J-Sei At the Movies: Meet Ema Ryan Yamazaki and Eric Nyari
Friday, April 15, 2022 – 6:30 pm on Zoom
Watch the documentary KOSHIEN: JAPAN’S FIELD OF DREAMS (2019), then join us on Zoom to meet director Ema Ryan Yamazaki and producer Eric Nyari.
In 2018, in anticipation of the 100th edition of Koshien — the high school baseball tournament held every summer and avidly followed in Japan — director Yamazaki selected two teams to film as they trained and competed for a spot in the highly coveted national championship. The result is a gripping documentary chronicling the hopes and dreams of coaches and players alike and the unending dedication and sacrifice that can lead to victory — or the agony of defeat. Not simply a story about baseball, KOSHIEN explores Japanese traditions and the Japanese spirit and how they fit, or not, in today’s society.
RSVP with “April Movie Night” in the subject line. You’ll receive information to watch the film on a secure site prior to the Zoom event with the filmmakers. [Note: This film is also available through the Kanopy streaming service (library membership required).]
About the Filmmakers
Ema Ryan Yamazaki (Director/Editor) graduated from New York University and became the assistant to documentary mogul Sam Pollard. She has edited work shown on HBO, PBS and CNN, among others, and has directed TV documentaries for NHK and Al Jazeera English. Her feature directorial debut, “Monkey Business: The Adventures of Curious George’s Creators” (2017), premiered at the LA Film Festival and won the Audience Award at the Nantucket Film Festival. In 2019, she directed “Koshien: Japan’s Field of Dreams,” a special co-production with NHK on the occasion of the 100th National High School Baseball Championship. It premiered at DOC NYC, aired on ESPN, and was released theatrically in Japan to great acclaim.
Ema edits all of her own work. In 2017, Ema married film producer Eric Nyari, and they frequently collaborate as producing/directing partners.
Eric Nyari (Producer) is president of Cineric Creative and international representative for renowned restoration house Cineric, Inc. He has managed 4K restorations of Kenji Mizoguchi’s “Ugetsu,” “Sansho the Bailiff,” and “A Story from Chikamatsu” with Martin Scorsese’s The Film Foundation, as well as Yasujiro Ozu’s “Late Spring” and the films of Yuzo Kawashima. Nyari has also produced numerous films in Japan, including Amir Naderi’s “Cut,” Stephen Nomura Schible’s “Ryuichi Sakamoto: Coda,” Takeshi Fukunaga’s “Ainu Mosir,” and Ema Ryan Yamazaki’s “Koshien: Japan’s Field of Dreams.”
J-Sei Movie Night Bento
April 15 Bento
For movie night, you can order specially made obento from My Friend Yuji.
Click on the button below to place your order.
You can pick up your meal at the selected pick-up time at J-Sei on Friday, April 15th. Please remember to wear a mask and observe social distance protocol. Thank you!
To order: When you click on the button above, it will take you directly to a pop-up order form on the My Friend Yuji webpage, where you first select a pickup time. In the next window, click anywhere inside the box frame to open another pop-up and select the number of bento you want to order, then click on “Add item” to close the pop-up. Click the “View order” bar at the bottom to confirm your order and click “Continue to payment” to sign in and pay for your order.
Support J-Sei At the Movies
Thanks to you, J-Sei At the Movies recently celebrated its third anniversary! We look forward to more creative programming with educational and inspiring Japanese and Japanese American films. We are especially grateful for the up close and personal chats with filmmakers as we learn so much from the exchange.
We love having a growing and enthusiastic audience. You are the best! We welcome any donations to help us offset costs for Movie Night. Thanks for considering this.