international cinema

PROVO, Utah (April 3, 2019)—Anime. This word brings to mind different things for different people, including ninjas, magical girls, and adorable, doe-eyed protagonists. This style of animated Japanese film and television is something that has become vastly popular in the last few decades. Whereas before, anime was seen as a niche interest, it is now a very mainstream media form that appeals to people from all walks of life.

Professor Marc Yamada (Comparative Arts and Letters) discusses three main characteristics of modern anime.

In his lecture on the themes present in anime, Professor Marc Yamada noted how many times, entertainment becomes something that spans more than one type of media: “We don’t just read novels; we also watch the films, we go to theme parks, we even buy Lego sets.” Yamada used the Harry Potter series as an example, explaining how “we don’t really want a narrative experience of Harry Potter [when watching a film]; we get that in the novel. What we want are two things. The first is to be immersed in the world of Harry Potter. The second is to interact with the characters in the story.”

Yamada went on to say how characters are what connect the different media forms together. In the case of anime, several well-known anime (such as Naruto) began as manga series, Japanese visual novels or comics. Many of these eventually go on to become video games as well, but they all use the same characters that keep the different media consistent with one another.

How designers create these characters becomes the next important question to the success of anime. “The traditional way of thinking about this is there’s one creator behind these characters,” Yamada explained. “There’s a mastermind, there’s Miyazaki. He sketches these characters, creates them, and rabid anime fans consume them.”

Although this may be the traditional way of thinking of character creation, Yamada stated that it is more often a collaborative process that brings about these beloved characters: “We have to think about the larger studio that’s behind Miyazaki. It’s not just him. He has a whole studio of animators, sound technicians, all these people working together to create these characters.” Yamada went on to explain how modern fans have become more than just passive consumers. Fan bases often have great input into the creative process that both influences and inspires what the creative teams ultimately do.

In the early days of animation, all animated films had to be drawn by hand, frame-by-frame. Modern technology has drastically changed this; with the power of CGI, the animation process has become much less time-consuming. On the one hand, this change allows more anime than ever produced quickly, but on the other, the traditional ways of making anime are starting to disappear. Yamada noted how directors now are trying to preserve tradition while still taking advantage of new technology. Director Mamoru Hosoda, for example, often juxtaposes hand-drawn characters with CGI-made backgrounds. “There is an interesting tension going on in the animation world,” Yamada noted.

Rich, relatable characters, collaborative creative teams, and rising tension between traditional and modern ways of animating all come together to make anime a unique form of both art and entertainment. Within the stories of Miyazaki, Hosoda, and others can be found tales of family, of collaboration, and of the process of creating art itself. It is no wonder, then, that anime has ceased to be niche and has instead become an art form where nearly everyone can find a bit of themselves looking back at them.

—Jensyn Eubank (English ’20)

Original article published at: https://humanities.byu.edu/the-ethnographies-of-anime/

Professor Francesca Lawson (Comparative Arts and Letters) discusses the roles of gender and genre in Chinese opera, and relates it to Chen Kaige’s film Farewell My Concubine.

PROVO, Utah (March 27, 2019)—Chinese opera is one of the most world-renowned part of China’s long and rich artistic culture. Since the time of the Tang Dynasty (618–907 AD), opera has been loved by many generations. On the stage, actors portray stories of love, bravery, and sacrifice in an attempt to speak to the human heart.

One such story, the king and the concubine, has been around for hundreds of years. The folktale is based on the true story of the warlord Xiang Yu and his concubine, Yu Miaoyi. Faced with imminent defeat by the hands of enemy warlord, Xiang Yu found himself abandoned by all his men. Only his concubine stayed by his side, pledging her undying loyalty to him before committing suicide to prove she would never leave him.

Professor Francesca Lawson spoke of the genre fluidity of Chinese opera. “The idea of adaptation, which usually in the west is from novel to film, is seen on many different levels in Chinese culture, and it’s part and parcel of the culture,” she stated. “The Chinese are the best recyclers in the world. They can take any idea and find a multiplicity of ways to express it.”

Like genre, gender is fluid in traditional Chinese opera. Lawson noted how “gender boundaries are much more fluid in the Chinese culture than they are in western European and North American cultures.” She went on to explain how historically in China, opera troupes were generally all-male. As such, certain men would be chosen based on their looks and mannerisms to fulfill the Dan (female) roles.

The fluidity of the genders in Chinese opera made the male Dan extremely popular. Lawson attributed this to the fact that “Men appreciated seeing the male Dan because they could focus on the Dan’s artistry rather than become distracted by the body of a female actor.” The male Dan appealed to others as well; Lawson noted that “They were adored by women because of the sympathetic portrayal of female characters. And people of all sexual orientations enjoyed male Dan because of the inherent androgyny of the character.”

Both the fluidity of genre and gender helped lead to Chen Kaige’s film, Farewell My Concubine. Lawson recalled how at first in the story of the king and concubine, the king was the main focus of the story. This changed when, thanks to famous female impersonator Mei Lanfang, a version of the story was made for the stage where the concubine took precedence. Lawson explained how the concubine’s virtue and loyalty was highlighted, while the king became a less-important, very flawed character. From there, the story was adapted into Lillian Lee’s novel and finally into the 1993 film, Farewell My Concubine.

The film follows the stories of two opera actors as they endure nearly fifty years of China’s history, from the 1920’s through the Cultural Revolution of the 1960’s.  As both Duan Xiaolou (who plays the king) and Cheng Dieyi (who plays the concubine) have to adapt and endure their country’s changing values, the audience sees the same loyalty found in the story of the king and his concubine.

Lawson observed how “Their entire lives kind of reflect the same sort of relationship,” with both genre and gender fluidity playing major parts in the two men’s lives. The genre of stage acting becomes blurred with their real lives as the two go in and out of their roles but still reflect the values and flaws that their characters embody. Even the boundaries of gender are tested; Cheng Dieyi finds himself becoming androgynous to both himself and others on several occasions as he nearly gets lost in his role as the concubine.

By blurring traditional ideas of both genre and gender boundaries, Farewell My Concubine tells the same stories of love and sacrifice in a new way. In the end, Lawson noted, when “the pressure’s on Duan Xiaolou to ‘Give in, give in,’ he does.” Even then, when even his dearest friend has betrayed him, Cheng Dieyi stays true. Lawson concluded by saying that “the triumph of the film is really Cheng Dieyi’s enduring love both for Duan Xiaolou and for his dedication to the art of Chinese opera.”

—Jensyn Eubank (English ’20)

Original article published at https://humanities.byu.edu/gender-and-genre-in-farewell-my-concubine/

Mary Ann Shumway McFarland (current instructor of the Intro to Women’s Studies course) discusses the impact of Iraqui Yazidi genocide survivor and Nobel Peace Prize recipient Nadia Murad.  

Mary Ann Shumway McFarland lecturing about the film “On Her Shoulders” at International Cinema, March 2019.

PROVO, Utah (March 6, 2019)—Mary Ann Shumway McFarland spoke at one of the latest International Cinema lectures about Nadia Murad, winner of the 2018 Nobel Peace Prize. In 2014, Murad had been kidnapped from her home and sexually enslaved by the Islamic State (ISIS). This assault was a part of their campaign against all non-Muslims, including the monotheistic Yazidi minority group that Murad belongs to. 

Unfortunately, this type of violence against the Yazidi people is not uncommon; as McFarland noted, “Perhaps because they are a religious minority, perhaps because they have no written book of scripture, they have been targeted many, many times by larger religious groups.” 

Thankfully, Nadia Murad was able to escape her captors after three months of torment. Now, she works to raise awareness for those still held captive by ISIS. McFarland commented on the immense courage and strength Murad has demonstrated in speaking up for those still captive. Rather than letting her experiences break her, Murad has allowed her experiences to strengthen her.  

McFarland noted that in modern politics it is often difficult to get the right people to listen to the whole story. She remarked that “Nadia Murad is trying to. . . condense [the details of her story], to bring them down to a time where important people have the attention span to listen to her story.” 

Many have listened. Since Nadia Murad won the 2018 Nobel Peace Prize, many people know her name and story. The documentary film On Her Shoulders (Alexandria Bombach, 2018) has been made to help bring Nadia Murad’s story to those who have not yet heard it. To conclude, McFarland shared her hope that those who watch the film “will see we actually have a lot in common with Nadia Murad even though she’s from the other side of the world.” McFarland also urges us to “watch what [Nadia Murad’s] lifestyle is as she becomes a spokesperson and a mouthpiece for her people . . . [and] appreciate the fact that you are already in a place that is aware of situations like [Murad’s] and is actively working on how to assist and help women globally.” 

—Jensyn Eubank (English ’20) 

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on the College of Humanities Website.