NEW PEOPLE, the nation’s only entertainment complex dedicated to Japanese popular culture, has announced several film and art events that it will present to celebrate the 2011 Northern California Cherry Blossom Festival that will be held in San Francisco on Saturday and Sunday April 9^th – 10^th and April 16^th – 17^th.

NEW PEOPLE will support the annual event with screenings of the films, SAKURA SAKURA, a biopic about the father of modern biotechnology, Jokichi Takamine, and 99 Years Of Love, an acclaimed 5-episode film series tracing the history and struggles of Japanese Americans. NEW PEOPLE will also open a new art installation Hafu: Half Japanese Photo Exhibit, in the venues’ SUPERFROG Gallery.  More details on these events is available at: www.newpeopleworld.com.

The 2011 Northern California Cherry Blossom Festival, now celebrating its 44^th year, is one of California’s most prominent celebrations of Asian traditions. Each year, over 200,000 people attend this dazzling display that showcases the color and grace of the Japanese culture and the diversity of the Japanese American community. Complete details on the Cherry Blossom Festival are available at: http://nccbf.org .

SAKURA SAKURA
A Life of a samurai chemist, Jokichi Takamine

125 years ago today, one fateful encounter between one Japanese chemist and a beautiful American woman changed the world of medicine forever.

SAKURA SAKURA is a story of a father of modern biotechnology, Jokichi Takamine and his American wife, Carolyn. Over a century ago, international marriage was severe and full of ups and downs, but they overcome many hardships and make various miracles. Carolyn, a wife with twelve years younger than Jokichi, supports and leads him to a success with her natural personality from New Orleans, Louisiana. Jokichi is succeeded in crystallization of adrenaline and finds a digestive enzyme called Taka-amylase, the principal chemicals still now.

This is a story of two who becomes a bridge over Japan and USA over a century ago. It stars Masaya Kato (Brother by Takeshi Kitano), Naomi Grace, Sachiko Kokubu and Hiroki Matsukata.

Showing at NEW PEOPLE:
(Tickets are $10.00)
April 8^th (Fri):                                       4:30pm, 7:15pm
April 9^th – 10^th (Sat & Sun)                 10:45am, 1:15pm, 3:45pm, 6:15pm
April 11^th – April 14^th (Mon-Thu):        4:30pm, 7:15pm

99 Years of Love: Japanese Americans
99 Years of Love: Japanese Americans is an acclaimed 5-episode film telling the story of the struggles that Japanese Americans faced in a time of prejudice and racism, when they were torn between their country and their ancestor’s homeland. The epic tale, written by Sugako Hashida, a well-known writer in Japan, spans a period of 99 years through the eyes of one family, beginning with the immigration of an Issei (first generation) father to America through his Nisei (second generation) son joining the 442^nd infantry Regiment during WWII. The drama depicts the Issei and Nisei generations’ spirit, strength and love.

Kusanagi plays both the young Hiramatsu Chokichi and his son, Ichiro. When the war breaks out the Japanese immigrants face racism and segregation. Ichiro pledges his allegiance to America and gets sent to Europe, his younger brother Jiro stays back with Ichiro’s beloved Shinobu and tries to protect their parents’ farm. Their two sisters Shizu and Sachie are sent back to Japan and have to experience the horrors of war, one in Hiroshima and the other in Okinawa. —DramaWiki

99 Years Of Love was produced to commemorate the 60^th anniversary of TBS (Tokyo Broadcasting System) and aired in Japan for 5 consecutive nights in fall 2010. It was viewed by millions. It stars Tsuyoshi Kusanagi, a member of the Japanese pop group phenomenon SMAP, playing double roles as the Issei immigrant and his Nisei son. The film also features Yukie Nakama (Shinobi, G@me), Kenichi Matsuyama (Death Note, GANTZ), Kaoru Yachigusa, Kiichi Nakai and Pinko Izumi. This event is held and sponsored by JCCCNC (Japanese Cultural and Community Center of Northern California). For more info about JCCCNC, please go to www.jcccnc.org.

Showing at NEW PEOPLE:

(Suggested donation: $5.00 or more; Episodes are 2 hours each)

(Parts 1 to 5 begin screening at 10:30am every day (from April 16^th – 20).

April 16^th (Sat):                        Episode 1 “America”                           10:30am-12:30pm
April 17^th (Sun):                       Episode 2 “Generations”                     10:30pm-12:30pm
April 18^th (Mon):                      Episode 3 “Concentration Camp”       10:30am-12:30pm
April 19^th (Tues):                     Episode 4 “The Japanese American  10:30am-12:30pm
Regiment”
April 20^th (Wed):                      Episode 5 “Reunited”                          10:30am-12:30pm

Hafu: Half Japanese Photo Exhibit

Presented by the SUPERFROG Gallery (NEW PEOPLE 3^rd floor)

April 8^th (Fri) – April 14^th (Thurs)

Opening night reception April 8^th 7:00pm

This intriguing new photo exhibit explores what it means to be Japanese and of mixed decent. Developed as a project by social researcher Marcia Lise, who was compiling interviews with groups of half-Japanese people, and German Japanese photographer Natalie Willer, the exhibit of portrait explores the half-, or hafu, Japanese experience. The exhibit is part of an ongoing project to create a dialogue about being in between cultures. By increasing discussions about culture, ‘race’ and ethnicity the artists hope to achieve a deeper understanding of these issues

ARIST VILLAGE Vol. 4 + BAZAAR BIZZARE

Weekends of April 9^th – 10^th and April 16^th – 17^th

11:00am – 6:00pm each day; Admission is FREE

NEW PEOPLE and BAZAAR BIZARRE SF, San Francisco’s favorite arts and craft show, continue a joint collaboration to create another all-floor vertical art village to celebrate the Japantown Cherry Blossom Festival! This curated shopping event will be part of a nationally renowned festival (Northern California Cherry Blossom) and gallery opening at NEW PEOPLE.

For more information, please explore: http://www.bazaarbizarre.org/sanfrancisco/shows/artistvillage

About NEW PEOPLE, Inc.
Based in San Francisco, California, NEW PEOPLE, Inc. (www.newpeopleworld.com) offers the latest films, art, fashion and retail brands from Japan through its unique entertainment destination as well as through licensing and distribution of selective Japanese films. NEW PEOPLE Entertainment (www.newpeopleent.com), a film division of NEW PEOPLE, Inc. strives to offer the most entertaining motion pictures straight from the “Kingdom of Pop” for audiences of all ages, especially the manga and anime generation, in North America. Some titles include DEATH NOTE, GANTZ, KAMIKAZE GIRLS, and THE TASTE OF TEA.

NEW PEOPLE, the nation’s only entertainment complex dedicated to Japanese popular culture, joins forces with San Francisco-based animation company Maverix Studios to present ONE, a silent auction art benefit to be held on Saturday April 2^nd to raise funds and awareness for Japanese earthquake and tsunami relief. NEW PEOPLE’s SUPERFROG Gallery hosts the special event and will open its doors at 12:00 noon for a public viewing of the auction items. A reception party and bidding begins at 7:00pm.

NEW PEOPLE and Maverix Studios will donate 100% of the proceeds to the Artists Help Japan Earthquake & Tsunami Fund and Mercy Corps.  NEW PEOPLE is located in the heart of San Francisco’s Japantown at 1746 Post St. More information on the auction event is available at: www.newpeopleworld.com.

ONE features an inspired collection of original artworks created by more than 35 celebrated artists from the animation and film industries, including works by artists from Pixar, LucasFilms, Dreamworks, Nickelodeon and many more. Participating artists include Dice Tsusumi, Robert Valley, Ronnie Del Carmen, Enrico Casarosa, Scott Morse, Bill Presing, Steve Purcell, Lou Romano, Cam De Leon, Tooru Terada, Daniel Simon, John Wayshak, Dan Mchale, Patrick Awa, Joey Chou, Ed Bell, Todd Ueminami, Marcos Mateu, Mari Inukai ,Yoriko Ito, Jackie Huang, Soosa Kim, Jamie Baker, Alina Chou, Oren Haskins, Sei Nakashima, Julia Lundman, Le Tang, Mark Sperber, Ted Mathot ,Tom Rubalcava, Derek Thompson, Sho Murase, Sergio Paez, Vaughn Ross, and Nate Stanton. Additional works from also critically acclaimed fine artists such as Miya Ando and Kent Williams will also be offered.

ONE by Patrick Awa – To Be Auctioned For ONE Event At NEW PEOPLE

It is wonderful to be writing to you in anticipation of the 2011 Swap-O-Rama-Rama (SORR) at Maker Faire. This is your invitation to join Swap-O-Rama-Rama as staff. Your also invited to meet and greet with them this weekend.

Over the years Swap-O-Rama-Rama has watched it’s staff’s advance into creative careers and form creative community around textile reuse. All the while they shared by teaching what they love at Swap-O-Rama-Rama and thereby helped to create a ground in which tens of thousands of people have found inspiration to reuse and create. Through this dynamic community of makers hundreds of thousands of pounds of textile waste have been recycled. People have changed.

Today they open the opportunity to join their staff to our returning staff  - this is an early invite into a wonderful chance to participate!

Ways to Participate

DIY Workshops: If you have a unique skill that transforms would be trash into a wearable item (clothing/jewelry/handbag etc.) or that modifies a wearable please consider bringing this to Swap-O-Rama-Rama in the form of a DIY workshop.

Sewing Soiree: If your a whiz behind a sewing machine and work with reuse, consider being a Swap-O-Rama-Rama designer helping people learn how to mod the used clothing they find at the swap. And join the Swap-O-Rama-Rama fashion show and show off your creations.

Silk Screen Crew: If your a silk screener and would like to join the silk screening crew, offering your fresh designs to bring used clothes back to life, please get in touch!

Meet & Greet with Swap-O-Rama-Rama Staff 2011

Saturday March 26th

10am to 12:30pm
Remedy Coffee  4316 Telegraph Ave  Oakland

3pm to 5:30pm
Cafe Murano  1777 Steiner Street  San Francisco

Contact: Producer Jennifer Alexander, j.l.alexander18[at] gmail[dot]com and of course come to the meet and greet! We hope to see you!

About Swap-O-Rama-Rama
Swap-O-Rama-Rama is a Creative Commons Project

NEW PEOPLE TO RAISE FUNDS FOR JAPANESE EARTHQUAKE/TSUNAMI RELIEF WITH A SPECIAL SCREENING OF HULA GIRLS

Award Winning Film Set In Fukushima Prefecture Plays On March 26th And Offers A Heartwarming Story That Is A Testament To The Enduring Human Spirit

San Francisco, CA, March 16, 2011 –NEW PEOPLE, the nation’s only entertainment complex dedicated to Japanese popular culture, will present a special screening of director Lee Sang-il’s celebrated film, HULA GIRLS, to raise funds for Japanese earthquake and tsunami relief. HULA GIRLS will screen on Saturday, March 26th at 2:00pm, 4:30pm and 7:00pm. Suggested donations are $10.00 or more per person. NEW PEOPLE is located in the heart of San Francisco’s Japantown at 1746 Post St.

Proceeds from the screenings will be donated to the Northern Japan Earthquake Relief Fund, administered by JCCCNC and Union Bank in San Francisco’s Japantown. More information on the screenings and the work of this relief organization is available at: www.newpeopleworld.com.

A heartwarming film, HULA GIRLS is set in Fukushima prefecture, site of the Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant that was heavily damaged during the recent earthquake and tsunami on March 11th. HULA GIRLS was Japan’s official entry to the 2007 Academy Awards Best Foreign Film category and also won four Japanese Academy Awards the same year including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Screenplay and Best Supporting Actress.

“The world was stunned by the damage and tragic loss of life from the recent earthquake and we invite audiences to donate to the recovery efforts and attend the screening of this uplifting film that is set in the area of Japan that was affected by the disaster,” says Seiji Horibuchi, president of NEW PEOPLE, Inc. “HULA GIRLS is a moving testament to the indomitable human spirit and we hope its story inspires audiences to contribute to the ongoing relief efforts that are now underway.”

Based on a true story set in 1965, the desolate and declining mining town of Iwaki, located in Fukushima prefecture in Northern Japan, tries to revive itself by building a Hawaiian-themed resort. The featured attraction is to be a hula show, but in this isolated place far from the tropical bliss of Hawaii there are no palm trees or hula dancers. In fact, no one knows how to do the dance or even knows what the hula is! The town leaders invite a dance instructor from Tokyo to teach the local minors’ daughters how to hula, but conservative townspeople are initially resistant to the provocative dance. The skepticism and conservatism of the locals is gradually overcome as their daughters fall under the spell of the talented and determined dance instructor from Tokyo.

Once a leading performer, the instructor at first looks down on the coal miners and their amateurish daughters, but the girls’ sincere dedication gradually rekindles a passion in her. Each dealing with their own harsh lives, the local girls find a new lease on life and, for the first time, support in their friendships as they absorb the essence of hula dancing. The film has been praised as an enchanting story of women who take once-in-a-lifetime chances to escape their monotonous lives, only to become unwitting heroes to their depressed mining town as well as the whole of Japan.

About NEW PEOPLE, Inc.
Based in San Francisco, California, NEW PEOPLE, Inc. (www.newpeopleworld.com) offers the latest films, art, fashion and retail brands from Japan through its unique entertainment destination as well as through licensing and distribution of selective Japanese films. NEW PEOPLE Entertainment (www.newpeopleent.com), a film division of NEW PEOPLE, Inc. strives to offer the most entertaining motion pictures straight from the “Kingdom of Pop” for audiences of all ages, especially the manga and anime generation, in North America. Some titles include DEATH NOTE, GANTZ, KAMIKAZE GIRLS, and THE TASTE OF TEA.