Tag - yu-kobayashi

 
 

YU KOBAYASHI

Japan Times
LIFE / Style & Design
Feb 27, 2016
Japan's cult brands get into character
When the topic turns to "Cool Japan" and the various related efforts to capitalize on Japan's indubitable cultural capital internationally, commendation — or more frequently the lack thereof — is easy to come by. The question of how Japan markets its own culture domestically, however, is a largely...
Japan Times
JAPAN / Society
Feb 22, 2016
Tokyo lawmaker says being gay is matter of 'personal taste,' does not merit taxpayer support
A member of the Suginami Municipal Assembly in Tokyo is drawing flak from the LGBT community for saying gay, lesbian and bisexual people refer to themselves so out of “personal taste” and thus are not worthy of support by municipal governments.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Sep 25, 2015
Miyazaki city turns to French flair in a bid to attract new residents
A city suffering from population decline has attracted nationwide attention through its promotion video, which has had over a million views on YouTube.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Jul 8, 2015
Rural migration, shaved ice and no easy endings in 'Umi no Futa'
Why not abandon your stressed urban existence, move to a picturesque part of the world and live the simple life? An old dream, but still powerful, as shown by the recent spate of Japanese movies about women getting back their grooves by relocating to a beautiful middle-of-nowhere. Usually their dream...
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics
Jun 18, 2015
National ruckus over security bills puts spotlight on Supreme Court
The verbal war over the national security bills is heating up now that Japan's constitutional scholars have clearly branded Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's reinterpretation of war-renouncing Article 9 and all legislation based on it as unconstitutional.
JAPAN / Politics
Jun 15, 2015
Scholars restate Cabinet condemnation, mock LDP's response
Two constitutional scholars who this month rekindled debate over security reforms restate their assessment of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's security bills as unconstitutional.
Japan Times
JAPAN / GENERATIONAL CHANGE
May 31, 2015
Karuizawa boarding school touts international diversity, hard truths
One tiny experience in your life may floor you and open the door to an entirely new world. Though rare, it sometimes happens when one stumbles upon a totally different culture.
CULTURE / Music
May 8, 2015
The quirky sounds of indie music find a voice in Boys Age
Around 50 people are watching Kaznary Mutow of the band Boys Age thrash his guitar on a Friday night at Shimokitazawa club Three. He's in the middle of a 10-minute-plus psychedelic freakout, locked into an intense slow-burning session with drummer Takamasa Kobayashi.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books
Mar 7, 2015
The problems and pleasure of publishing the horrors of the 3/11 tsunami
At a symposium on "Trauma and Utopia" held in Tokyo in October 2014, photographer Naoya Hatakeyama talked about his work in the aftermath of the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake and tsunami, a disaster that killed his mother and destroyed his home in Rikuzentakata, Iwate Prefecture. During this, he acknowledged...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Stage
Feb 11, 2015
Couples beware as Kayoko Shiraishi returns in intriguing style
Actress Kayoko Shiraishi is famed for her portrayals of male and female characters of all ages almost as if she were possessed by their souls.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Stage
Feb 4, 2015
Groundbreaking Bard double bill is set to surprise in more ways than one
Over the past decade, Shintaro Mori has made a name for himself in Japan's theater world as a director with a passion for plays in translation. So, true to form, next month at the ACM Theater in Art Tower Mito he is staging a double bill comprising Shakespeare's comedy "Twelfth Night" (or "What You Will"),...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Stage
Dec 17, 2014
Silence is golden in art-comedy for all
"I've been drawing pictures for as long as I can remember," Kentaro Kobayashi said when I asked him how he came to be such a versatile and popular entertainer.

Longform

Sumadori Bar on Shibuya Ward's main Center Gai street targets young customers who prefer low-alcohol drinks or abstain altogether.
Rethinking that second drink: Japan’s Gen Z gets ‘sober curious’