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Aomori’s fabled Nebuta Festival 2015 to feature Star Wars floats

Aomori Prefecture’s legendary Nebuta Festival – which takes place in early August every year – has always been one of those big festivals on my Japan bucket list.

Even though the festival is one of the prestigious few festivals to receive the staggeringly long designation of Important Intangible Folk Cultural Property of Japan, we’re willing to bet the festival is largely overlooked by Western visitors. This is, probably, largely due to Aomori’s fairly remote location; it’s a real pain to get to from Tokyo, Osaka or any of the other major cities outside of Sapporo.

But then, what if that wasn’t the biggest reason foreigners aren’t totally aware of this great festival? What if the real reason was the festival’s lack of Star Wars characters?

Luckily, whether or not that’s the real case, that sore lack of Star Wars characters at the Aomori Nebuta Festival is going to change this year.

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Official ukiyo-e project brings a bit of historical Japan to a galaxy far, far away

Japan is just as crazy about Star Wars as the rest of the world and everyone is eagerly awaiting the new movie, Star Wars: The Force Awakens, on December 18, 2015 (Good news! It’s being released in Japan at the same time as most of the world!). So it’s the perfect opportunity for a number of Star Wars affiliated projects to get under way. One project is striking a chord with our love of Japan and our love of Star Wars as it combines a traditional art form with a very non-traditional universe.

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Talking with Chuck Johnson, Japan’s first full-time foreign stuntman, about working your butt off

When it comes to working in Japan as a foreign resident, it can often feel as if there aren’t many options — but that’s not necessarily the case. And for Chuck Johnson, the very opposite is true! After well over a decade in the country, Chuck has done everything from teaching English, to acting, to directing, to working as a bodyguard. He’s also an accomplished martial artist and stuntman — in fact, Chuck is the first non-Japanese person in the country to make a career out of doing stunt work. It’s a niche so small, he basically had to create an industry for himself!

After years of hard work and barely scraping by, Chuck has now made quite a name for himself, and this summer will see the release of a short action film in collaboration with big names such as Toei Studio, Adidas, and YouTube.

We recently stopped by the “fight action class” he teaches for aspiring and working stuntmen and discussed his experiences in Japan. If you want to get paid to kick people on film in Japan, Chuck is the man you want to talk to.

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Ready for the Fury Road: Our customized Mad Max Yamaha Tricity motorcycle 【Video】

Depending on the genre, a well-made movie can have you howling with laughter, thrilled by the on-screen action, or feeling cleansed after a cathartic cry. But while those are all enjoyable enough, every now and again you run into a film that affects you on a deeper level by helping to teach you some inevitable facet of life itself.

We recently made a trip to the theater to watch Mad Max: Fury Road, and since then every time we look up at the night sky, we’ve been reminded of the certainty that one day we’ll all be living in a dystopian wasteland. In preparation, we’ve already started stockpiling water and canned goods, and now we’ll be able to tour the wastelands in style with our customized Mad Max-style Yamaha three-wheeled motorcycle.

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Japan National Bunraku Theater turns Terminator poster into ad for traditional puppet show

It’s quite the summer of 90s nostalgia at the movies this year. Just this past month we had a new Jurassic Park movie, an original Pixar movie, and next month is bringing us the latest Terminator outing in the form of Terminator Genisys.

Anticipation for the film has been high in Japan, but one group you may not expect to be fans of machines killing each other seems to have taken a special liking to it. The Japanese National Bunraku Theater took the poster for the Terminator movie and transformed it into an advertisement for their traditional puppet theater, making it one of the most confusing yet oddly satisfying collaborations we’ve ever seen.

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Commercial for latest The Grudge film removed from air after complaints of being “too scary”

Japanese horror films are their own special brand of awesome. Movies like The Ring and The Grudge will sometimes make you roll your eyes with their cheesy acting and special effects, but at the same time contain certain horrifying scenes that will stick with you in your nightmares for weeks to come.

The latest installment in The Grudge series, Grudge: The Final has just come out in Japan, advertised by commercials airing all over. However, one commercial received so many complaints about it being “way too scary” that it was taken down and replaced with something more tame.

Are you brave enough to watch the original commercial? Then read on to get your chance.

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New Attack on Titan movie will hit audiences with lights, wind, and water, also has moving seats

The second Attack on Titan theatrical feature has been a long time coming, but the film, subtitled The Wings of Freedom, is finally opening in Japan this month. Since the movie is a condensed version of the second half of the anime TV series, there probably won’t be too much in the way of new plot developments. What audiences can look forward to, though, is a movie experience augmented by moving seats, gusts of wind, and other awesome effects.

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No plans for the weekend? Free CG animation festival is going on in Tokyo 【Videos】

If you were just looking at the clock and smiling because you’ve reached the end of your workweek, but have since switched to frowning and looking at the Tokyo weather report (clouds or rain all week long), cheer up, because it just so happens there’s a great indoor event going on.

Short Shorts Film Festival & Asia 2015 kicked off earlier this week, and until June 14 will be showcasing the works of talented short film makers from around the globe at venues in Tokyo and Yokohama. Best of all, admission is free, and today we’re taking a peek at some of the festival’s amazing computer animated shorts that are screening this weekend.

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There are only so many hours in a day, which means all the time you devote to listening to Japanese girls’ rock bands or learning a half-dozen ways to says “breasts” in Japanese means less time for soaking up mainstream American pop culture. As a result, I’ve got some pretty big gaps in my Hollywood movie-watching history, but at least I know their basic plots because they’ve been talked about and referenced elsewhere so much.

For example, I know Titanic is about an elderly woman fondly remembering some dude she hooked up with on a cruise 70 years ago, who was apparently so good in the sack that she has no time on her deathbed to remember her children or the man who fathered them. Forest Gump is about remarkably patient bus travelers who are willing to listen to the life story a complete stranger because of his vague promises of giving them chocolate at some point.

And Toy Story, as I can infer from these Tokyo Disneyland photos, is about how a humble cowboy and abrasive astronaut learn to overcome their differences and become pals when one gives the other a hand job, right?

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Godzilla gets official Tokyo residency papers, copies being given out free to fans

You could make a long list about all the ways Japan is uniquely awesome (and as a matter of fact, we just did), but it’s not like every aspect of life in Japan is more enjoyable than in other countries. For example, taking care of paperwork at city hall or other government facilities is as boring as it is anywhere else in the world.

So why is it that this week people have been voluntarily visiting the Shinjuku ward office in the heart of Tokyo? Because they want to get a copy of the official residency document of the district’s newest resident, Godzilla!

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Japanese toymakers collaborate on amazing Hulkbuster you can call your own

Superhero movies mean big business for toy makers, and whenever Marvel releases a new movie, a slew of action figures are made to fulfill everyone’s toy needs. There are the cheap small figures that anyone of any age can play with, and there are also the larger, more expensive, but extremely poseable figures for those who want to seriously play. Then there are the really expensive versions that boast incredible detail and size. This Hulkbuster is one of those ones.

Many toy makers are producing their own version of the Hulkbuster from Avengers: Age of Ultron, but Bandai is taking its time and attaching all the bells and whistles including LEDs and real metal parts.

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Live-action Attack on Titan films will have theme songs created by equally huge Sekai no Owari

Sekai no Owari is one of the most popular groups in Japan right now. The clown-faced, top hat-wearing rock band is managing to thrive in a Japanese music industry saturated with seemingly endless three-letter-48-style girl groups.

So what better to combine with one of the most popular music groups than one of the most popular manga/anime, Attack on Titan? It was just recently announced that the upcoming live-action Attack on Titan movies will feature two original Sekai no Owari songs produced specially as theme songs for the films.

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Fan unhappy with new Digimon tri. art starts petition for redesign before release of first movie

By giving people a voice that can reach anyone else in the world, the Internet can be a powerful tool for change. Online petitions can draw attention to, and offer solutions for, issues that negatively impact us all, such as unjust laws and inappropriate use of public funds.

And also, as one displeased Digimon fan is doing, call for changes to anime character designs we don’t like the look of.

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Get a look at the Avengers with a floral Chinese twist!

Avengers: Age of Ultron has been a huge hit all over the world, and with ticket sales recently passing US$1 billion, it seems that everyone has been flocking to cinemas to find out how old Ultron really is. Not in Japan though, with the movie – typically late – set to be released on July 4, Avengers fans are desperately trying to avoid spoilers, but also would love to join the rest of the world in seeing the movie.

But fear not, Japanese Avengers fans; this post contains no spoilers so you can click on through and get a look at what the Avengers would look like if they were participating in a Beijing fashion show.

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Anime idols going abroad as Love Live! movie announced for release in U.S., 12 other territories

Not so long ago, being a Japanese idol singer was purely a domestic gig, with even the biggest stars of the genre remaining more or less unknown outside their home country. But thanks to the spread of Japanese pop culture around the world over the last decade and a half, that’s not really the case anymore. These days, it’s not uncommon for J-pop idols, especially those with an anime connection to boost their foreign exposure, to make appearances overseas.

Now, in a case of animated art imitating life, the high school idols of Love Love!, Japan’s biggest current idol anime hit, will be heading abroad as the upcoming Love Live! theatrical feature has been announced for international release.

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Spirited Away and Ghost in Shell’s sound director talks about the human side of working in anime

Many Japanese animation fans can rattle off a list of the animation directors or character designers they admire, but the visuals are only half of the way anime stimulates the senses. For everything that you’re hearing during your favorite show, you can thank the sound director.

It’s a role Kazuhiro Wakabayashi has been filling for decades, and we recently sat in on a talk the industry veteran gave about the unique challenges a sound director faces, what it’s like to work with some of the biggest names in Japanese animation, including Studio Ghibli’s Hayao Miyazaki and Ghost in the Shell’s Mamoru Oshii, and the surprisingly deep human element of creating the audio environment for a fictional world.

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Fan art of new Digimon cast in old style sparks debate on what qualifies as “f***ing disgusting”

With Digimon Adventure tri. representing the first new animation for the franchise since 15 years ago, fans whose passions for the series has continued burning bright for the last decade and a half were no doubt excited by the announcement of the new movie series. But being passionate doesn’t always mesh with being easy-going, and some fans who aren’t enjoying the new art style have taken it upon themselves to redo tri.’s as-yet released visuals in the manner of the original Digimon Adventure. Along the way, they’re also giving more relaxed animation fans an eye-opening lesson in how razor-thin the difference between acceptable and “f***ing disgusting” can be in the eyes of some long-term Digimon fanatics.

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Ghibli Easter eggs are good, but Pixar Easter eggs are even better【Video】

Studio Ghibli and Pixar are two of the most successful movie companies in the world. They’ve released over a dozen memorable movies that can be enjoyed over and over again. The connection doesn’t end there, as Japan loves Pixar movies as much as the rest of the world loves Ghibli.

There are dozens of hidden gems to be found in Ghibli movies, which pay homage to beloved characters, and Pixar is also well-known for having a slew of Easter eggs that not only give a nod of respect to past characters, but also give clues about future characters and movies! Disney has released a new video of some of their favorite hidden treasures, and fans in Japan couldn’t be more excited about it.

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Digimon Adventure tri. anime gets release date, revealed as theatrical feature in six-part series

So there’s some good news and some bad news about Digimon Adventure tri., the follow-up to the phenomenally popular Digimon Adventure anime that’s set 15 years after the events of the original. The bad news is, contrary to early speculation, Digimon Adventure tri., isn’t going to be airing on Japanese TV during either the spring or the summer.

The good news is, the latest installment in the franchise is a theatrical feature, just the first of six parts of the new series, and we now know when we get to see it!

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Japan gets heartfelt message of thanks from the main bad guy in Commando

Thirty years ago a landmark event in cinema took place when the movie Commando first hit the silver screen. It taught an entire generation to believe that a guy could have “Matrix” as a last name and that you should always kill the guys you like last…unless they get in your way.

The film also showcased the acting chops of several greats such as Arnold Schwarzenegger, Alyssa Milano, Dan Hedaya, and Rae Dawn Chong. But often overlooked is Australian actor Vernon Wells who played the role of Bennett, the Edmund to John Matrix’s Edgar.

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