Exploring Asian Cinema Film Studies Essay

Exploring Asian Cinema Film Studies Essay Asian cinema basically refers to films produced in the continent of Asia. East Asian cinema, Southeast Asian cinema and South Asian cinema consists of what is called Asian cinema. Nowadays, Asian cinema continues to thrive because of the so-called globalization of Asian cinema. The globalization of Asian cinema allows people from all around the world to view and experience Asian films. Hollywood is even making remakes of films from Asia, some of which include Eight Below, The Lake House, The Grudge and Dark Water. Furthermore, Asia has been producing films that are slowly catching the attention of viewers as well as scholars from all around the globe. Everywhere in the world, Asian films are being shown on an almost regular basis in film screenings, festivals and the like. But this was not always so. Most Asian countries spent the first five decades of the 20th century producing films that are largely focused on national audiences. These were the times when there were no international film festivals, the only prominent film festival prior to World War II being the Venice International Film Festival. It was in1938 when the film Five Scouts from Japan won a special prize at the said festival, paving the way for Asian cinema representation in other festivals around the globe. In 1951, Asian cinema was brought into world focus when the film Rashoman from Japan bagged the Golden Lion at the Venice International Film Festival and the best foreign language film at the Oscars (Nandgaonkar). And the rest was history. Asia is said to be the largest producer of films worldwide in terms of volume (Ciecko 1). Because of the enormity of the continent, Asian films vary in content and topic. Asian films contain universal themes such as love, life, revenge, death and poverty. They also contain slices of Asian culture, and the stamp of each Asian micro-culture can be found in each groups respective films. The micro-cultures of Asia are varied and diverse, so diverse that each is of different character and quality. This can be seen in the films made by each country. Korean cinema has been historically invisible to the rest of the world, and to some extent, to its own people. Today, the spotlight is on the country whose cinema is the heart and soul of its nations culture (Rist). In its early stages, Japanese cinema produced many documentary films or news reels including scenes of the city, dancing geishas, Sumo, royal or celebrity funerals and the Russia-Japan war (Tadao). Today, the Japanese film industry is one of the largest in the world. The films of Hongkong are popular for being action-packed and filled with martial arts stylings. The cinema forms survival depended on several factors. Martial arts films are artistically unique and are influenced by artifacts of kung fu culture as well as superstitious beliefs. In a sense, martial arts cinema can be considered as escapist, but it satisfies a more tangible cultural need which is the desire to link with tradition no matter how tenuous or imaginary (Garcia). This explains the phenomenon behind martial arts cinema. Taiwanese cinema examines the various problems that Taiwanese people have to cope up with in a modernized society. In order to create films with a more realistic relationship with history and memory, most new films are shot on location. Minor and non-professional actors are also cast to evoke a more true-to-life atmosphere. The filmmakers draw deeply on their life experiences to make their films. Today, almost every new film tries to reconstruct history to some extent (Taiwanese Cinema). The independent films of the Philippines, on the other hand, are socially relevant and contain touches of realism. There has been a recent blossoming of independent filmmaking in the Philippines, and these films have earned the Philippines international recognition and prestige. Asian Films are sorted according to genre. The genres of Asian cinema include action, animation, comedy, crime, gay films, historical epics, horror and romance. Action Action films in Asia are films centered on high physical activity and include martial arts for the most part. An example is Internal Affairs form Hongkong and most of the movies of both Jackie Chan and Jet Li. Animation Animation in Asia includes the anime industry in Japan and is directly influenced by manga or comics in Japan so that the characters have big eyes, small faces and long limbs. Example of Asian animation is Pokemon. Comedy Comedy in Asia can be found in any genre of film. There usually has some element of comedy in any Asian film. Examples of Asian comedy films are Ngem Ngem Ngem and Luang Phii Theng from Thailand. Crime Crime films in Asia are common and usually star high-profile actors such as Jackie Chan. Example of an Asian crime film is Gunman from Thailand. Gay films Asian gay films are usually comic in style and gay characters are often comic relief or villain in Asian films. Gay films such as Beautiful Boxer, however, are less comic and focus on issues of gender and identity. Historical Epics One of the staples of Asian films. Example is the Ramayana from India. Horror Recently, there was a boom in the horror film genre as films like The Grudge and The Ring were remade in Hollywood. This goes to show that Asians are very creative and that their films have spawned numbers of like films because of their originality and uniqueness. Romance One of the Asian audiences favorite genre. Example is White Valentine from Korea. When one talks about Asian cinema, one talks about the Asian culture, tradition and beliefs embedded in the films. As it is, there is no doubt that Asian culture is prominent in Asian cinema. This is why Asian cinema is a great source for understanding Asian culture. Asians incorporate Asian culture into their films by showing viewers the Asian culture, tradition and way of life. This way, viewers are able to know about the micro-cultures of the continent. For example, in the culturally significant film Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon which is a China-Hongkong-Taiwan-US co-production, the customs, beliefs and traits of the Chinese during the Qing Dynasty in China were flawlessly depicted. The characteristics of Asian cinema vary as well. Vital, diverse and changing these characterize contemporary films from East Asia which reflect the times of the region today. Meanwhile, Southeast Asia is home to a blossoming industry of independent films. South Asia, on the other hand, is home to the largest film industry in the world which is India (iFilm Connections: Asia and Pacific). Generally, strong themes characterize the films made in the continent of Asia. One of these is nationalism, a theme that can be found in almost all Asian films. Nationalism in Asian films is shown by the use of national language in Asian films. This shows the pride Asian have concerning their mother tongue. Moreover, ethnicity is shown in each film by the language used. The films are then enjoyed by foreigners through subtitles. The incorporation of Asian values and traits into their films also characterize Asian cinema. For example, family is extremely important in Asian culture (Becquet-Rasmussen). This is why in the film Tokyo Story from Japan, audiences are made to realize that family is important and to show affection to the parents while they are still alive is of grave importance. Asians are extremely friendly and helpful, as depicted in the film Seven Samurai from Japan when the samurai himself agrees to help the mountain villagers fight their oppressors in exchange of nothing but three meals a day. Asians also have respect for authority. They also have respect for their ancestors and the elderly. They are patriarchal, and in olden times females are valued less than males. These are Asian qualities seen depicted in most Asian movies, because of which foreigners are able to know Asians even more. These depictions also prove the nationalism Asians have when it comes to making films. Spirituality would also characterize Asian cinema. This is the case in point in the film Sister Stella L from the Philippines where faith and spirituality is shown by the protagonist who is a nun. Other Asian films with implicit spirituality include The Road Home from China, Departures and Throne of Blood from Japan, Apu Trilogy from India, The Cave of the Yellow Dog from Mongolia, Phorpa from Bhutan and Ghani from Bangladesh (Film and Faith 4 Seminar Explores Spirituality in Asian Films). The martial arts film emerged as a characteristically Hong Kong medium of artistic expression in the 1950s (iFilm Connections: Asia and Pacific). Asian martial arts movies, despite the recent advances in special effects technology, have two secrets great camera work and well-planned choreography (Parish). Asian cinema has a highly developed star system. Films of superstars like Jackie Chan and Jet Li dominate the industry and, in turn, earn a lot of money. This is because people flock to the theatres to see their favorite stars whom they trust to give them quality viewing experience. In these times of environmental and political uncertainty, people are looking for assurance in their lives, something that they find in the public figures that they trust. In terms of technology, Asian cinema, particularly Japanese cinema, has created a new cinematic environment that is most apparent in film production and distribution. In place of 35mm film, high definition digital video is often used to bring down production cost and is then blown up to 35mm for theatrical release. Lightweight cameras, less equipment and smaller crews are also used (Wada-Marciano). When it comes to marketing, Asian filmmakers tend to allocate less to marketing as compared to Hollywood. In Hollywood, 40% of a films total budget is allocated to marketing whereas in Asia, only 10% of a films total budget is allocated to marketing (QA Asian Films and Product Placements). Most Asian films are also marketed by first targeting the audiences in Asias three biggest most self-contained film markets China, Japan and South Korea (Frater). This has become even more so with the blossoming of Asian cinema and the fact that Asian films are being launched in film festivals around the world. Nowadays, marketing Asian films is done by using Hollywood marketing machinery to penetrate Asian territory (Frater). Today, the list of acclaimed Asian films is growing longer as more and more Asian films are being shown in festivals around the world. Foreigners get to appreciate and understand Asian culture and tradition by watching these films. According to the 1992 Sight and Sound Critic Poll, some of the greatest Asian films Asia has ever produced are: Tokyo Story from Japan This is the story of a couple who came to the city to visit their children and grandchildren. The children, however, are too busy to for their parents. After the parents return home, the grandmother dies. It is now the turn of the children to take the journey and visit their parents (Ebert). Pather Panchali from India The first film of the Apu Trilogy, the film depicts the childhood of the protagonist in the rural countryside of Bengal in the 1920s (Pather Panchali). Seven Samurai from Japan This is the story of a samurai who was hired by poor mountain villagers to fight a gang of bandits in exchange for three meals a day. He then recruits six more samurais to complete the seven needed to defend the village. Ultimately, the battle is won for the villagers and singing and rejoicing is heard while the remaining samurais watch the villagers planting the next rice crop (Synopsis for Shichinin No Samurai). Ugetsu from Japan This is the story of two ambitious peasants who want to make their fortunes. A potter intends to sell all his wares in the city in exchange for profit while his brother-in-law wishes to become a samurai (Plot Summary for Ugetsu Monogatari). The Music Room from India This tells the story of a middle-aged aristocrat in India whose estate is suffering financially but continues to engage in indulgences (Synopsis for Jalsaghar). Charulata from India The film tells the story of a lonely housewife who falls for her husbands cousin after her busy husband asks his cousin to keep her company (Charulata). Ikiru from Japan This film is about a minor Tokyo bureaucrat and his final quest for meaning (Ikiru). Sansho the Bailiff from Japan This tells the story of two aristocrat children sold into slavery (Sansho Dayu). Yellow Earth from China The film is about a Communist soldier who is sent to the countryside to collect folk songs for the Communist Revolution (Huang Tu Di). The Life of Oharu from Japan This film is about the life of a seventeenth century samurais daughter (Saikaku Ichidai Onna). Indeed, Asian cinema is slowly capturing the worlds imagination. Consider the continent of Australia. Australia is neighbor to some Asian countries like Indonesia and East Timor. Because of the geographical location and because Asian films are slowly gaining the notice they deserve, Australian filmgoers will get a dose of Asian films through the Sydney Asia Pacific Film Festival, the Hongkong Film Festival in Melbourne, Brisbane and Sydney and the Chinese Film Festival in Melbourne where several Asian films are being shown. As a result, Australians can get to enjoy and appreciate Asian cinema in all its majestic glory. Cinema is where people go to in order to relax and enjoy. This may be viewed by some as being escapist, but there is more to be benefited from cinema than mere escapism. Because of cinema, a micro-culture is revealed to unsuspecting viewers and filmgoers. Watching a film from Japan, they discover the samurai and geisha cultures. Watching a film from the Philippines, they discover that there is more to the country than Manny Pacquiao. Cinema is magical and can transport viewers to places unimaginable to him or her. Asian cinema is even more magical because the culture of an entire continent is represented in these films. Asian cinema is rich in culture and tradition, the reason why Asian films are a good media in conveying to the world a particular countrys voice. After years of being in the dark, the time of Asian cinema has come. Asian films are slowly coming out of their shells to be viewed and experienced by the whole world. This is an important key to globalization as people throughout the world are able to understand and accept cultures other than their own. The era has come when the micro-cultures of Asia will be seen by the world through a magnifying lens with no less than the use of a camera.

Cross Cultural Contact with Americans

Intercultural CommunicationRini Anggun Pertiwi 2 chsEducation A 0902443 Chapter Report: Chapter 1 Cross-Cultural Contact with Americans American, as it is explained in the beginning of chapter 1, is described as the people who were born, raised and lives in the United State. We will find that Americans are consists of many people from different races, religions and ethnics. A lot of culture, might be, live together in the same area. Before, they called it as â€Å"melting pot† where so many different culture are blending, mixing each other without decompress the culture it self.However, the term â€Å"melting pot† is no longer use by the American because, in fact, the culture is not blending or mixing to each other. They are stand side by side and keep their own color like mosaic. With this kind of variety, it is hard to explain who Americans are. Some different culture value perspective about American often occur when someone from the outside of American society exagge rate to much even though they lack of information or contact with the member of American society.This kind of stereotype, for some reason, gives a yin-yang effect when someone divides the society into â€Å"we† and â€Å"they†. They will compare about what â€Å"we† have with something that â€Å"they† have. Sometimes, â€Å"they† becomes a negative side of the comparison because the â€Å"we† see them has too much differences. With such culture variation, United States is seen as a vast country. However, America still has mainstream value that will generalize American to make them exposed the same society value, it is called as Americanization.Furthermore, American has their own way to describe the value of their culture. For example, firstly, the attitude towards privacy which sometimes miss interpreted by foreigners or non American. As it’s explained in the book, for Americans privacy doesn’t mean isolation or loneliness. Th ey considered it as the way of respect to the individual needs. Secondly, American likes to minimize status differences in their society. Without allaying the power status they make themselves equal with other. Thirdly, American focuses on progress and change.This future orientation behavior makes them want to fulfill their future needs, their value of responsibility to the life change are essentials. As this book already figure out, cross-cultural communication with American who has various ethnic groups and culture from different ancestor will shows the differences between cultural behavior and individual behavior of them. Reference: Levine, D. R. , & Adelman, M. B. (1993). Beyond Language: Cross-Cultural Communication. New Jersey: Prentice-Hall Regents.

A Trip to Spain

It was a beautiful Saturday afternoon and me and my friend Sam were hanging out at some coffee place enjoying each other's company. Sam and I have been friends since we were about five years old making our bond stronger than any of my other friends. I glanced at him and suddenly thought of a brilliant idea.Spring break was just around the corner and we both love traveling. I told him that I want to go to Italy since I have been interested in the Italian culture for the longest time. I have read a lot about the country, and even tried to learn the language for some time. I also love to watch Italian football.However, Sam indicated that he preferred going to Spain. He had a lot of Spanish friends and wanted to know more about the country. After arguing for a while, we decided to check the travel agencies in the area and take the cheapest package for a trip to Spain. This is how my friendship with Sam goes. We both have different opinions and points of view but we try to compromise to b e able to decide on things.When we arrived at the travel agency, a crowd of people wanting to book flights for their vacations welcomed us inside. Luckily, there was one available agent at the corner of the office. We approached her and stated that we were planning take a trip to either Spain or Italy for one week and we would prefer to take the cheapest offer.After a few minutes of checking their system on the computer, she related that the cheapest flight was to Malaga, which is the capital of Costa del Sol, in the south region of Spain. The package would also come along with a hotel accommodation. This was good news for us and we took the offer without hesitation.The flight to Spain was not until after a few days and I spent those days trying to prepare for the trip. I made a checklist of what I was supposed to bring. I thought very carefully of the clothes and shoes that I would bring. I also made sure that my camera was fully charged. I even did my research about Spain in the I nternet.The day of the flight to Spain came quickly. I arrived at the airport at six o'clock in the morning and found Sam waiting for me. He looked slightly annoyed because I was a bit late but I explained that my alarm clock did not go off and apologized for this.I am grateful because Sam is very understanding. If this had been some other person, he or she would not have understood and would not have accepted my apology quickly, since this was an important day for both of us. But it was Sam and this is how he really is and I am glad for this. We were lucky because our flight was delayed.At 7:30 a.m., the airplane took off the airport. The plane was full of tourists. We found our way to our assigned seats. We placed our carry-ons inside the compartment overhead and took our seats. We got comfortable and Sam began talking to the young lady next to him. I did not realize that I have fallen fast asleep. The thing I knew was Sam was waking me up because the plane was about to land.The M alaga airport was small and there were no English signs. We did not know where to go and the place was crowded with people speaking only in Spanish. Sam looked around to see if he recognized anyone from our flight. We were so relieved when we heard some English words calling those from our flight to gather around.We walked to the voice and there was a young man who looked like he was Spanish and an one old man whom I recognized from the flight. The old man asked us which city we were headed to and we indicated that we were planning to go to Malaga. They then led us to the bus that would take us to Malaga. The ride took 30 minutes before we arrived at the hotel.We approached the front desk and checked in our room. Sam was feeling tired and wanted to rest for a while but I was feeling like a tourist and wanted to explore the city at that moment. However, Sam was really persistent on resting first so I told him that I would go out alone and would come back for him after a few hours. It was sunny and warm and I had no idea where to go first.I decided to take a walk on the beach because I found the sea view amazing with the sand having no traces of trash or any unpleasant things. Walking around trying to explore the area, I sensed that someone was cooking fish and the aroma made me realize that I had not eaten except for the food, which was served in the airplane. I felt my stomach growling when I saw the restaurants lined up along the beach. I picked one that looked new from its designs and interior.The menu was written in Spanish and I only knew a few words in Spanish and found that this would be harder than I thought. I tried telling the waiter that I wanted a meal with shrimps but unfortunately, the waiter only knew a few words in English.Another waiter was called whom I presumed knew how to speak in English better. I repeated my order, which he took, and surveyed the view of the beach. While waiting for my food, I got into thinking that differences in language s can really become a barrier of communication not only in Spain but everywhere. After I finished my meal, I continued walking by the beach and tried to shop for souvenirs from the gift shops along the way.The beach was very long and I believe I walked for three to four miles before noticing that the sun was beginning to set. I went back to the hotel to wake up Sam but when I entered the room, I saw that Sam was already awake and looked like he just finished a meal.Sam was not bothered that he missed walking on the beach and simply stated that he could go the next day. This is what I liked about him. He is not someone who considers things as a big deal, which can make things complicated.At around 10:00 p.m., we decided to go to a night club, which was not too far from the hotel. The club was too big and there were a lot of people inside. I heard group of people talking in English so I felt comfortable enough to approach them. Meanwhile, Sam went to buy some drinks from the bar. The group consisted of three girls and two boys.After introducing ourselves and getting to know their names, we found out that they have arrived two days ago and experienced the same problem with the language. We all sat together in an area where the music was lower and we were able to hear each other better.We talked about numerous things but it was mostly about Spain and its culture. After the discussions, we managed to get into the center of dance floor and danced until we were too exhausted. Sam and I came back to the hotel with too much to drink.The next day, I woke up with a hangover. I looked over to Sam's bed and saw that he was awake too. We laughed as we tried to recollect what had happened the night before. Sam related that I fell asleep on the table at the club and he had to carry me all the way back to the hotel. I was shocked to hear about this because this has never happened to me before.I apologized to Sam and blamed the alcohol for my behavior. I was relieved when he sa id that it was okay since he also had a good time at the club. Sam is such a good a friend. I can always rely on him to look out for me and he does not mind this. After making more fun of me, we decided to have some breakfast.Later in the day, in the heart of Malaga, Sam and I sat in a French cafà ©, which was full of people from different parts of the world. The weather was beautiful that day so we sat outside the cafe observing the people walking by. I lit my cigarette and started drinking my cappuccino when the group we met last night approached us.The girl with the dark hair commented that it was a crazy night. I was a bit embarrassed when I remembered what happened but I agreed with what she said. We talked some more about the night before and had a good laugh. Then, I mentioned that there was a soccer game tomorrow where Barcelona would be playing against Malaga. I invited them to come with us and they quickly agreed since they had no plans for that particular day.

Adolf Hitler to Machiavellis The Prince - 1671 Words

When Machiavelli wrote The Prince in the 1500s, his intentions did not apply to the twentieth century. Some very important figures of the twentieth century used basic ideals from The Prince to obtain and maintain their position in power. One of these individuals was Adolf Hitler. Hitler used numerous Machiavellian ideas to win his respective place in Germanys government. The two most important Machiavellian principles that Hitler used were winning the people and how he dealt with cruelty and murder.Adolf Hitler, the self-proclaimed savior of the German people, was an insecure, egotistical man, who ominously controlled the German people. Hitler thought that he could change things with force, which soon got him into trouble, and†¦show more content†¦In other words Machiavelli says that human nature praises certain qualities and blame others, but there is no way that humans can do all the good things while avoiding the bad things. What makes a good prince in the eyes of Machiav elli is one that figures out how to not take so much blame when he does wrong, and tries to do as many good things as he can. For example regarding generosity and miserliness, Machiavelli says to be considered truly generous, one must be miserly at times:A prince, therefore, being unable to use his virtue of generosity in a manner which will not harm himself... should, if he is wise, not worry about being called a miser; for with time, he will come to be considered more generous... (53) In one final contrast, according to Machiavelli in regards to courage and cowardice, mercy and treachery he says That every prince must desire to be considered merciful and not cruel; never the less, he must take care not to misuse this mercy...Therefore, a prince must not worry about the reproach of cruelty, when it is a matter of keeping his subjects united and loyal (55). 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In his book called The Prince, he explains how to maintain power as a leader and maintain control over all of their subjects. Despite the fact that this book was written over 25 centuries ago in a time of violence and corruption, it still remains as a guide for leaders even in