Seek nothing, Just sit: Life in a Zen Monastery

A year of zen practice at Antaiji Temple in Japan. Many non-Japanese gather at this Soto school zen temple to do zazen 1,800 hours per year and live the zen ideal of self-sufficiency.

Queer Japan

Trailblazing artists, activists, and everyday people from across the spectrum of gender and sexuality defy social norms and dare to live unconventional lives in this kaleidoscopic view of LGBTQ+ culture in contemporary Japan.

Japan's War in Colour

Using never-before-seen footage, Japan's War In Colour tells a previously untold story. It recounts the history of the Second World War from a Japanese perspective, combining original colour film with letters and diaries written by Japanese people. It tells the story of a nation at war from the diverse perspectives of those who lived through it: the leaders and the ordinary people, the oppressors and the victims, the guilty and the innocent. Until recently, it was believed that no colour film of Japan existed prior to 1945. But specialist research has now unearthed a remarkable colour record from as early as the 1930s. For eight years the Japanese fought what they believed was a Holy War that became a fight to the death. Japan's War In Colour shows how militarism took hold of the Japanese people; describes why Japan felt compelled to attack the West; explains what drove the Japanese to resist the Allies for so long; and, finally, reveals how they dealt with the shame of defeat.

Echigo World’s Largest Yon-shakudama Katakai Festival

The Katakai Festival, one of Niigata and Echigo's Three Great Fireworks Festivals, has a 400-year history. Held annually on September 9th and 10th in Katakai Town, it features fireworks dedicated to Asahara Shrine, filled with wishes and prayers. Highlights include Japan’s largest 'San-shakudama' and the world's largest 'Yon-shakudama,' which impress spectators with their grandeur. The small hill behind the launch site amplifies the fireworks' powerful bursts. This work condenses the festival's two-day fireworks displays. It captures the fleeting beauty of each firework, the vibrant rapid-fire starmine displays, and the grand 'San-shakudama' and 'Yon-shakudama' that fill the night sky, creating an emotional and resonant experience. Filmed in ultra-high-definition 4K/8K60P, it faithfully reproduces the grand fireworks and fine sparks. Enjoy the immersive experience with high-resolution audio at 96kHz24bit, emphasizing the fireworks' explosive sounds and echoes.

Raise Your Arms and Twist! Documentary of NMB48

Launched in 2011 as a sister group to girl band behemoth AKB48, the Osaka-based NMB48 has become a musical force itself. With a string of No.1 hit singles and albums, not to mention sell-out performances, NMB48 continues Japan’s pop-music phenomena. Director Funahashi Atsushi, whose documentary work has previously chronicled such harrowing events as the Fukushima nuclear meltdown, pulls back the curtain on the life and struggles of the band members and the workings of the idol-making industry.

Japon : L'Empire du sexe virtuel

In Search of Wabi Sabi with Marcel Theroux

Marcel Theroux travels across Japan in an attempt to understand Wabi Sabi, a theory of Japanese aesthetics in which imperfection and transience are the touchstone of beauty.

Train Night View: Yurikamome at Night Round Trip Shimbashi to Toyosu

Tokyo Night Cruise on the Yurikamome Line The "Yurikamome" line, connecting Shimbashi and Toyosu, is popular for its scenic route past commercial facilities and high-rise buildings. Departing Shimbashi at dusk, the train curves right to Shiodome, then passes Takeshiba, Hinode, and Shibaura-futo stations before crossing the Rainbow Bridge. After the bridge, it enters Odaiba, where Mount Fuji’s silhouette is visible. This once-vacant area is now densely developed. The train passes Toyosu Market before reaching Toyosu. On the return journey, as darkness falls, the lights of Odaiba create a captivating glow. The vibrant nightscape, captured in high-definition 4K 10-bit HDR, provides a stunningly detailed experience.

Defend, Conserve, Protect

Narrated by Dan Aykroyd, Defend, Conserve, Protect, pits the marine conservation group, Sea Shepherd, against the Japanese whaling fleet, in an epic battle to defend the majestic Minke whales.

Hafu

A journey into the intricacies of mixed-race Japanese and their multicultural experiences in modern day Japan. For some hafus, Japan is the only home they know, for some living in Japan is an entirely new experience, and the others are caught somewhere between two different worlds.

ID: Harajuku

A group of people talk about their identity and a way of personal expression through "Harajuku", a fervent Japanese fashion in Santiago de Chile.

The Cove

The Cove tells the amazing true story of how an elite team of individuals, films makers and free divers embarked on a covert mission to penetrate the hidden cove in Japan, shining light on a dark and deadly secret. The shocking discoveries were only the tip of the iceberg.

JDM Insider vol 4: The Kanto Tuners

An in-depth look at the world of Japanese street racing.

Hiroshima and Nagasaki: 75 Years Later

Hiroshima and Nagasaki: 75 Years Later is told entirely from the first-person perspective of leaders, physicists, soldiers and survivors.

Attack! The Battle for New Britain

Actual footage by the United States Signal Corps of the landing and attack on Arawe Beach, Cape Glouster, New Britain island in 1943 in the South Pacific theatre of World War Two, and the handicaps of the wild jungle in addition to the Japanese snipers and pill-box emplacements.

Tokyo Idols

This exploration of Japan's fascination with girl bands and their music follows an aspiring pop singer and her fans, delving into the cultural obsession with young female sexuality and the growing disconnect between men and women in hypermodern societies.

Akiko's Piano: Chords Played by the Surviving Piano

1940, Kawamoto Akiko lives in Hiroshima with her father and mother, Genkichi and Shizuko, as well as her two younger brothers. Akiko loves playing her favourite piano. As the war situation worsens, she is busy helping out the war efforts. On the morning of August 6, 1945, she disobeys her father and heads into the centre of town for work. In Hiroshima 75 years later, her favourite piano remains, restored and playable following its survival of the atomic bombing

Hiroshima Revealed

Pulitzer Prize -- winning journalist John Hersey caused a sensation when he published "Hiroshima", the first account for American readers of the horror experienced by victims of the 1945 Hiroshima atomic bomb attack. "Hiroshima" stunned readers with its descriptions of the terrible aftermath of the bombing, yet Hersey never spoke about his experience in Hiroshima.

Under a Bridge

In this tape, Ko Nakajima and Video Earth Tokyo interview a homeless man. The subject is initially angry and frustrated, but gradually opens up and shares stories about his life. Under A Bridge was later broadcast on cable television.

JDM Insider