B. Study of Ethnographic Films as Research Materials

Type of Research	Scientific Research
Project Title	General Study of Materials and Advanced Historical Information of Artifacts
Research Title	B. Study of Ethnographic Films as Research Materials
Head of the Research Team	UCHIDA Junko
Research Period	2004–2006
Research Team	SATO Makoto (Kyoto University of Arts and Design) MIYATA Kimiyoshi KURUSHIMA Hiroshi AOKI Talahiro UENO Kazuo KOIKE Jun'ichi SINOHARA Toru SHINTANI Takanori TSUNEMITSU Toru SEKIZAWA Mayumi MATSUO Tsunekazu YASUMURO Satoru YAMADA Shin'ya
Purpose	Since 1988, the NMJH has produced ethnographic films in order to conduct ethnographic research. In this cooperative research, the staff who have already produced a film and staff who will produce one in the future dicsuss the problems faced in film production, how to implement the successes and overcome the problems to produce a new film, and to create a guideline which shows the entire the process from beginning to end: preparation – production – storage – utilization.

2006

Progress

Workshop

1st June 25
Venue: Main building MATSUO Koichi UCHIDA Junko
2nd November 12
Venue: Main building UCHIDA Junko
3rd March 19
Venue: National Museum of Ethnology Visit Minpaku's institution affiliated with films. Reconsideration of the guidelines for making ethnological films.

Result

【Production of new ethnographic film】
"People who support the ancient Yamato temples: Doji and Dodoji (tentative name)" This film aims to record the annual ceremonies of these temples and people who support them, centered on Kofuku Temple, Kasuga Shrine and Yakushi Temple. The annual ceremonies are ancient festivals for the protection of the country and for peace. These ceremonies are different from ordinary funeral rites and Buddhist memorial services, which have been organized by many temples since Kamakura Buddhism. These temples do not have danka or danna, and the ceremonies were performed by family lines called "doji" and "dodoji". From ancient times until the modern era, and in the case of some ceremonies over a thousand years, these families contributed a great deal to maintaining the ceremonies. This film discusses the characteristics of and focuses on roles of "Doji" or "Dodoji" in ceremonies, which at the beginning were for protecting the country, and turned into regional ceremonies where have been inherited to the present day. Throughout this year, we filmed the following ceremonies, but it must be noted that some ceremonies are only performed every other year, or at the beginning of the year. So we plan to take some filmed parts from the previous year (Koufukuji, Jionkai), edit them and complete the film in the following year. May Koufukuji, Kasuga Shrine, Takigi Noh （Since it was called off due to rain, we filmed in the following year） September Yakushiji, Yasumigaoka Hachiman Shrine, sumo ceremony October Nara–tsuhiko Shrine, Okina–mai December Kasuga Shrine, Kasuga Wakamiya Onmatsuri February Koufukuji, Demon Chasing Ceremony February～March Hanaeshiki, Yakushiji, Hanatsukuri, Do–sogon March～（April）Hanaeshiki, Yakushiji
【Production of an English version】
"AINU: Past and Present－The Legacy of Neil Gordon Munro's Film" We reedited the Japanese version and made a short Japanese version for the public with an English version.
【Film Release】
Meeting of the Japanese Ethnological Film Society (March 17, organized at the National Museum of Ethnology), we released "AINU: Past and Present– what we can see from Munro's films".
【NMJH Film Forum】
February 3 Venue：Tsuda Hall Starting this year, the "NMJH Film Forum" was created to promote ethnographic films to the public. In this year, for the first forum, based on the theme "modern funeral rites", we released to the public the film "Modern funeral rites" (Production staff: Shinya Yamada). We produced it in 2005, and held discussions over related themes.

2005

Progress

Workshop

1st July 18, 20
Venue: National Museum of Japanese History Second Conference Room, Auditorium YAMADA Shin'ya
2nd November 27
Venue: National Museum of Japanese History Reception Room, Auditorium OMORI Yasuhiro(National Museum of Ethnology, Professor of Cultural Research)
3rd March 13
Venue: National Museum of Japanese History Training Room, Auditorium MIYATA Kimiyoshi Same day Veue: Pnromotion Foundation for Aeronautical Sciences, Rekishidensho Committee Visit collection of materials related to Shinsuke Ogawa (Guide: Yukie Hatano)
【Production of new ethnographic film】
UCHIDA Junko

Result

【2005 Ethnographic film document "AINU：Past and Present", video】
Munro, a doctor who came to Japan from Scotland in 1890, was interested in archaeology and ethnography and began studying Ainu culture. He began by noticing starting that patterns on Jomon ware are similar to patterns on Ainu artifacts. In his last 10 years, beginning in 1932, he resided in Hiratori–cho Nibutani, Hokkaido, while providing medical care for free to Ainu people suffering from tuberculosis, and he conducted researche on Ainu culture. His research papers are separately owned by the British Museum, Pitt Rivers Museum, National Museum of Scotland, Historical Museum of Hokkaido, and National Museum of Japanese History. Among these museums, the National Museum of Japanese History owns the film of "Sending off the Bear" by Munro, and film negatives of other Ainu ceremonies, antiquities, and people. The ethnographic film of this year is produced for the purpose of clarifying the history of the film of "sending off the bear" went through, by researching the films left by Munro and the materials related to them. We clarified the process of filming and editing directed by Munro, the purpose and the history of the film, through films, photographs, letters by Munro and interviews. By interviewing the people of Nibutani, we were able to consider the meaning of the records of Ainu culture left by Munro, and connect it to the present Ainu people and their cultural inheritance. Production staff Junko Uchida

【2005 Ethnographic film document "AINU：Past and Present", video】

Munro, a doctor who came to Japan from Scotland in 1890, was interested in archaeology and ethnography and began studying Ainu culture. He began by noticing starting that patterns on Jomon ware are similar to patterns on Ainu artifacts. In his last 10 years, beginning in 1932, he resided in Hiratori–cho Nibutani, Hokkaido, while providing medical care for free to Ainu people suffering from tuberculosis, and he conducted researche on Ainu culture. His research papers are separately owned by the British Museum, Pitt Rivers Museum, National Museum of Scotland, Historical Museum of Hokkaido, and National Museum of Japanese History. Among these museums, the National Museum of Japanese History owns the film of "Sending off the Bear" by Munro, and film negatives of other Ainu ceremonies, antiquities, and people.

The ethnographic film of this year is produced for the purpose of clarifying the history of the film of "sending off the bear" went through, by researching the films left by Munro and the materials related to them. We clarified the process of filming and editing directed by Munro, the purpose and the history of the film, through films, photographs, letters by Munro and interviews.

By interviewing the people of Nibutani, we were able to consider the meaning of the records of Ainu culture left by Munro, and connect it to the present Ainu people and their cultural inheritance.
Production staff Junko Uchida

2004

Progress

Workshop

1st June 19– 20, 2004
Venue: National Museum of Japanese History, Second Conference Room, Auditorium UENO Kazuo YAMADA Shin'ya SATO Makoto
2nd October 31, 2004
Venue: National Museum of Japanese History, Second Conference Room UCHIDA Junko OKADA Kazuo
3rd February 14, 2005
Venue: National Museum of Japanese History, Second Conference Room, Auditorium MIYATA Kimiyoshi MINATO Chihiro HIGA Masao
【Producing new ethnographic films】
YAMADA Shin'ya
【Creating digital archives】
Ethnographic film "The gods of Izumo", produced in 2003

Result

【2004 Ethnographic film "Modern funeral rites"】
Recently, funeral rites have changed a great deal. The reasons for this originate with changes in family structure, the dissolving of local community, changes in industry and development of funeral business corresponding to these changes. Therefore we produced ethnographic films and centered on mourning families, the local community, and funeral business people, aiming to grasp aspects of culture which cannot be understood by by the written word alone, and to record people's actions when facing death. The film is in four parts. "Changes in Local Society and the Funeral Business: Iida Shimoina Region" (45 minutes) "A Funerals at a Suburban Crematorium: Sasaki Family, Iida–shi" (45 minutes) "Funerals at the Public Facilities of a Village: Miyajima Family, Shimojo–mura" (45 minutes) "Facts gleaned from a Funeral Supplies Wholesaler" (45minutes) In "The Change of Local Society and Funeral Business: Iida Shimoina Region", we recorded the funeral customs and the related modern changes in a region centered around Iida–shi, Nagano, and compared them with conventional customs. Iida has developed funeral customs which are geographically and historically unique, but they are experiencing great changes due to influences of nationwide trends. The funeral business has developed mostly by quickly responding to the regional acceptance levels. We recorded how people faced death under such social changes. "A Funeral at a Suburbian Crematorium: Sasaki Family, Iida–shi" and "A Funeral at the Public Facilities of Village: Miyajima Family, Shimojo–mura" describe the actual process of modern funeral rites, and we tried to contrast between the funeral at the crematory, and the funeral at the public facility of the village. These records were made available thanks to cooperation of the bereaved families. In "Facts gleaned from a Funeral Supplies Wholesaler," we focused on the first nationwide funeral supplies wholesaler in Japan, and through his daily activities, took note of the distribution of information about funerals. The nationwide funeral supplies wholesale business was established in a high economic growth period, and since distribution of funeral wares and information have changed a great deal, funeral rites, which were usually unique to every region, became homogenized. Also, the change in distribution promoted the industrialization of funeral supplies, has largely influenced both the suppliers and funeral directors, and shaped the funeral rites in the postwar period. Production staff Shinya Yamada (Head), Junko Uchida

【2004 Ethnographic film "Modern funeral rites"】

Recently, funeral rites have changed a great deal. The reasons for this originate with changes in family structure, the dissolving of local community, changes in industry and development of funeral business corresponding to these changes. Therefore we produced ethnographic films and centered on mourning families, the local community, and funeral business people, aiming to grasp aspects of culture which cannot be understood by by the written word alone, and to record people's actions when facing death. The film is in four parts.

"Changes in Local Society and the Funeral Business: Iida Shimoina Region" (45 minutes)

"A Funerals at a Suburban Crematorium: Sasaki Family, Iida–shi" (45 minutes)

"Funerals at the Public Facilities of a Village: Miyajima Family, Shimojo–mura" (45 minutes)

"Facts gleaned from a Funeral Supplies Wholesaler" (45minutes)

In "The Change of Local Society and Funeral Business: Iida Shimoina Region", we recorded the funeral customs and the related modern changes in a region centered around Iida–shi, Nagano, and compared them with conventional customs. Iida has developed funeral customs which are geographically and historically unique, but they are experiencing great changes due to influences of nationwide trends. The funeral business has developed mostly by quickly responding to the regional acceptance levels. We recorded how people faced death under such social changes.

"A Funeral at a Suburbian Crematorium: Sasaki Family, Iida–shi" and "A Funeral at the Public Facilities of Village: Miyajima Family, Shimojo–mura" describe the actual process of modern funeral rites, and we tried to contrast between the funeral at the crematory, and the funeral at the public facility of the village. These records were made available thanks to cooperation of the bereaved families.

In "Facts gleaned from a Funeral Supplies Wholesaler," we focused on the first nationwide funeral supplies wholesaler in Japan, and through his daily activities, took note of the distribution of information about funerals. The nationwide funeral supplies wholesale business was established in a high economic growth period, and since distribution of funeral wares and information have changed a great deal, funeral rites, which were usually unique to every region, became homogenized. Also, the change in distribution promoted the industrialization of funeral supplies, has largely influenced both the suppliers and funeral directors, and shaped the funeral rites in the postwar period.

Production staff Shinya Yamada (Head), Junko Uchida

List of Collaborative Research