ELLA KELLEHER WRITES — Lust, Caution (2007) made by the visionary director, Ang Lee, is an erotic espionage film1 that begins in 1938, during the Second Sino-Japanese War. The story of this film has been believed by many to be inspired by true events and the life of a Chinese…
Full Article LOOKING BACK: ‘LUST, CAUTION’ THE GREAT MOVIE
Ella Kelleher is a current senior at Loyola Marymount University, where she majors in English and specializes in multi-ethnic literature. During her college experience, she studied abroad in Japan and contributed to the exchanging of cultures. She has also volunteered at the Honorary Consulate of Kazakhstan in Los Angeles, where…
Full Article JAPAN: HISTORICAL PERCEPTION OF CHINA AND THE WAR
MATEO VALLES QUINTANA WRITES — No one can question her athletic achievements, but her actions off the court have brought her even more media attention. Naomi Osaka, the 22-year-old Black and Japanese athlete who quickly became one of the top tennis players in the world, has a remarkable WTA player…
Full Article JAPAN: NAOMI OSAKA, THE TENNIS SUPERSTAR WITH A HEART AS BIG AS HER SERVE
SOPHIA JARAMILLO WRITES — As the curtains closed on Paris Fashion Week 2020, so did the life of one of Paris’ own: 56-year-long fashion designer Kenzo Takada passed away on October 4th due to complications of coronavirus. Even at the age of 81, the Japanese-born Parisian expatriate Takada’s vividly bright…
Full Article JAPAN: KENZO TAKADA’S FASHIONS WILL LIVE ON AFTER HIS DEATH
LILLY WEBBER WRITES — Virtual YouTubers, or VTubers, are on the rise throughout the international gaming and streaming industry. Originating in Japan, VTubers are typically Japanese entrepreneurs who primarily stream games online for an audience of viewers. However, unlike some streamers, all VTubers are represented by a 2D or 3D…
Full Article CHINESE CENSORSHIP: HAVE FUN, BUT DON’T EVER MENTION TAIWAN
ZANE KRPAN WRITES — On the 16th of June, 2020, Chinese and Indian soldiers engaged in a conflict over their disputed border for the first time since 1975. India reported twenty of its soldiers dead, but China did not release any information about casualties. The tension between China’s western border…
Full Article INDIA: WHY IT HAS BECOME SO IMPORTANT TO THE UNITED STATES
MATEO FERNANDEZ WRITES — Anime is deeply rooted in Japanese culture and has been around for quite some time now. That’s why characters often display traditional Japanese kimonos. Yes, there are Chinese and Korean anime-like shows, but typically anime is Japanese. Anime fans come from all corners of the globe,…
Full Article JAPAN: IS ANTI-ANIME SENTIMENT RACIST?
MALCOLM KAM WRITES — Japan’s criminal conviction rate of roughly 99.9% is nothing new, but many people seem to misinterpret this as a sign that the judicial system is doing a good job of keeping criminals off the streets. The truth is that Japan’s conviction rate is so high because…
Full Article JAPAN: WHERE YOU DON’T HAVE TO DO THE CRIME TO DO THE TIME
TAYLOR BOSVELD WRITES — It is no secret that China is continuing to grow its influence on the world stage, yet who would think that one of the most culturally impactful institutions in the United States is the National Basketball Association? And what’s the relationship between China and the NBA?…
Full Article CHINA: MAKING THE NBA JUMP THROUGH POLITICAL HOOPS
ANDREA PLATE WRITES — This year, the best-selling North Korean novel Friend was translated into English and approved for publication in the US by the Democratic People’s Republic of North Korea – a first in that nation’s history. Immanuel Kim, 42, professor of Korean Literature and Culture Studies at George…
Full Article KOREA: ARE WOMEN’S RIGHTS, NORTH AND SOUTH, AN OPEN BOOK ON THE LITERARY LANDSCAPE?
ALI AL-SABAH WRITES — Two hundred years ago, Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte famously remarked that “China is a sleeping giant. Let her sleep for when she wakes up she will move the world.” The potential, the sheer will of the people, and the challenge that the country posed were not so…
Full Article CHINA: THE LONG-AWAKENED GIANT
MALCOLM KAM WRITES – Standing at 18 meters tall, Japan’s 1:1 scale animatronic Gundam is now fully assembled. The animatronic is modeled after the Gundam RX-78-2, a giant bipedal mech that made its debut in the 1979 anime Mobile Suit Gundam. Since then, Gundam has remained wildly popular, both in…
Full Article JAPAN: THE GUNDAM GLOBAL CHALLENGE HEATS UP POP CULTURE AND ‘COUNTRY COOL’
TIA CARR WRITES — Just last week, the popular app TikTok was flooded with frantic posts from prominent figures saying goodbye to their beloved online forum and urging followers to keep up with them on other online platforms. This came in response to President Trump’s executive order, demanding that Apple…
Full Article CHINA: BYTEDANCE SAVES TIKTOK FROM CLOCKING OUT OF THE US
COURTESY OF THE PACIFIC CENTURY INSTITUTE — We are pleased to share PCI board member Dr. Chung-in Moon’s recent interview in a South Korean TV news special on “North Korean Killing of a South Korean Government Worker at Sea: Getting to the Bottom of the Truth with Moon Chung-in” that…
Full Article TOP PROF ADVISOR GRILLED OVER N. KOREA OUTRAGE
ANDREA PLATE WRITES — Lizzie Buehler, 25, raised in Texas, is the translator of The Disaster Tourist, South Korean author Yun Ko-eun’s first novel to be translated into English and published in the US recently. This truly original book is about international tourists who thrive on visiting world-famous tragic sites…
Full Article SOUTH KOREA: THE ACCIDENTAL TRANSLATOR