[Documentary Film Screening] Okinawa: The Afterburn
When:
Friday, Nov 04, 2016 4:00p -
6:30p
Friday, Nov 04, 2016 4:00p -
6:30p
Where:
Tsai Auditorium (S010), CGIS South Building, Harvard University
1730 Cambridge Street
Cambridge, MA 02138
Admission:
FREE
Categories:
Film, Lectures & Conferences, University
Event website:
http://rijs.fas.harvard.edu/programs/calendar.php
Friday, November 4, 2016
4:00-6:30 PM
Running Time: 121 minutes
OKINAWA: The Afterburn
(Okinawa: Urizun no Ame)
Directed by John Junkerman
Produced by YAMAGAMI Tetsujiro
In 1945, the Japanese island of Okinawa was the site of the longest and bloodiest battle of the Pacific War. Still today, with 32 American bases, it remains a bastion of US military power in East Asia. After their island was literally burned to ashes, the Okinawan people developed a deep-seated aversion to war, but the island was fated to be the launching pad for American wars in Korea, Vietnam, and the Middle East.
Acclaimed in Japan since its June 2015 release, Okinawa: The Afterburn is the first film to provide a comprehensive picture of the battle and the ensuing occupation of the island by the US military. This revised, updated English version provides timely context for the ongoing controversy over the construction of a new Marine Corps base on Okinawa.
The Battle of Okinawa lasted 12 weeks and claimed the lives of 240,000 people. This film depicts the story through the eyes of Japanese and American soldiers who fought each other on the same battlefields, along with Okinawa civilians who were swept up in the fighting, complemented by extensive archival footage from the US National Archives.
The film also depicts the history of military dominance and popular resistance from the postwar occupation (which lasted until 1972) through the present. Okinawa: The Afterburn is a heartfelt plea for peace and an expression of deep respect for the unyielding spirit of the Okinawa people.
This ambitious documentary was directed by the American filmmaker John Junkerman. His previous films include Uminchu: The Old Man and the East China Sea, featuring the rugged beauty of the Okinawan island, Yonaguni; and Japan’s Peace Constitution, exploring the global significance of Japan’s pacifist national charter.
* Best Documentary 2015, Mainichi Film Awards
* No. 1, Kinema Jumpo Best Ten Documentaries 2015
* Grand Prize, Koenji Documentary Film Festival, Tokyo
* Yamagata International Documentary Film Festival
This film is part of the Reischauer Institute Japan Forum’s 2016 Film Series. The screening will be followed by a question and discussion session with the Oscar-award winning documentary director John Junkerman. The event is free and open.
Tsai Auditorium is located in room S010 on the lower floor of CGIS South Building, 1730 Cambridge Street, Cambridge, MA 02138.
