Tonight at 7 p.m. in the Boliou Hall Auditorium, the public is invited to a special screening of the award-winning documentary film Kyo o mamoru (Resilience-Protecting Today), chronicling the lives of people affected by the Great East Japan Earthquake and Tsunami of March 11, 2011. This event is free and open to the public.
The film was shot in the aftermath of this horrific natural disaster. In order to record their lives after the earthquake, film-maker (and student) Yuka Kanno interviewed people in her hometown, including her mother, her childhood classmates, and their parents. This documentary film turned out to be unique and effective as she was able to bring out insights that only a person who shared the same experience could do. The film was first presented at Yamanashi Film Festival in 2011, and it has been shown throughout Japan.
Ms. Yuka Kanno is from Rikuzen-takata in Iwate. She is currently a student at Yamanashi Prefectural University. Her home was destroyed by the tsunami. She also lost three friends who had been her classmates in junior high school.
The English subtitles for this film were created by over sixty students in Japanese language classes at twelve different schools in the United States. The project leader was Professor Kazumi Hatasa of Purdue University.
This event is sponsored by the Department of Asian Languages and Literatures. For more information, call (507) 222-4006.