Last night, Friday 13 November, I again had the chance to deputise. This time to represent the chain at the launch of Japanese Film Festival at the Kino Cinema. There I met with the film festival director and first secretary to the Japanese Ambassador in Ireland, Mr. Shinji Yamada. I also met with Maeve Cooke of Access Cinema and representing one of the sponsors, Patrick Morrisssey of JTI.

 Kieran’s Speech

Eye on Japan

Kino Cinema, Friday 13 November 2009

First Secretary to the Japanese Embassy, Ladies and gentleman, it’s a great pleasure to be in one of Ireland’s key art house cinemas – the Kino here, this evening. In addition, this evening, it is an even greater pleasure to be present at the launch of an internationally based film festival at the Kino.

Japan has one of the oldest and largest film industries in the world, being currently the third largest by number of feature films produced. Japanese Cinema seems to be a hard thing to clearly define. “According to Japanese directors, making use of Japanese actors, filming in Japan, and screening a Japanese movie in Japan” are said to be the requirements of the foundation. Early films had influences from traditional theater.  One of the first successful Japanese films was viewed in late 1897 and showed various well-known sights in Toyko

And to this day, Japanese films are strongly influenced by Japanese culture. Interestinglya Corkman, John Fenton, was involved in composing the Japanese national anthem

This weekend the Japanese Film Festival returns to our city by the Lee weekend for the second time with a programme which mixes drama and comedy; live action and anime and includes some of the best of Japanese Cinema  over the past years as well as a couple of classics

We certainly will get a taste of quality and diversity of Japanese cinema.The programme has been chosen to give a better insight into Japanese people, society and culture because unlike music or theatre, a movie can show different aspects of the society.

I see there is a wide audience for Japanese films in Ireland, much of that audience is focussed on the country’s anime output – there is a very high quality of animated features produced in Japan – here in the Kino, the full diversity of Japanese film is covered.

Tonight the programme commences with a screening of A Stranger of Mine. Kenji Uchida draws together three stories of men who find their lives unravelling due to the actions of others – interestingly, the story seems very apt for Ireland’s story today.

However, the medium of film power has the power to grasp, encourage wonder, inspire confidence, motivate a self-purpose, provoke questions and the imagination and even draw in the viewer and even disturb and so much more – lessons of life can be presented and debated.

I have no doubt for many of those present to view Cork’s Japanese Film Festival, you already have a love of film and even arthouse cinema. Ladies and gentlemen perhaps there is so much to learn through the medium of film – Actors and directors all bring their own talents, confidence self pride, self belief and a desire to perform their medium. Those are all very important traits

Ladies and gentlemen, in this world, we need more of such confidence, pride and belief – we need to mass produce these qualities, all of which these films stand for

Ladies and gentlemen, they continue to present us with the question – well what are we doing in our own lives to push forward? What is the real film that we are all making?

I would like to encourage everyone to keep filming, keep rolling.

I would also like to thank the Kino, its staff and Mr. Shinji Yamada who saw the opportunity to bring a taste of international culture to Cork. But I encourage all of us to keep watching, praising, critiqing and even giving our own direction to what not only film genres we should watch but also how film can be harnessed to nurture people’s motivations.

This is where film gives hope and have no doubt has saved souls.

I wish to congratulate all involved in the festival and wish the festival all the best for the future. And to the cinema goer, keep watching!