Hasta La Gadget!

Last week we posted about the short film which looks at a parallel world in a “post nuclear Tokyo”, and over the weekend we came across another amazing film here called “Tokyo Rising”. The 30 minute documentary features Pharrell Williams, the American music producer and musician behind N.E.R.D and The Neptunes label, and produced in association with the American footwear brand Palladium Boots.

The documentary is by no means the usual dry disaster, “end of days” style piece that has been all over the media but instead a fantastically well made film that features some of Japan’s most interesting creative personalities and focuses on how Japan is rebuilding itself and using its creative strength to push on regardless of the problems 6 months ago. “Tokyo faces a new reality after the tragedy of 3/11. While persistent challenges still lay ahead, the city’s creative class is hell-bent on making sure that their hometown thrives. Innovative and resilient, they are defining the future of Tokyo on their own terms.” Pharrell takes us below the streets into the worlds largest underground aqueduct and introduces us to a number of groups and spaces that aim to show the creative energy in Tokyo.

The film explores underground artists as well, including Chim-Pom, the group responsible for the alteration of Okamoto Taro’s nuclear apocalypse mural “Myth of Tomorrow” in Shibuya station. Trying to describe how the disasters themselves and the actions of the government in the wake of the disasters have brought about a resurgence in people expressing themselves through various different and creative ways, I particularly liked the line form Kunichi Nomura, the editor of Tripster, when he says “I hope the young kids get more angry because the old folks wrecked the country”.

Williams’s involvement in the documentary comes from his long standing relationship with the country, along with being the co-founder of the “made-in-Japan” brands Ice Cream and Billionaire Boys Club, he tells us how he, as many other artists are, has been influenced by Japan in many ways.

I recommend watching the full 5 parts of the documentary all available on the Palladium website here. The documentary, as well as being a fantastic piece of film work, is an amazing bit of branding for the company, who not only get the endorsement of Pharrell, but also association with an underground scene that shows some fantastic creativity.

Related Posts:
Blind: Short Film of a Post Nuclear Tokyo
Muji’s Emergency Kits Focus on Design and Function
Designing Japan for Tomorrow