Osamu Tezuka Festival
Washington D.C.
12/4/09-12/06/09

If you haven’t heard of the name Osamu Tezuka, you are not a true manga fan. Known as the God of manga and the father of anime, Osamu Tezuka’s work will be celebrated at the Smithsonian’s Freer Gallery of Art and the Arthur M. Sackler Gallery. Tezuka’s manga comic books, films and television episodes have marked a new generation and have given a new definition to manga culture. The celebration will include workshops, screenings, tours and kamishibai performances by kamishibai artist, Yassan. For those of you who want to know, kamishabi was popularized in Japan in the early 20th century and is a way of storytelling told by traveling kamishibai artists going from town to town to share exciting tales illustrated with colorful pictures. Yassan will be performing “The Golden Bat,” an Astro Boy story, and a tale inspired by an incident from Tezuka’s childhood.

Specifically designed family tours for all ages offer kids and adults the opportunity to “step into” a scene painted on a Japanese screen to explore its stories. There will also be a showing of the film, The Fantastic Adventures of Unico, a story of a little unicorn born with the power to make anyone he meets happy. Wouldn’t it be nice to have one of them around to put a smile on your face all the time? You can also enjoy episodes from Tezuka’s television series Princess Knight, Marvelous Melmo and the Three-Eyed One. Come be a part of this celebration and be a part of the full Tezuka experience because Tezuka’s legend lives on and should never be forgotten.

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http://www.asia.si.edu/film/tezuka/

via Saeko Oishi, 2 December 2009 9:51am | 1 |