| DATE: | Saturday, September 27, 2008 |
|---|---|
| TIME: | 2:00 PM to 5:00 PM |
| PLACE: | PFA Theater, 2575 Bancroft Way at Bowditch |
| FORMAT: | Film Screening and Panel |
| SPONSORS: | Center for Japanese Studies, JETRO (Japan External Trade Organization)] |
The Anime Masterpieces series premieres with Grave of the Fireflies, a 1988 anime feature film written and directed by Isao Takahata, which Roger Ebert calls “an emotional experience so powerful it forces a re-thinking of animation.” Animation historian Ernest Rister compares the film to Steven Spielberg's Schindler's List and says, “it is the most profoundly human animated film I've ever seen.”
Taking place toward the end of World War II in Japan, Grave of the Fireflies is the poignant tale of two orphaned children, Seita and his younger sister Setsuko, who try to survive amidst widespread famine and the callous indifference of their countrymen. Some critics consider it one of the most powerful anti-war movies ever made.
Panelist:
Susan Napier, author of Anime from Akira to Howl’s Moving Castle
Frederik Schodt, author of Manga! Manga! The World of Japanese Comics
Ian Condry, author of Hip-Hop Japan: Rap and the Paths of Cultural Globalization
Roland Kelts, author of Japanamerica
Dan O’Neill, UC Berkeley, Moderator
Free and Open to the public.
The box office will open at 1pm. The free tickets will be distributed day of show and are on a first come, first serve basis. Seating begins 20 minutes before the start time.
