One country and one city

Brazilian immigrants in Japanese 21st century films

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.35699/2237-5864.2023.41167

Keywords:

Japanese cinema, cinematographic space, immigration, film editing

Abstract

The films The City of Lost Souls (2000) directed by Takashi Miike and Goldfish Go Home (2012) by Shōhei Shiozaki share a common theme about the life of Brazilians in Japan. They were both directed by Japanese filmmakers in two specific moments in the context of the Brazilian immigration to Japan, which is ongoing since 1990. Despite their commonalities, the two films present different aesthetic views that lead to contradictory understandings about the interaction of Japanese and Brazilians in Japan. This article brings into discussion how establishing shots and spatial continuity express these views in the films. Establishing shots are the starting point to recognize the location of scenes and actions in films. The aim here is to show how diegetic space and spatial continuity built by film editing are essential elements in representations of interaction between foreigners and nationals. This analysis is based on the spaces represented, their historical and cultural characteristics and some of the political implications of these representations.

Author Biographies

Alexandre Nakahara, USP


Alexandre Nakahara é doutorando do Programa de Pós-Graduação em Meios e Processos Audiovisuais na Escola de Comunicações e Artes da USP. Sua dissertação de mestrado defendida em 2019 abordou três filmes que tratam da temática dos brasileiros no Japão.

Cecília Mello, Universidade de São Paulo

Cecília Mello é Professora Livre-Docente no Departamento de Cinema, Rádio e Televisão da Escola de Comunicações e Artes da USP. É autora de diversos artigos publicados e organizou quatro livros no Brasil e no exterior.  Seu livro The Cinema of Jia Zhangke: Realism and Memory in Chinese Film foi publicado pela Bloomsbury em 2019 (Londres, Reino Unido - Honourable Mention - Best Monograph 2020 - British Association of Film, Television and Screen Studies).

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Published

2023-04-06

How to Cite

NAKAHARA, A.; MELLO, C. One country and one city: Brazilian immigrants in Japanese 21st century films. PÓS: Journal of the Arts Postgraduation Program at EBA/UFMG, Belo Horizonte, v. 13, n. 27, p. 344–367, 2023. DOI: 10.35699/2237-5864.2023.41167. Disponível em: https://periodicos.ufmg.br/index.php/revistapos/article/view/41167. Acesso em: 17 jul. 2024.

Issue

Vol. 13 No. 27 (2023): Jan-Abril - Teoria Queer/cuir e o ensino de Arte

Section

Articles - Open section

License

Copyright (c) 2023 Alexandre Nakahara, Cecília Mello

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