Katsuhiko Abuno, "Sayonara TV: The Meaning of Filming Documentaries" Summary and Impressions - A great book that touched me with the author's thoughts on "craftsmanship".
I would like to introduce "Sayonara TV: Filming Documentaries" by Katsuhiko Abuno, published by Heibonsha in 2021.
Let's take a quick look at the book.
There are realities in this world that we cannot comprehend. Far out there in the unknown...
The TV industry's most gifted documentary filmmaker, who has produced such popular works as "Sayonara TV," "Life Fruits," "Yakuza and the Constitution," "Homeless Chancellor," and "Jingu Korin," presents an experiential documentary theory for "future filmmakers.
While being shaken by figures such as viewer ratings, income and expenditure, and competition with competitors for market share, television has been sinking further into the desert due to the shift to multiple media. It was in the midst of this struggle that we arrived at the road to the nationwide screening of documentaries originating from television.
Why has television, once a popular medium, become boring? What are taboos in expression, how to distance oneself from the subject to whom the camera is pointed, and what is direction in documentary. ...... A must-read for all media people.If terrestrial TV cannot produce appealing programs, it will be the end of terrestrial TV. What is needed is to maximize the mobilization of human resources in the departments that can produce them and remind them that "it is television after all. There is no future for television if the stations continue to play a war of attrition with wide-ranging shows and variety shows, which are like a well-wisher's talk show on every channel.
They have no choice but to challenge themselves as children do, to struggle, to feel lost, to suffer, and to continue to put so much passion into their program productions that their stomachs twist and turn. I believe that the "God of Television" appears before such creators. The "God of Television" does not appear in front of an organization, but in front of each creator. When many TV people come to believe in the "God of Television," people may think, "Television is interesting after all.Katsuhiko Abuno: Born in Ito City, Shizuoka Prefecture in 1959, Abuno joined Tokai Television after graduating from Doshisha University in 1981 with a degree in Literature. After working as an announcer, director, reporter stationed in Gifu, and head of the news bureau's specialized bureau, he currently works as a general producer. of "Tokai TV Documentary Theater" won the Kan Kikuchi Award. Other awards include the Hosojin Grand Prix, the Japan Press Club Award, the Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology's Art Encouragement Prize, and the Hoso Bunka Foundation Award for Individual Achievement.
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I picked up this book after a friend who works in the media industry recommended it to me. If he, who is at the forefront of the field, recommended this book as interesting, there was no doubt in my mind that it would be a good read. I couldn't stand still and headed for the bookstore.
And when I started reading it, I was immediately convinced. It was a terrific book.
As mentioned in the book introduction above, the author, Katsuhiko Abuno, is a true TV man who worked as an announcer, director, and producer for Tokai Television.
This book will be a work in which the author, who has been on the front lines of such a TV industry, talks about its problems and his thoughts on documentary production.
Now, speaking of Tokai TV, you may remember the "Cesium-san Incident" a few years ago. In this book, from the first chapter, the story will be related to this incident. We will learn why the incident occurred and what was going on in the background. According to the author, such an incident was inevitable, and the internal situation of the TV industry was that dire.
In such a situation, the author, as a TV person, is earnestly devoted to documentary production. Through documentary production, he continues to express what television is, what it is for, and what news reporting should be.
As mentioned in the book introduction above, Katsuhiko Abuno has produced many critically acclaimed documentaries, including "Sayonara TV," "Life Fruits," "Yakuza and the Constitution," and "Jingu Korin. In this book, you will hear about the behind-the-scenes process of making these documentaries and his thoughts on these works.
In recent years, the rise of social networking services has led to a decline in viewer ratings and even the derision of television as "mass trash. The current situation is that the reliability of television is not as good as it used to be. Facing such "reality that makes us want to turn away," the author talks straightforwardly about why this has happened and what should be done about it in the future.
Reading this book made me think that this is true not only for the "TV industry" but for any industry in Japan. And of course, the "temple industry" where I am ...
The structural disease of Japan is here. I strongly felt this when I read this book. The author talks about the problems through television and the mass media, but the book is full of big questions that do not stop there.
I was also surprised to learn that the author was born in a temple. His older brother is following in his footsteps, so Mr. Abuno is now working outside of the temple, and in this book, he talks about the hardships of being born in a temple. In this book, he also talks about some of the hardships that only a person born in a temple can face. He also talks about how the things he learned because of his temple background are still alive today. As someone who was born and raised in a temple myself, I could relate to what Mr. Abuno said. It is not always easy, but there is a sensitivity that is unique to temples. I was greatly inspired by the fact that this sensibility can be used on the front lines of the media.
There are so many words I would like to introduce, but I would like to introduce some of the most memorable ones here.
One's own experiences can be the gas pedal or the brake of a documentary. Everything may be a lowly event, but what sustains the filmmaker is his or her everyday life.
Heibonsha, Katsuhiko Abuno, Sayonara TV: The Meaning of Filming Documentaries, p. 85
These are words from a chapter written about a documentary titled "Yakuza and the Constitution. The above words were spoken as a summary of the story, which progressed from an episode of a yakuza boss's funeral at a temple when he was a child, to the story of a family of street vendor bosses when he was a reporter on assignment in his early 30s.
this (something or someone close to the speaker (including the speaker), or ideas expressed by the speaker)What sustains the producer is his daily life."I saw this and thought to myself, "Oh, my God! When I saw this, I thought, "Ah!
I have recently been reading books by Yukio Ninagawa and Tsutomu Yamazaki because of their Shakespearean works, and I have found this "respect for the everyday" to be a very important aspect of their work.The Actor's Notebook."It was stated in the
I think the dynamism of acting that we have been aiming for since the beginning is being realized. Emotional acrobatics. We enjoy leaps of emotion and consciousness that would not be possible in everyday life. However, the foundation of the performance is based on everyday emotions. The emotions on stage are the result of boiling down, compressing, and expanding everyday emotions.
The conventional so-called shingeki acting was really empty and lacking in reality. Tamori used to imitate Shingeki actors in his TV comedy, but that false pattern of acting has now become a parody.
Why did we end up with such empty acting? I think it is because we have forgotten that the materials for creating acting are found in everyday life. You cannot practice acting on stage. It is no good trying to learn technique by watching excellent acting or directing. The performance and direction are unique to the individual. What is important is in one's daily life.
Actors rehearse diligently and perform on stage. They also diligently go to the theater to watch and study other people's plays. They carry their plays with them. They are always thinking about the play. All they can think about is the play. They are probably worried that they will cease to be actors if they are not in constant contact with the theater. All of his daily time, except for the time he spends in the theater, is time that he is unwilling to spend.
Shingeki actors often talk about their plays on the set of a movie or TV show. Did you see "The Cherry Orchard"? Yes, I did. It was a little underdirected. I'm thinking of doing a becket next time. Oh, I'm looking forward to it. I'm getting fed up with it. Only these people can't even read a TV script, and they act like idiots. No, it's not acting. It's acting. I guess they work in film and TV to earn a living and are unwilling to spend their time on it.
Stop talking about the play on the set. Be interested in the people in front of you, in what is happening right now. There are many interesting things going on. Don't turn your back on everyday life. They are lackluster in front of the camera. They are exhausted. They are unwilling to spend time in pain.
Bungeishunju, Tsutomu Yamazaki, Actor's Notebook, p. 332-333
As I mentioned earlier, my recent study of Shakespeare's plays led me to read Yukio Ninagawa's book. It seems to me that what Mr. Ninagawa has to say overlaps with what Mr. Yamazaki is saying here.
Ninagawa was also a director who exposed himself to actors and demanded strictly that they go further than mere verbal performances. He had harsh words for theater people who had become headstrong and word, word, word. I don't know what Mr. Yamazaki thinks of Mr. Ninagawa, because the book doesn't say, but I felt something in the words of these two men who pursued the theater to the hilt that I believe is common to the very best of craftspeople.
Also, the lastStop talking about the play on the set. You should be interested in the people in front of you, in what is happening right now. There are many interesting things going on. Don't turn your back on everyday life. They are lackluster in front of the camera. They are exhausted. They're unwilling to spend time in pain."I would also like to keep in mind the words "I am a good person. In another passage, paraphrase this further,After all, we should all be moved by the emotions of our own size, not by what we have read or heard. The extract of the drama is not in what we read or hear, but in our own daily life. We must have more faith in that. We must look at the everyday. (p. 336)"He stated. Ah, what heavy words...
What I felt through these words of Mr. Yamazaki and Mr. Abuno hereWhat sustains the producer is his daily life."I was very impressed with what he said.
Of course, Mr. Yamazaki is a performer, and Mr. Abuno is a director or producer, so their positions are different. However, I think they share the same spirit of "monozukuri" (the art of making things), which is to create a "good stage" and a "good work.
In "Good-bye TV," we will see more and more about the worsening "manufacturing environment. But even in such a situation, the author continued to fight.
I am also currently working on a historical novel about Shinran Shonin, founder of Jodo Shinshu. It has already been four years since I started the idea, and it will take at least two more years to complete. This is the very reason why I am continuing to study the theme of "Shinran and Dostoevsky".
I, too, am currently engaged in "monozukuri" (the art of making things). For me, it was a truly gratifying experience to hear the voice of someone who is sincerely and stoically devoting himself to "monozukuri" in the "world of expression" called the media.
I feel as if it is some kind of fate that I came across this book at this time. I am very grateful to my friend who introduced me to this book.
This is a great book that I recommend especially to those who are interested in the media and those who are involved in "manufacturing". It is also a work that will help you learn about the roots of corporate systems and organizations that do not value people. It also says a lot about Ms. Kirin Kiki, with whom Mr. Abuno worked a lot, and you can learn about her enormous human appeal.
I, too, want to move forward as a person who lives in "monozukuri". This work has rekindled in my heart the strong feeling that I will surely do it. I encourage everyone to pick up a copy.
The above is "Katsuhiko Abuno's "Sayonara TV: The Meaning of Filming Documentaries" - a masterful book that was touched by the author's thoughts on "monozukuri.
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