We are almost ready to start laying down the vocals for our popular in concert, and very political funk song CHATTER. I will keep you posted on our progress. In the meantime, have a look at one of my recent postings on Tsukublog-
On days when the light is just right and there is very little chance of rain, you might get lucky and find a colorful collection of super heroes and monsters battling it out at Tsukuba Center. For many years TV production companies have been using the Lion Pit between The Okura Hotel and The Right-On Building as an unearthly-looking set (which more importantly for the producers is free of charge!) for shooting Sunday morning kids` programs. Like me, you will probably have to ask one of the moms with toddlers who are excitedly watching the proceeding to find out the name of the show they are filming.
Today I watched the cast and crew of the popular channel 10 show Go-On-Ja(ゴオンジャ) which often uses the Tsukuba Center location. It is interesting (especially if you have small kids to bring along) to watch the actors get warmed-up, rehearse and shoot the individual shots, then get half out of costume and enjoy a cigarette break. Sometimes small explosions startle the onlookers who ring the set and are treated very politely (remember, the space is being used for free!)
The professional way Japanese film crews go about their business is impressive to watch and should be eye-opening for those who can only picture the age-old racist parody of a Japanese tv director as shown in the very popular (and perpetuator of old stereotypes) Lost In Tranlation.
For me, the bold poses taken by each character when they identify themselves or challenge each other, is reminiscent of the mudra positions introduced to Japan by Buddhist monks, most otably Saicho and Kukai more than 1000 years ago. This may sound far-fetched, but please look closely at both and you might see the connection.
No-one can predict when there will be filming at The center. But as I said earlier, there is a good chance it will be happening when the weather is favorable.
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