A Treasured Creation

NHK World’s A Treasured Creation series tells the stories behind the various traditional craftspeople located around Japan. I was hired to shoot and edit the pilot episode of the program: a 15-minute episode centered on a special type of bamboo found only in a remote part of Shikoku, a large island off the coast of mainland Japan. More than simply a “how-to-make” video, this series seeks to illuminate the rich lives of the craftspeople and tell the stories behind their creations and how they seek to preserve and innovate their craft in the rapidly-changing modern world.

 

My second episode focused on a father and son who carry on the craft of kanaami, or Japanese traditional wire-weaving. This episode connected the story of the craft with the story of this family seamlessly, as we featured two very different people who found themselves inextricably linked by the bonds of family and tradition.