursday, June 05, 2008
A Beautiful Sonata
Today I finally got to see Tokyo Sonata, and I was not let down. It's a brilliant film. I think Kurosawa has made a modern classic that will be watched for years to come.
The packed screening was held at The Garden Hall in Ebisu. Following the film, Kurosawa-kantoku was awarded his well-deserved Prix du Jury (Un Certain Regard) from the French Embassy's cultural attaché, as he wasn't able to receive it in Cannes. Then he and the cast members spoke about their experiences making the film and answered questions from the press.
Tokyo Sonata opens this September at the Ebisu Garden Cinema and other locations around the country. I'm certain it will have a good number of festival screenings this year and next, plus releases in the countries that have bought rights so far.
I was going to write some extended thoughts, but I think I'll just savour this one...
Sunday, June 01, 2008
God's Tour Bus
I previously mentioned (here and there) some of the mega PR going on for Miike's biggest film yet, God's Puzzle (released this coming Saturday). Earlier today I spotted the above bus, completely decked out as a travelling ad for the film. You can see the recessed, spotlit posters for the movie and theme song singer Asuka along the bottom, ads for author Kimoto Shinji's works in the middle, and above that a row of TV screens with roof-mounted speakers playing the trailer in a loop. I've seen mobile movie marketing before, but this one takes the cake.
I almost got creamed chasing this fucker around Ikebukuro on my tricycle trying to get a picture, so you better like it!
Tommy saw the film in Cannes, and well...You'll probably have to wait for his official review as he don't do the blog thing.
Oogata Bookie Wooks
It seems like ages ago that my Midnight Eye cohorts Jasper Sharp and Tom Mes started work on their contributions to Rizzoli's recently published "Tokyolife". I happened across a stack of copies today at the Aoyama Book Center (Roppongi). It's a very impressive volume which I leafed through for about ten minutes, using it to do 3 sets of 10 reps.
For their part, T & J look at filmmakers ranging from Miike to Miyazaki and how their output ties in with the city itself. Twitch ran this piece detailing the chapters by these "Gods of the written word". Make sure to get that printed on your meishi, okay boys? Veteran Tokyo blogger Jean Snow is credited as a coordinator. My wife gets a thank you in there, too. At 11,250 yen (just over a c-note) I wasn't able to purchase "Tokyolife" today, but hope to get a copy soon.
Also spotted at ABC was a new oversized book of Moriyama Daido photographs entitled "S' Moriyama Daido". It comprises high contrast pictures of athletic and sports facilities -- racetracks, baseball stadiums, swimming pools -- all devoid of people.
Sitting next to that was another A3-sized book published earlier this year capturing candid moments of actor Asano Tadanobu entitled "Asano Tadanobu: Off Screen". Recognize the name Wakagi Shingo? He's a famous photog who recently broke into directing movies with Waltz in Starlight, which screened in Rotterdam (see my Jan. 17 entry). The book is limited to 2000 copies with no plans for a reprint.
