As part of the Japanese Film Festival (JFF) Special Series spotlighting remarkable works from the prolific 1930s, this rare mini program brings to Australia the restored and digitised kami eiga (“paper films”) of pre-war Japan. Introduced by Professor Eric Faden (Bucknell University, USA), the project breathes new life into these long-forgotten treasures, pairing 75 minutes of beautifully preserved imagery with a live Japanese koto and cello performance by Duo YUMENO, fresh from their recent Japan tour.
Presented by the Australian Cinémathèque in association with the Art Gallery of New South Wales and ACMI, in partnership with The Japan Foundation, Sydney as part of the Japanese Film Festival 2025, this event offers a glimpse into a unique chapter of Japanese film history.
Professor Eric Faden
Professor Eric Faden is a film scholar at Bucknell University (USA). He specialises in early and pre-cinema, producing videographic works that imagine how academic scholarship might appear as audiovisual media.
© Emily Paine
Duo YUMENO
Duo YUMENO are New York based koto / shamisen player and singer Yoko Reikano Kimura and cellist Hikaru Tamaki. They create a singular fusion sound, inspired by tradition but with a contemporary sensibility.
© Robert Essel
Credit: お月さん OTSUKI – MR. MOON, PRINT COURTESY OF THE KYOTO TOY FILM MUSEUM
Credit: かっぱ踊り / KAPPA ODORI, PRINT COURTESY OF THE MACHIKO KUSAHARA COLLECTION
Credit: 浦島太郎 / URASHIMATARO, PRINT COURTESY OF THE KYOTO TOY FILM MUSEUM
Credit: お月さん OTSUKI – MR. MOON, PRINT COURTESY OF THE KYOTO TOY FILM MUSEUM
Brisbane
19 November
QAGOMA
Lecture
18:30 – 18:45
Screening
Approx. 18:45 – 20:00
Ticket Prices
General: $20
Concession: $18
QAGOMA Members: $16
Sydney
23 November
Art Gallery of NSW
Lecture
14:00 – 14:15
Screening
Approx. 14:15 – 15:30
Free of charge
Melbourne
27 November
ACMI
Lecture
19:00 – 19:15
Screening
Approx. 19:15 – 20:30
Ticket Prices
General: $25
Concession: $21
ACMI Members: $19
