"Ten years after the triple catastrophe of Tohoku, in a historical moment in which humanity is facing a global pandemic and wonders about the future of the planet, THE OTHER JAPAN considered it essential to focus the 2021 event on the relationship between Man and Nature . Finding ourselves in the museum context of the MANN, we first worked on the idea of stratification, taking inspiration from what still resurfaces from the lands devastated by the tsunami. But stratification also means memory, in all its forms, a theme common to many of the films in review. The program is enriched by two special events which, starting from the stoic search for aesthetic perfection in two performing disciplines such as theater and figure skating, exemplify the artistic and cultural resources that a country has to be reborn, as individuals and as a community. ", Says Barbara Waschimps, curator of the review.
From 29 September to 3 October, at the MANN Auditorium, it will be possible to attend screenings and meetings: it will start next Wednesday (11 am) from the most remote areas of the country, narrated in "Aogashima" by Hamish Campbell. The choice of the film "The Written Face" (1995) by the Swiss Daniel Schmid, a masterpiece rediscovered this year by Cinémathèque Suisse in collaboration with the Swiss Institute of Rome (the screening will be scheduled on 29 September at 5 pm as a special event, with the introduction by Giorgio Amitrano of L'Orientale University): the work represents a cross-section of the theatrical figure of the onnagata (actor who plays female parts) in the Kabuki theater.
Do not miss the Italian premiere (Thursday 30 September, 8 pm) of "Minamata" by Andrew Levitas: here is the story of the American photographer Eugene W. Smith, played by Johnny Depp, sent to Japan to investigate the poisoning of waters for which a Japanese industrial giant was accused; it was precisely the magazine "Life", with the report, that defended the rights of the victims of an environmental catastrophe that caused deaths and perennial damage to the survivors. For those who are skeptical about the links between East and West, we recommend watching "Café Funiculì funiculà" (Italian premiere in the cinema, Friday 1 October, 5 pm): the film, made by the Japanese director Ayuko Tsukahara, describes, with dreamy tones , the relationship between those who live in the present and those who are no longer there.
Two screenings with the director or the actors in the room: the world premiere of "Yomigaeru" by Alessandro Trapani (30 September, 12 noon), which retraces the journey of jazz musician Giuseppe Bassi in the territory of the Fukushima nuclear power plant, and "Koi" by Lorenzo Squarcia (Friday 1 October, 3 pm), well known on the world networks and now available in the hall with the presence of Squarcia himself.
Exciting conclusion with the talk "The Total Package" (Sunday 3 October, 5 pm), a tribute to the greatest figure skater of all time and living sports legend, the young Yuzuru Hanyu, survivor of the tsunami: he will talk about it with the public , commenting on the projection of Hanyu's best athletic performances, sports journalist Massimiliano Ambesi.
From cinema to exhibitions: for the entire duration of the film review, in the New Braccio of the MANN, it will be possible to visit the video exhibition “11 Stories on Distanced Relationships: Contemporary Art From Japan“, created with the support of the Japan Foundation; contemporary artists reflect, in times of pandemic, on mediated human relationships, and at the same time possible, thanks to new technologies. Also in the Braccio Nuovo, the photographic exhibition by Gianni Giosuè, "Japan Tsunami / A Long Walk In Tohoku" will be set up until November 29: ten large-format shots and a video will be presented, which narrate the reportage of the photojournalist in Japan after the 2011 tsunami.
Also until November 29, in the room of the Tyrannicides, on the calendar "Buddha statues in the land of Yamato" by photographer Kozo Ogawa: in the exhibition, organized in a network with the Japanese Institute of Culture, there will be forty images of the ancient statues of Buddhist deities, coming from the city of Nara and, in some cases, included in the heritage of humanity; Ogawa's shots will dialogue with the famous masterpieces of the MANN Farnese collection.
Finally, some Japanese armor and swords will be presented online with the Filangieri Civic Museum, visible in the Auditorium until 6 January 2022, creating an ideal connection with the “Gladiatorimania” section. For fans of Japanese applied arts, next to the Auditorium (until January 6, 2022), the artist Minori Shimizu will exhibit paintings made in a unique mixed technique on paper, called "Kyo-origami".