Kick Ass Disc Design

This is what we've been working so hard on these past few days. We wanted to have a more consistent branding strategy for Tokyo Cowboys. So, this design is on the DVD, the Website and the Blog.

Japundit Press

Carlos over at the Japan Film Festival got us a nice bit of press by getting us mentioned on the Japundit Blog. Japundit has a large readership of people who are the main audience for a film like ours. Way to go Carlos! Thanks!

Tokyo Cowboys World Premiere in Los Angeles

Hello friends of Tokyo Cowboys!

This is more than just a update as we are announcing big news:

Tokyo Cowboys World Premiere

Tokyo Cowboys will have its world premiere at the Japan Film Festival in Los Angeles on April 14th. We will be screening alongside two of our Japanese filmmaking heroes: Akira Kurosawa and Hirokazu Koreeda ("Afterlife" and "Nobody Knows"). "Tokyo Cowboys" is the only film in the festival directed by a non-Asian and the only film in the festival to deal with the subject of gaijin (outsider) experience in Japan. Visit the website here:

http://www.jffla.org

Tell your Friends

Getting a premiere is all well and good. But we need your help to pack out the cinema. You can do this by forwarding the blurb (copied at the end of this email) to your mates in California and by encouraging them to go and see the film.

Tell the Press

If you know any newspaper people, blog people or people with muscle or celebrity, send them the press release attached to this email. Raising the profile of the film helps it to get into festivals and gets it distributed, which means YOU can watch it in cinemas and on DVD.

Watch the New Teaser

We've updated the website with a new teaser. Visit the site and have a look:

www.tokyocowboys.com

Steal our Teaser

If you have a blog, embed our teaser into a post. You can find the embedding code here:

http://www.tokyocowboys.com/embed.html

That's it for now, folks. Hope to see you soon in a city near you!

Hugs,

Daneeta and Patrick
www.tokyocowboys.com
www.tokyocowboys.blogspot.com

The Blurb

Thought you guys might be interested in this bit of news. Some friends of mine have just finished their feature documentary "Tokyo Cowboys." The film is having its world premiere in your neck of the woods at the Japan Film Festival. Check out their website at www.tokyocowboys.com.

The festival website is here:

http://www.jffla.org. Help them out by spreading the news.

Here's their blurb:

Tokyo Cowboys: a new feature length documentary tells the stories of a group of westerners who gave up their jobs, homes and countries to pursue their dreams in the cut throat world of Tokyo.The film's delicate and humorous portrait illuminates the price some pay for a taste of Tokyo's success. Shot over a two year period, the film follows the trial and errors of its heroes' quest for opportunity on this post-modern urban frontier.

New Teaser

Press the play button below to view the new Tokyo Cowboys Teaser. Hope you like it. Also, give us a shout in comments to let us know you're out there.

TC Investors Invest Time Too

Met up with two of the Tokyo Cowboys investors for coffee to update them on the project. These guys aren't film people like some of our other investors, but they loved the project so much that they put down some of their hard earned cash to support us.

Now, they are asking what they can do to help us to sell the project. These are the kinds of investors that indy filmmakers need.

They are both sending out word to their networks about the film, and Shani, who works for a big University, is trying to organize a special sneak preview screening through their film society. Cool.

Gareth is coming over on Monday to have a look at our track laying to get everything organized for the Dub. We've finished the credits, yeah, so that's the film basically done for the festivals. Whew!

Photo from Ordinary Investing.

"I think that's his penis" and other Subtitling tales

Aoi came by last night to give us her final advice on subtitling. I've mentioned before that Aoi is a professional Subtitle Artist who came to me via a FEW contact, Christina. You gotta love the Japan network.

Subtitling is a complicated mathematical business as well as one of rhythm. You have to find the most concise way of saying things and also not leave the screen empty while the character natters on in his native language.

We joked about translating the Japanese into English. There are a lot of "verbal pauses" in Japanese similar to our "ums" and "ahs." And when Japanese people are speaking on screen, they tend to use the most polite form of the language, which can take about twice as long as the more base form (literally). Joking aside, Aoi is a true professional. We sorted it all out quickly and then spent the rest of the night drinking tea and chatting about Japanese cinema. As she does a lot of the subtitling of Japanese films entering the British market, she knows her stuff. Two films that she suggested we all see are: "Uchouten Hoteru" and "Kamome Shokudo" or "Seagul Diner. Happy hunting.

Oh, the "penis" reference in the title of this entry is one of the subtitles in Tokyo Cowboys. I guess you'll have to watch the film to find out more. And, get your minds out of the gutter, it's not what you think.

Picture from Here.

Tokyo Cowboys Screening Feedback

Two weeks ago we did a screening on the little big screen for three people. One of these was fellow filmmaker Tony Ukpo. Tony's just got back to me with feedback, and I thought I'd share it with you guys.

From what you'd told me and from reading the blog and all, I had a certain idea of what the film might be like. Any film about Japan is something I would always be happy to see, but it was so much more than that. And, in fact, it sort of gave me the feeling (one that is quite prevalent in the film): the draw that Tokyo has. Watching it I kept thinking: "now i really want to go live in Japan...even if just for a few years" (something I have contemplated in the past and again recently before I saw the film, funnily enough).

I thought it was not invasive as some personal documentaries seem to be, and even the history between you and...Mark is it? didn't seem to be overly dramatic or calling for sympathy; it just helped to encapsulate the feeling that the country, or the city rather, is all consuming in all possible ways.

I think your mini pitch of "lost in translation for real" is even more clear after watching the film because it does showcase all those things foreigners associate with Japan and the Japanese experience, as well as the Japanese reaction to foreigners. But, at the same time, it felt so open. Even though, of course, the Japanese are indeed quite an exclusive bunch to some degree, you really get that sense of openness to one and all, which is kind of a parallel to what America used to offer or aspire to offer: a country that accepts all. In contrast, however, the Japanese don't try to change the foreigners. They just let them be. Yet there is this great movement by some foreigners to try to fit in, and, conversely, succeeding because of their difference. I really felt that watching the film.

I liked the kind of disconnected voice over that was a lot more poetic and speaking about things in a different context from the stories we were following. The passage of time works really well and fluidly. And it all looks really good too! So go Patrick!

I'm kind of rambling a bit and possibly repeating myself, but the summary of it all is that I really like the film and I really feel it's going to work well for you once it gets out, so congrats in advance for all the rewards you should be receiving in the near future. I always respect people who really try to do things without waiting for the perfect conditions and make films from the heart and not just following some formula or audience numbers, and I hope to see more of that in the coming years.