Chisinau hosts Japanese film festival

Chisinau, 7 October /MOLDPRES/ – The second issue of the Japanese Film Festival was inaugurated on 6 October night at the Odeon Cultural Centre in Chisinau. The event is organized on the occasion of the 25th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Moldova and Japan and is taking place until the end of 7 October.

Interviewed by the agency, Ambassador of Japan to Chisinau, Masanobu Yoshii, mentioned that the event was taking place at the Japanese Culture Week, which began on 3 October in Moldova, presenting the tradition of the Japanese ikebana culture (floral arrangement) by Sasaki Yasuhito and Zamada Midori.

According to the official, the festival aims to show the life and thinking of the Japanese people. "We hope that through the four films you will learn more about us and our country," said Masanobu Yoshii.

The first night, it was illustrated film "Thermae Romae". Its main character is Lucius (Abe), an architect of spa baths for the Roman Empire. He inadvertently travels over time and wakes up in a modern Japanese bathhouse. He takes on Japanese culture elements he learns to apply to Rome and has a great success that challenges the Emperor to command him to build a massive spa.

Films: "The Story of Samurai-style cooking" (11:00), "Mameshiba" (13:55) and "Do not watch me" (15:15) are projected on 7 October. The movies are in Japanese, with subtitles in Romanian and Russian. The entry is free.

The event is organized by the Embassy of Japan in Moldova, the Ministry of Education, Culture and Research of Moldova and Ikenobo Centre for Culture and Art.

The diplomatic relations between Moldova and Japan were established on 16 March 1992. The Japanese embassy opened in Chisinau in 2016. The first issue of the Japanese Film Festival took place on 17 – 18 March 2017 at the Odeon Cultural Centre.

(Reporter N. Roibu, editor L. Alcaza)