Defying criticism, Taiji pushes forward with bold plans based on continued dolphin hunts
A few years back, the normally sleepy town of Taiji in Wakayama Prefecture was filled with activists furious with its traditional dolphin hunt, which was featured in "The Cove," a 2009 Academy Award-winning documentary. But as the fury ebbs, the town is now betting its ...
Japanese director's pro-whaling documentary wins award at London film festival
A 2015 documentary on local supporters of Japan’s traditions of whaling and dolphin-hunting won an international film festival award Saturday in London.
Documentarian Megumi Sasaki hopes to bring balance to the story of Taiji in 'A Whale of a Tale'
At the 2010 Academy Awards, a film titled "The Cove" won the Oscar for best documentary. It was a proud moment for producers Fisher Stevens and Paula DuPre Pesmen, director Louie Psihoyos and activist Ric O'Barry, all of whom got on stage to accept ...
Taiji's dolphin hunters have a new voice
It's not often a documentary is made in response to another documentary, but this year two movies have addressed the 2009 Oscar-winning documentary "The Cove," which was about the capture and killing of wild dolphins in Taiji, Wakayama Prefecture. First-time filmmaker Keiko Yagi's "Behind ...
Japanese pro-whaling documentary to be screened at U.S. film festival
A documentary introducing the voices of Japanese people who support whaling and dolphin hunting will be screened at a U.S. film festival in October, its director said Thursday. "Behind the Cove — The Quiet Japanese Speak Out!" will be screened on Oct. 1 during the ...
Documentary 'Behind "The Cove"' aims to promote multisided understanding of Japanese whaling
A Japanese woman hopes a documentary she has made will help opponents of Japan's hunting of whales and dolphins acquire a better understanding of the practice. "Japanese have failed to argue against the criticism, mostly from the West, because silence is a virtue in Japan ...
Japan's unofficial rebuttal to 'The Cove'
For the past few weeks I've been having flashbacks of a video that a vegan acquaintance posted on Facebook. Shot on a hidden camera, it depicted hundreds of fluffy male chicks getting conveyed into an industrial grinder, their punishment for being deemed surplus to ...
The fate of a dolphin activist in Japan's flawed democracy
Japan can change its image as the democracy where dissent is in detention by holding a debate with dolphin hunt opponent Ric O'Barry before expelling him.
U.S. animal rights activist Ric O'Barry, star of "The Cove," an Oscar-winning documentary about the fishing village of Taiji, Wakayama Prefecture, where dolphins are trapped and hacked to death, has been ordered to leave Japan. O'Barry, the former dolphin trainer for the "Flipper" TV series, was detained ...
Ric O'Barry, opponent of Japanese dolphin hunt, detained at Narita
Ric O'Barry, a prominent advocate for ending the dolphin hunt in Taiji, Wakayama Prefecture, was detained Tuesday by immigration authorities at Narita International Airport. O'Barry, who was featured prominently in the Oscar-winning documentary "The Cove" about the Taiji hunt, was barred entry when immigration officials ...
Threatening letter sent to museum demands halt to dolphin hunt
A threatening letter has been sent to a whale museum in Taiji, Wakayama Prefecture, demanding that local fishermen halt controversial drive hunts of dolphins, police said Thursday. The letter, handwritten in Japanese, said, "Stop drive hunts of dolphins now!" and "I cannot contain (my anger) ...
Taiji drops anchor on dolphin hunts despite increasing pressure
On the harbor road heading east toward Tomyozaki Point, there is a moss-encrusted monument dedicated to an ill-fated whaling expedition in 1878. Facing fierce westerly winds, the fishermen released their catch, a right whale and her calf, and tied their boats together with nets ...
