KYOTO INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL

When movies did not yet have sound, Japanese movie theaters enjoyed silent films accompanied by narration by a benshi narrator along with a live musical performance. The movies were called katsudo shashin, which means moving pictures, and benshi narrators and shows with katsudo shashin and benshi narrators were called katsuben.

However, it is the Reiwa Era now. Today, at a time when it is commonplace to hear voices in movies, the spotlight once again falls on benshi narrators who can talk about silent films in a clearer and easier-to-understand manner.

Ichiro Kataoka, a leading benshi narrator in this field, will lead a workshop in which children, the future leaders of the Japanese film industry, will learn the fun of katsuben and experience firsthand what it is like to be a benshi narrator.

Maybe this workshop will lead to the birth of a future benshi narrator of katsudo shashin moving pictures!

Music

Haruka Amamiya