Popular Fil-Jap in Japan that our mainstream media doesn't report

If you are currently eating up whatever mainstream media feeds you, chances are you don't know about these two popular Japanese-Filipino making it big in the Japanese Pop scene. 

I can't blame you, being fed with relentless slew of Charice Pempengco, Arnel Pineda and that Canadian kid that does Lady Gaga. The current local K-pop fad doesn't help also, and for the record Sandara Park is 100% South Korean.

First we have Akimoto Sayaka

 

Team K Captain of the idol group AKB48 as well as DiVA. Her mother is Filipino. She's can speak a little English and Filipino. She also has a 2nd degree black belt in Aikido. She currently plays Sonoko of Detective Conan live action series.

Next is Nakajima Megumi

She is a voice actress (seiyuu) who rose to fame back in 2008 for voicing Ranka Lee of Macross Frontier. Like Sayaka, her morther is Filipino. She currently has different anime projects as well as a singing career.

5th International Silent Film Festival

This year I got the chance to see three of the six films which are my original choices: Nosferatu Germany(1922), Akeyuku Sora *Dawning Sky*Japan(1929) and L'Inferno Itally(1911).

Where to start, Nosferatu as a film itself is just amazing, and of course Marx Schreck's Graf Orlok is just legendary, they even made a fiction and a film about him being a real vampire back in 2000 with The Shadow of the Vampire which is another magnificent film but that is a different story. Goethe Institut flew in Stephan Von Bothmer from Berlin the man who's been doing the score for Nosferatu, a truly amazing musician.

Akeyuku Sora is just a darling of a movie, I finally understand the reason behind the love for melodrama by the Japanese film makers. Bandang Malaya brought in a captivating and unique sound to the whole movie.

Finally L'Inferno, the 100 year old film one of  a few surviving film from the early silent film period *and my oldest film that I've seen to date*. Ever since in 2nd year high school I've been a fan of Dante Alighieri's Divina Comedia. . The film is truly a landmark of film, a very important part of not only film history but of human culture as well. The accompanying music was done by the band Razorback. I was quite impressed on how they brought modern, pulsating, intense hard rock to make the film more interesting, unique and worthwhile. The Italian team clearly had done so much justice to the classic film with a modern day twist.

Sadly I cannot participate for tomorrow's films, I hope my dear readers/followers will be able to attend tomorrow, this is a truly once in a lifetime experience worth of your time and effort.

And now Razorback:

5th International Silent Film Festival

 

This will be tomorrow and it's going to be free!

I miss playing Japanese music

The last time I played in a Japanese cover/themed band was last year during Ongaku production's return and U.P AME event in M.O.A. Time really flies.

Blogging through my htc desire s and some update on the silent film festival this weekend

Another test post here but this time through my smartphone. So far so good, this will be very beneficial for quick updates/editing for future posts.

Now got some info about this year's silent film festival over at Shangri-la, it's going to be free and the time is 5pm and one film per day. I'll try to get more info these couple of days to thin out false information.

2011 Eiga-Sai

 

This is a late post. July is Philippine - Japan Friendship month, Japan Foundation Manila organizes different activities and events such as concerts, workshops, exhibits and film showing which are usually free.

This year's Eiga Sai (Japanese for Film Festival) film selection: Departures(Okuribito)*AMPAS 2009 Best Foreign Language Film*, Your Friend(Kimi no Tomodachi), Feel The Wind(Kaze ga tsuyoku fuiteiru), The Chef of South Polar(Nankyoku Ryourinin), Climber's High, The Summit: A Chronicle of Stones(Tsurugidake: Ten no ki), One Million Yen Girl(Hyaku man en to nigamushi onna), Yunagi City - Sakura Country(Yunagi no machi Sakura no kuni), Summer days with Coo(Kappa no Ku to natsu yasumi) and Villion's Wife(Viyon no Tsuma).

I got to see The Summit: A Chronicle of stones, Departures, Feel the Wind, Your Friend and One Million Yen Girl during Eiga Sai's Shangri-La leg.

These said movies are my top choices, I didn't get to see Yunagi City and Chef of South Polar but I've downloaded them and they are amazing as well. I'd like to discuss more of these movies but I might spoil it to viewers who haven't seen them yet.

Departures is a magnificent film and I hope people will get to see it someday. But my personal favorite for this year's Eiga Sai has got to be Feel the Wind. I never had high expectations about the film but it got me good, a very well done film with a simple story yet the acting and direction is amazing.

That's all for now, see you all next year's Eiga Sai!

Hello Blogging World

This is my first official blog post.


Still looking around and studying how to improve the blog's appearance and overall appeal.

Expect new entries from last month's Philippine-Japan friendship month's Eiga Sai and the Aki and Kuniko concert!