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Kazuaki Kiriya
, born April 20, 1968, is a Japanese photographer and director of films and music videos. His birth name is . He is represented by Paradigm Agency. Early life and career In 1983, in his second year of junior high school, he moved to the United States. He attended Cambridge High School and Northfield Mount Hermon School in Massachusetts and then the School of Constructed Environments at Parsons The New School for Design in New York. At first, as a student, he aimed to enter the business world, but through the experience of seeing others' pleasure when he communicated through drawing at times when his English failed him, he came to be more oriented toward the world of art. Beginning in 1994, he became involved in designing album covers, photography, and directing music videos for many recording artists including Hikaru Utada, SMAP, The Back Horn, Mr. Children, Misia, Southern All Stars, GLAY, and Ayumi Hamasaki. Kiriya made his feature film debut in 2004, writing and dir ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Asagiri, Kumamoto
is a List of towns in Japan, town located in Kuma District, Kumamoto, Kuma District, Kumamoto Prefecture, Japan. As of April 2017, the town has an estimated population of 15,796. The total area is 159.49 km2. Asagiri was created by the merger of 5 smaller towns and villages on April 1, 2003. Those included the town of Menda, Kumamoto, Menda, and the villages of Ōkaharu, Kumamoto, Ōkaharu, Ue, Kumamoto, Ue, Sue, Kumamoto, Sue and Fukada, Kumamoto, Fukada, all from Kuma District, Kumamoto, Kuma District. Soybeans, strawberries, melons and tobacco are also produced here. Asagiri is in the Kuma District region where shōchū, a popular rice alcohol is produced and consumed. The village of Sue (now part of Asagiri) was the topic of a 1939 text, ''Suye Mura, a Japanese Village'' by John Embree. The word "asagiri" translates as "morning mist". Geography Mt. Shiragatake is a designated nature reserve. * Mountains: Shiragatake * Rivers: Kuma river Adjacent municipalities * Kum ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ayumi Hamasaki
is a Japanese singer, songwriter, record producer, actress, model, spokesperson, and entrepreneur. By 2002, Hamasaki had earned the nickname "Empress of J-pop" due to her popularity in Japan and throughout Asia. Due to her success and relevance throughout her career, she is considered one of the top solo female artists of the Heisei era, both for her influence on various fashion trends and the music industry. Born and raised in Fukuoka, Fukuoka Prefecture, Hamasaki moved to Tokyo at 14 in 1993 to pursue a career in singing and acting. In 1998, under the tutelage of Avex CEO Max Matsuura, Hamasaki released her debut single " Poker Face"Oricon does not count '' Nothing from Nothing'', released by Nippon Columbia, among Hamasaki's albums. and debut major-label album '' A Song for XX''. The album debuted at the top of the Oricon charts and remained there for five weeks, selling over a million copies. This rapid rise to fame is typically attributed, among other factors, to her un ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hikari (Hikaru Utada Song)
is a song recorded by Japanese–American recording artist Hikaru Utada for their fourth studio and third Japanese language album, '' Deep River'' (2002). It premiered on March 20, 2002, as the third single from the album in Japan. It was written and composed by Utada, whilst production and arrangement was handled by Utada, their father Teruzane Utada, and long-time collaborator Miyake Akira. The single, and a remix by Russell McNamara (under the alias PlanitB), was used as the official Japanese theme song for the 2002 action role-playing video game ''Kingdom Hearts'', and appeared on its original soundtrack respectively. Musically, "Hikari" is a pop folk song. Lyrically, it is about mysteries in life and human activities. Upon its release, the track garnered positive reviews from music critics. Many critics highlighted the track as one of Utada's best singles, and commended their vocal abilities and songwriting. It was also successful in Japan, peaking at number one both on the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Traveling (song)
"Traveling" (stylized as "traveling") is a song recorded by Japanese–American recording artist Hikaru Utada. It was released as the second single from her fourth studio and third Japanese language album, '' Deep River'' (2002). The track was written and composed by Utada, whilst production was handled by Utada, her father Teruzane Utada, and long-time collaborator Akira Miyake. Musically, "Traveling" is a dance-pop song, influenced by house music. Lyrically, it discusses human activities and dreams. The song received positive reviews from most music critics. Many selected it as one of Utada's best singles, and was complimented for its production and dance-oriented composition. It was also successful in Japan, peaking at number one the Oricon Singles Chart. It was certified in two categories by the Recording Industry Association of Japan (RIAJ), and was the second best selling single of the year 2002. A music video was filmed for "Traveling" in 2001, featuring Utada as a hostess tr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Final Distance
"Final Distance" is a song by Japanese recording artist Hikaru Utada for her third studio album '' Deep River'' (2002). Written by Utada herself, the song was produced and composed by long-time collaborators Akira Miyake, Utada's father Teruzane Utada and herself. "Final Distance" was originally recorded as "Distance" which was taken from the album with the same name, despite not being a single. The song was re-recorded, re-arranged, and dedicated to Rena Yamashita, a six-year-old victim of the Osaka school massacre who had written an essay about being inspired by Utada. Musically, "Final Distance" incorporates more instrumentation than the previous version, including violins, an acoustic piano and synthesizers. The song strips the original pop music from "Distance" and is a pop ballad song. Despite being written in 2000 from the original version, Utada reflected on the emotions of sorrow, pain, anger and celebration of life while recording the single version. "Final Distance" r ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Vegetarian
Vegetarianism is the practice of abstaining from the consumption of meat (red meat, poultry, seafood, insects, and the flesh of any other animal). It may also include abstaining from eating all by-products of animal slaughter. Vegetarianism may be adopted for various reasons. Many people object to eating meat out of respect for sentient animal life. Such ethical motivations have been codified under various religious beliefs as well as animal rights advocacy. Other motivations for vegetarianism are health-related, political, environmental, cultural, aesthetic, economic, taste-related, or relate to other personal preferences. There are many variations of the vegetarian diet: an ovo-lacto vegetarian diet includes both eggs and dairy products, an ovo-vegetarian diet includes eggs but not dairy products, and a lacto-vegetarian diet includes dairy products but not eggs. As the strictest of vegetarian diets, a vegan diet excludes all animal products, and can be accompanied by ab ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Forty-seven Ronin
47 (forty-seven) is the natural number following 46 and preceding 48. It is a prime number. In mathematics Forty-seven is the fifteenth prime number, a safe prime, the thirteenth supersingular prime, the fourth isolated prime, and the sixth Lucas prime. Forty-seven is a highly cototient number. It is an Eisenstein prime with no imaginary part and real part of the form . It is a Lucas number. It is also a Keith number because its digits appear as successive terms earlier in the series of Lucas numbers: 2, 1, 3, 4, 7, 11, 18, 29, 47, ... It is the number of trees on 9 unlabeled nodes. Forty-seven is a strictly non-palindromic number. Its representation in binary being 101111, 47 is a prime Thabit number, and as such is related to the pair of amicable numbers . In science * 47 is the atomic number of silver. Astronomy * The 47-year cycle of Mars: after 47 years – 22 synodic periods of 780 days each – Mars returns to the same position among the stars and is in the same r ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Last Knights
''Last Knights'' is a 2015 action drama film directed by Kazuaki Kiriya and written by Michael Konyves and Dove Sussman, based loosely on (and Westernizing, for the most part) the Japanese legend of the forty-seven rōnin. The film, a joint production between the UK, Czech Republic and South Korea, stars Clive Owen and Morgan Freeman in the lead roles. It centres on a band of warriors who seek to avenge the loss of their master at the hands of a corrupt minister. The film had its limited release on 3 April 2015, by Lionsgate and was released to video on demand on 30 June 2015. The film was dedicated to the memory of actor Dave Legeno, who died in 2014. Plot Commander Raiden is surprised when aging nobleman Bartok makes him heir to his kingdom, a vassal to a corrupt empire. When minister Geza Mott beats Bartok for failing to provide an adequate bribe, Bartok retaliates and is put to trial where he denounces the loss of honour in the empire. Raiden is ordered to execute his mast ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Akechi Mitsuhide
, first called Jūbei from his clan and later from his title, was a Japanese ''samurai'' general of the Sengoku period best known as the assassin of Oda Nobunaga. Mitsuhide was a bodyguard of Ashikaga Yoshiaki and later a successful general under ''daimyō'' Nobunaga during his war of political unification in Japan. Mitsuhide rebelled against Nobunaga for unknown reasons in the Honnō-ji Incident in 1582, forcing the unprotected Nobunaga to commit ''seppuku'' in Kyoto. Mitsuhide attempted to establish himself as ''shōgun'', but was pursued by Nobunaga's successor Toyotomi Hideyoshi and defeated at the Battle of Yamazaki. The 13-days short reign of Mitsuhide is listed as the inspiration for the yojijukugo set phrase . He is still popular in present culture. A ceremonial activity was held on April 15, 2018, in Kyoto. Early life Akechi Mitsuhide was believed to be born on 10 March 1528 in Tara Castle, Mino Province (present-day Kani, Gifu Prefecture) Mitsuhide was a descendan ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ishikawa Goemon
was a legendary Japanese outlaw hero who stole gold and other valuables to give to the poor. He and his son were boiled alive in public after their failed assassination attempt on the Sengoku period warlord Toyotomi Hideyoshi. His legend lives on in contemporary Japanese popular culture, often giving him greatly exaggerated ninja skills. Biography There is little historical information on Goemon's life, and as he has become a folk hero, his background and origins have been widely speculated upon. In his first appearance in the historical annals, in the 1642 biography of Hideyoshi, Goemon was referred to simply as a thief. As his legend became popular, various anti-authoritarian exploits were attributed to him, including a supposed assassination attempt against the Oda clan warlord Oda Nobunaga. There are many versions of Goemon's background and accounts of his life. According to one of them, he was born as Sanada Kuranoshin in 1558 to a samurai family in service of the power ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Goemon (film)
is a 2009 Japanese historical fantasy film written and directed by Kazuaki Kiriya. It is loosely based on the story of Ishikawa Goemon, a legendary outlaw hero who stole valuables from the rich and gave them to the poor. The film is a fictional account of Goemon's exploits and his role during the final phase of Sengoku period, particularly the period leading up to the decisive Battle of Sekigahara. Like Kiriya's previous film, ''Casshern'', ''Goemon'' was filmed on a digital backlot, and made use of over 2,500 visual effects. ''Goemon'' was released in North America on DVD and Blu-ray Disc by Funimation on April 19, 2011, and features an English dubbed audio track. Plot As a child, Ishikawa Goemon's entire family was assassinated for political reasons. His mother sent Goemon away for safety minutes before he witnessed her death. Running away with his caretaker, they were attacked by bandits but he was saved by the great Oda Nobunaga. Goemon followed Nobunaga and Hattori Hanzō w ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Digital Backlot
A digital backlot or virtual backlot is a motion-picture set that is neither a genuine location nor a constructed studio; the shooting takes place entirely on a stage with a blank background (often a greenscreen) that will later on project an artificial environment put in during post-production. Digital backlots are mainly used for genres such as science fiction, where building a real set would be too expensive or outright impossible. Notable films Among the first films to introduce the technique was '' Mini Moni the Movie'' by Shinji Higuchi in 2002, predated by ''Rest In Peace'' by Stolpskott Film (2000). Others include: Released *''Rest in Peace'' ( Sweden, 2000) - Shot entirely with green-screen. Some sections fully CGI. *''Casshern'' ( Japan, 2004) – Shot on celluloid. A few practical set pieces used. *''Able Edwards'' (United States, 2004) – Shot digitally on Canon XL1 cameras. *''Immortal'' (France, 2004) – Shot on celluloid. Also showed CGI characters interacting ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
