Events & Programmes Archive

To celebrate the 70th anniversary of the first ever Godzilla film, the Barbican Centre, in collaboration with the Japan Foundation, is screening the wildest Japanese monster movies from across seven decades with introductions from historians and experts. In 1954, the first ever Godzilla, a dark, thrilling movie masterpiece, was released in Japan. It was a box office phenomenon, and launched a franchise that has continued to this day. While these films featuring kaiju (literally “strange beasts”) have long been beloved in Japan, until relatively recently the reception in the west has been inconsistent, where releases with crude dubbing and savage edits to running times, making the stories incoherent, have led to mockery. Featuring Godzilla, Mothra, King Ghidorah and even a toxic smog monster, this summer kaiju season is full of the same inventiveness and sheer joy that led Godzilla Minus One to win its Oscar.

Japan is renowned for its tea ceremonies. While the more well-known chado uses matcha tea powder, gatherings involving sencha use tea leaves. The origins of sencha, and the way in which the sencha is appreciated, are also unique in that they take place against a backdrop of intellectual gatherings known as "salons", occasions originating in the mid-Edo period that are used primarily to discuss arts and culture. In this very special event, Sencha Master TSUKUDA Shio, successor to the Issa-an sencha tea school in Osaka, will give an illustrated talk about the history of sencha and the salon culture in which sencha played a key role, while also demonstrating the exquisite manner in which sencha is prepared and how it can be appreciated in daily life. Participants will even be able to enjoy sencha prepared by TSUKUDA himself!

Join us on Friday 2 August at University College London (UCL) for Space and US, the UCL-Japan Youth Challenge symposium and reception.  

Oita Prefecture's Kunisaki Peninsula and its Usa area are deemed a Globally Important Agricultural Heritage System (GIAHS) by the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization in recognition of their sustainable agricultural traditions, and are home to various local plants, including shiitake mushrooms and shichitoi (a type of tatami grass/soft rush). Shichitoi in particular is unique to the region and is revered for its superior sturdiness and durability; as such, this special plant is widely used for tatami-making, as well as other craftworks. In this very special event, HAYASHI Hiroaki, President of the Kunisaki Peninsula Usa Area GIAHS Promotion Association, will begin by giving an overview of the importance of agriculture in the region, introducing some of the materials harvested there. This will be followed by expert craftsperson IWAKIRI Chika demonstrating the making of enza (small, round cushions) using shichitoi, after which workshop ticketholders will have the unique opportunity to get hands-on with this special material as they make their very own miniature shimenawa (a type of traditional rope) and, time permitting, misanga (a type of good luck charm).

The UCL-Japan Youth Challenge is looking for volunteers to assist during this year's summer school for pre-university students!

The Japan Foundation offices (Cologne and London) will jointly hold an online teachers’ follow-up session on the topic ‘Let’s Use Chat GPT for learning Japanese’ on 13th July 2024 (Saturday).  This seminar is open both for those who attended the seminar held on 13 April 2024, and also for those who have watched the recorded video of the seminar!   The other details of the seminar, such as the theme, date and time, are as follows. Please find the event details below written in Japanese.  *Please note that information is only available in Japanese, as the seminar will be conducted in Japanese. Thank you for your understanding.     Theme: Follow-up Session: Let’s Use Chat GPT for Learning Japanese!   Date/Time: 13th July 2024 (Friday),  9:00-12:00 (BST/UTC+1)   Application Deadline: 8th July 2024 (Monday)   Online form   Eligibility: Those who attended the online seminar held on 13th April 2024          Those who have watched the recorded video of the 13th April 2024 seminar    (Video is available from https://youtu.be/MYSYReGKqPE?si=SsU9um703-GTCy5T)     Enquiries:   The Japan Foundation, Cologne:  kurse@jpf.go.jp  (Japanese / German)   The Japan Foundation, London enquiries: events.japanese@jpf.go.jp  (Japanese / English)    -------  このたび国際交流基金ケルン日本文化会館とロンドン日本文化センターの共催で2024年7月13日（土）にオンライン日本語教師研修会を開催する運びとなりました。  この研修会は、4月13日に開催されたフォローアップ研修という位置づけで行います。     

The Japanese-Language Proficiency Test (JLPT) is a test for non-native speakers of Japanese which evaluates and certifies their Japanese-Language proficiency. The test takes place twice a year (July and December) in Japan and various locations around the world. Currently, it is the largest Japanese language test in the world, with more than 1.36 million people in 87 countries worldwide having registered for the JLPT in 2019. The next JLPT will take place on Sunday, 7th July 2024. Registration will start at each test centre in March.    Please check this page for any updates on UK test centres for the July 2024 JLPT. For application opening dates and registration details, please refer to each university’s website using the links below: Japan Research Centre, SOAS University of London University of Leicester   Please note that the JLPT is very popular and registration at each test centre will close when the test centre has reached its maximum capacity. For more information about the test, please visit JLPT website. Ø  Let’s Try Sample Questions!   Ø  Download a Guide to the 2024 Japanese-Language Proficiency Test.    

Have you heard about V&A Dundee’s ongoing kimono exhibition? Perhaps you attended our online talk on kimono back in 2020? The kimono is an object of national pride in Japan, long beloved by Japanese people and influential even within the western world. Yet, unfortunately, kimono in modern Japan have been relegated to a sort of costume, worn only on specific special occasions. Perhaps the kimono, now overshadowed by western attire, is no longer considered a driving force in fashion – indeed, fashion itself is a concept generally considered to have been born in western Europe, from where it spread to the rest of the world, Japan included. But is that really the case?   Keeping this question in mind, sociologist and Japanese fashion theorist Prof. NARUMI Hiroshi will discuss how trends and aesthetics surrounding kimono came into being and changed over the course of the Edo period (1603-1868), a period during which many notable cultures flourished. Paying close attention to the trends seen among the groups active at the time – those in power, industry insiders, creators, performers, and young people – NARUMI will also explore in what ways kimono constituted fashion, and just how trail-blazing a fashion culture emerged.

ISHIMOTO Yasuhiro (1921-2012) remains one of Japan’s leading photographers. Born in the USA to a pair of Japanese immigrant farmers, ISHIMOTO studied both in Japan and at the Institute of Design in Chicago (also known as the New Bauhaus), where he was taught photographic technology by Aaron Siskind and Harry Callahan. After returning to Japan in the mid-1950s, he photographed the Katsura Rikyu (Katsura Imperial Villa). His work was praised highly, and so ISHIMOTO was pushed into fame, not least because his masterpieces were a breath of fresh air for the world of Japanese photography, employing modernistic expressions of the structural and stylistic power his photographic subjects held.   In celebration of the exhibition Yasuhiro Ishimoto. Lines and Bodies at LE BAL in Paris (19 June to 17 November), the Japan Foundation, London, together with The Photographers’ Gallery, will host a talk by ASAKURA Mei (curator at The Museum of Art, Kochi) exploring the legendary photographer while illustrating the characteristics of his works and the legacy he left. The Museum of Art to which ASAKURA belongs is home to the Ishimoto Yasuhiro Photo Center, a facility that holds almost the entirety of ISHIMOTO’s works, leaving ASAKURA uniquely positioned to share insights unmatched in depth and expertise. ISHIMOTO’s exhibition at LE BAL in Paris is supported by the Japan Foundation.

WEB Title: Online Seminar – How to Start Extensive Reading in Japanese/ オンライン研修会「日本語多読のはじめ方」 Text： The Japan Foundation offices (Madrid, Budapest and London) will jointly hold an online teachers’ seminar on the topic ‘How to Start Extensive Reading in Japanese’ on 14th June 2024 (Friday). The theme, date and time of the seminar are as follows. Please find the event details below written in Japanese. *Please note that information is only available in Japanese, as the seminar will be conducted in Japanese. Thank you for your understanding. ,  Theme: How to Start Extensive Reading in Japanese  Date/Time: 14th June 2024 (Friday),  9:00-11:00 (BST/UTC+1)  Application Deadline: 2nd June 2024 (Sunday) Online form  Enquiries:  The Japan Foundation, Madrid:  nihongo.kyoshi@jpf.go.jp  (Japanese / Spanish)  The Japan Foundation, London enquiries: events.japanese@jpf.go.jp  (Japanese / English)   ------- このたびマドリード日本文化センターが中心となり、国際交流基金の欧州3拠点共催で2024年6月14日（金）にオンライン日本語教師研修会を開催する運びとなりました。   今回のテーマは「日本語多読のはじめ方」。 『言語教育における多読』（くろしお出版）の訳者のお一人、渡部倫子先生をお呼びしての開催です。   多くの方にご参加いただけると幸いです。   テーマ：日本語多読のはじめ方 日時：2024年6月14日（金）9:00-11:00 （英国夏時間） 形式：オンライン（Zoom） 使用言語：日本語 対象：多読に関心のある方 講師：渡部倫子  先生 (広島大学 大学院人間社会科学研究科 教授) 　　　 申込：Online form（6月2日（金）） チラシ               ※ポスターの時刻は、スペイン・ポルトガル時刻で表示されています。英国、アイルランドからのご参加のみなさまは、ポルトガルと同じ時間帯です。どうぞ時差にご注意ください。   講師からのメッセージ： 日本語教育の分野で2000年代に急速に注目されはじめ、現在では多くの教育機関で実践されている多読。その目的や効果には、どのようなものがあるでしょうか。また、精読とはどんな違いがあるのでしょうか。この講演では、多読の目的を明確にしたうえで、研究結果に基づいた多読の効果や、多読を取り入れたカリキュラムのポイントや活動例などについて丁寧に紹介します。   講師略歴： 広島大学にて博士号（教育学）を取得後、岡山大学言語教育センター等で日本語教育に従事し、現在は広島大学大学院日本語教育学講座の教授として、日本語教員養成と主に言語評価に関する研究を行っている。主な著書に『言語教育における多読』（くろしお出版）、『日本語でPEACE CLIL実践ガイド』（凡人社）、『算数文章題が解けない子どもたち』（岩波書店）など。Language Assessment Quarterly,  Journal of Extensive Reading,『日本語教育学』、『第二言語としての日本語の習得研究』、『日本テスト学会誌』などに論文を発表している。日本語教育学会の理事、第二言語習得研究会のジャーナル委員長、日本言語テスト学会の研究会運営委員、広島市日本語教育総合調整会議の座長などを歴任。   問い合わせ先 : 国際交流基金マドリード日本文化センター 　nihongo.kyoshi@jpf.go.jp  

I want to try out some new activities. I wonder if there are  any activities that are fun for learners and benefctial for leaning Japanese. Are there any activities that make the most of each learner’s’ uniqueness? Learning Japanese for exams is boring. I am always looking for ideas to incorporate Japanese culture into lessons. If any of these apply to you, why not take part in the ‘Kobanashi Introductory Hands-on Workshop for Teachers’? ‘Kobanashi’ is style of Japanese sitting comedy, performed as a prelude to rakugo. ‘Kobanashi’ stories are short, and of course fun, so it is a good activity even for learners at a beginner level. You might feel that it could maybe be difficult for teachers who are not native Japanese speakers, but this is not the case. In this workshop, we will listen to stories of Japanese language education practices where ‘Kobanashi’ has been adopted, experience performing ‘Kobanashi’, then, will have time for reflecting on our own Japanese language teaching  practices until now and think about what we will pursue in the future. Lastly, you can hear some exciting news from the Japan Foundation, London! We are looking forward to your application!   Theme: Kobanashi Introductory Hands-on Workshop for Teachers Date: 9th June 2024, Sunday, 10:00 to 12:00 (BST/ UTC+1) / 11:00 to 13:00 (CEST) Venue: Online (Zoom meeting) Participation fee: Free Spoken languages: Japanese and English               * Simple and easy Japanese will be used. (A2+ to B1 level of JF Standard / CEFR)               * Slides will be bilingual, inEnglish and Japanese.   Target audience: Japanese language educators who are based in the United Kingdom and Europe * Those with NO experience of Japanese teaching practice incorporating ‘Kobanashi’ are also very welcome. *Those with an interest in Japanese language education who are not currently teaching (including students) are very welcome to attend. *In the event that we receive many applications, applicants living in the UK or Ireland will be prioritised. Maximum number of participants: 60 Facilitators (Alphabetical order): BRAND Nayuta KAMURA MIRTO Aya KAWASHIMA MakikoOFUNE Chisato TAKAGI Michiko 　　＊Advisor:HATASA Kazumi Application form: https://forms.office.com/r/u1Gb0KbXn4    　 *Application deadline: 3rd June 2024, Monday, BST/UTC+1  16:00, CEST 17:00 - Contact: The Japan Foundation, London Language Team events.japanese@jpf.go.jp (English & Japanese)

We are proud to partner with the Barbican Centre for a special screening of NAKAMURA Genji's Beautiful Mystery (1983), screening as part of Queer 80s. Political correctness flies out the window in this outrageous gay erotic comedy that satirises author and nationalist MISHIMA Yukio and his private army.    Aspiring, patriotic bodybuilder SHINOHARA is spotted by the dominant MITANI (a caricature of queer writer and ardent nationalist MISHIMA Yukio) and recruited for militia, with plans to launch a coup d'état. The soldiers have more than revolution on the mind, though, and SHINOHARA finds himself in a world of gay sex and worship of the body.    With an introduction by critic, curator, and occasional filmmaker Tony Rayns, this one-of-a-kind film is not to be missed.   *Please note this film contains a scene of rape that some viewers may find distressing.