SEARCH

Contact Us

Site Map

BREEZE #112

FEBRUARY, 2017: BREEZE ISSUE #112
Like 0ShareA Free E-Newsletter for Friends of Japan & Teachers of Japanese

GREETING FROM THE DIRECTORGreetings!
There has been a great deal of astonishment and bafflement expressed from a circle of ourfriends since we announced the closure of our library. While I truly appreciate their sincere
concerns about the fate of our organization, I would like to take this opportunity to clarify twothings. First, the Japan Foundation, Los Angeles will not go anywhere! We will stay in thecurrent location in mid-Wilshire and continue to provide free film-screenings and cultural
events in our soon-to-be renovated hall as well as language classes in our cozy classroom.
Second, our books will not be thrown away. We are currently making sure that our finecatalogue continues to have good public exposure at other libraries and archives. In addition,
we will keep an essential portion of our language learning materials at our premise as
reference for students and teachers of Japanese.
Privacy - Terms

We are, and have always been, much much more than a library. A real-estate consideration
may force us to downsize a little physically, but I can personally assure you that the numberand quality of our activities will stay the same or even better. Above all, I am more committed
than before to provide everyone with opportunities to freely cross cultural ‘walls’ in the coming
four years.
Sincerely,

Hideki Hara, Director

DIRECTOR YOJI YAMADA'S MASTERPIECE COMEDY"WHAT A WONDERFUL FAMILY!" (108MINS, 2016)
WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 8, 7PM (JFLA AUDITORIUM)
IN JAPANESE WITH ENGLISH SUBTITLESThe latest film from renowned Japanese master filmmaker Yoji Yamada, WHAT A WONDERFULFAMILY! is a joyful and comedic tale of family life in modern Japan. Retired curmudgeon Shuzo(Isao Hashizume) lives a life of relative peace with his doting wife Tomiko (Kazuko Yoshiyuki),
their two sons, daughter-in-law and two grandsons.
But when Tomiko's birthday arrives, and Shuzo has once again forgotten, she asks for a very
special birthday gift: a divorce. In complete shock, Shuzo thinks this must be a joke. As itbecomes clear that Tomiko is very serious, one-by-one the family members get involved.

ARTIST TALK: TAKAHASHI HIROKOSUNDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2PM-3PM (LOUCKS AUDITORIUM SALEM LIBRARY)
Privacy - Terms
MONDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 12:45PM-2PM (CENTRUM STUDIO, OREGON COLLEGEOF ART AND CRAFT)TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 14, 3:45PM-5PM (FORUM AUDITORIUM, OTIS COLLEGE OF
ART AND DESIGN)ADMISSION FREE, RSVP REQUIRED FOR SUNDAY AND TUESDAYAs an artist with an academic background in the areas of Japanese traditional craft, dyeing,weaving and other handicraft techniques, Takahashi has worked with numerous artisans andhas raised traditional craftwork to a whole new level with the intricate geometric patterns thatare unique to her work and are created from using only lines and circles. Takahashi uses
kimono as an expressive medium for her art and in doing so has put a new spin on thetraditional garment.
Read MoreJAPANESE RAKUGO (COMIC) STORYTELLING WITHENGLISH SUBTITLES BY RAKUGO MASTER YANAGIYA SANKYOFRIDAY, FEBRUARY 24, 7PM(THE HARRY AND YVONNE LENART AUDITORIUM, FOWLER MUSEUM AT UCLA)
SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 25, 2PM (GARDEN ROOM A, JACCC)ADMISSION FREE, RSVP REQUIRED FOR SUNDAY
Renowned “Rakugo” raconteur Yanagiya Sankyo, who received a 2014 Japan Foundation Awardfor his long-term achievements in promoting Japanese culture worldwide, will be performing aRakugo storytelling with English subtitles! Does PowerPoint Rakugo work? Definitely! It has
been tried and proven hilarious in many cities outside Japan, including ones here in the US.
Read More

Privacy - Terms

SELECTED AS THE JAPANESE ENTRY FOR THE BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM
AT THE ACADEMY"NAGASAKI: MEMORIES OF MY SON" (130MINS, 2015)
WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 7PM (JFLA AUDITORIUM)
IN JAPANESE WITH ENGLISH SUBTITLES
August 9, 1948. Nagasaki, Japan. An aging midwife named Nobuko (Sayuri Yoshinaga) is visitedby the ghost of her son Koji (Kazuya Ninomiya), whom she lost to the atomic bomb. From thenon Koji visits his mother frequently to reminisce and catch up on lost time. Their biggest topic
of conversation is Koji's kind-hearted fiancée Machiko (Haru Kuroki), who regularly visitedNobuko over the three years since Koji's death. Machiko and Koji both seem unable to fully
accept Koji's death, but Nobuko slowly encourages them to move on.
Yoji Yamada's moving, star-studded film is a complementary response to playwright Hisashi
Inoue's seminal work The Face of Jizo , about a father-daughter relationship in the aftermath of
the Hiroshima bombing, and the master director's self-proclaimed attempt at making "the mostimportant film in his life."
Watch Trailer

JF NIHONGO TEA TIME
LET’S CHAT IN JAPANESE!
FEBRUARY 23, 6:30PM-8PM
REGISTER NOW!
Come join our casual conversation café! At this popular event, you’ll enjoy conversation withnative Japanese speakers while having Japanese tea & snacks! All levels are welcome!
Read MorePrivacy - Terms

2017 JAPANESE LANGUAGE GRANTS ARE NOW AVAILABLE!
We are pleased to announce the start of our Fiscal Year 2017-18 grant programs that weorganize annually in support of Japanese-Language Education in the United States. Theseinclude the following:
1. Learners Event Grant previously known as "Speech Contest Grant" (Deadlines: 3/1/2017 &9/1/2017)
2. Teaching Material Purchase Grant (Deadlines: 3/15/2017 & 9/15/2017)
3. Salary Assistance Grant for Japanese Language Courses (Deadline: 4/10/2017)
4. Japanese-Language Education Project Grant (Deadline: 2 months prior to project startdate)
Read MoreJAPANESE LANGUAGE EDUCATION UPDATE 39:
RECRUITING JAPANESE TEACHERS
There is a national teacher shortage. The JF Survey 2015 confirmed that this trend is affecting
Japanese language teacher numbers as well. What can our community do about it?
First of all, what is “our community”? Who are we?
There is a vast network of passionate Japanese language teachers in the United States. Not
only are there Japanese teachers’ associations across the country, but we are also connected
to other organizations like Japan-America Societies, Consulates-General of Japan, Japanesechambers of commerce, and Sister City Organizations. And please remember that the JapanFoundation, Los Angeles is ready to support this community with grants and advocacy.
Together, our community has the resources to reach out and support new teachers.
Read More

Privacy - Terms

2016-2017 J-LEAP REPORTS
For the 2016-2017 school year, we invited twelve native assistant teachers (AT) to variousschools around the country as part of the Japanese Language Education Assistant Program (JLEAP). This is the sixth year of this program where schools around the country are given theopportunity to invite an AT for up to two years with the goal of strengthening their Japanese
language program. This month, we will feature the reports from the following ATs detailing theirexperiences at American schools.
Hina Oishi, Lake Oswego/Lakeridge High School (Lake Oswego, OR)
Natsumi Uejo, Silver Creek High School (San Jose, CA)

Past Issues (2020)

Past Issues (2019)



Past Issues (2018)



Past Issues (2017)

Breeze #122

Breeze #121Breeze #120

Breeze #119

Breeze #118

Breeze #117

Breeze #116
Privacy - Terms

Breeze #115

Breeze #114

Breeze #113

Breeze #112

Breeze #111

Breeze Past Issues

Breeze Issues #1-#36 (PDF)

Headquarters

New York Office

ボランティア募集

Center for Global PartnershipJapan Related Links

Volunteer

Job Openings (Updated)

5700 Wilshire blvd, Suite 100
Los Angeles, CA 90036
P. 323.761.7510

Annual Report© 2019 The Japan Foundation, Los Angeles
Web Design.

Privacy - Terms