Directed by Miki Dezaki
Wednesday, March 4
7:00 p.m.
Bryn Mawr Film Institute
A conversation with filmmaker Miki Dezaki will follow the screening.
The “comfort women” issue is perhaps Japan’s most contentious present-day diplomatic quandary. Inside Japan, the issue is dividing the country across clear ideological lines. Supporters and detractors of “comfort women” are caught in a relentless battle over empirical evidence, the validity of oral testimony, the number of victims, the meaning of sexual slavery, and the definition of coercive recruitment. Credibility, legitimacy and influence serve as the rallying cry for all those involved in the battle. In addition, this largely domestic battleground has been shifted to the international arena, commanding the participation of various state and non-state actors and institutions from all over the world. This film delves deep into the most contentious debates and uncovers the hidden intentions of the supporters and detractors of comfort women. Most importantly it finds answers to some of the biggest questions for Japanese and Koreans: Were comfort women prostitutes or sex slaves? Were they coercively recruited? And, does Japan have a legal responsibility to apologize to the former comfort women?
Part of Strange Truth 2020
Haverford College, Bryn Mawr Film Institute
Strange Truth 2020 examines the relationship between the visual and structures of power by engaging with politics of race, gender, and identity. Showcasing the work of international filmmakers, artists, activists, and media scholars, this year’s series explores how documentary and expanded cinema practices make visible the role of images in complicating and (re)constructing complex narratives of history, memory, and time.
Organized by Erin Schoneveld, Assistant Professor of East Asian Languages and Cultures; Assistant Professor of Visual Studies; and Director of the Visual Studies Program, and Kathryne Corbin, Senior Lecturer of French and Francophone Studies; Coordinator of Gender and Sexuality Studies; VCAM Faculty Fellow (2019-20).
Strange Truth is made possible by the John B. Hurford ’60 Center for the Arts and Humanities’ Philadelphia Area Creative Collaboratives (PACC) initiative and Leaves of Grass Visiting Artist Program; VCAM and the Malcolm Baldwin 1962 Fund; the Distinguished Visitors Program; the Department of East Asian Languages and Cultures; the Department of French and Francophone Studies; the Interdisciplinary Minor in Visual Studies; Bryn Mawr Film Institute; and Collaborative Cataloging Japan.
All events are open to the public. Screenings at Bryn Mawr Film Institute are free for all Tri-Co students, staff, and faculty. Events at Haverford College are free to all.
Blue Bus transportation provided from Stokes Hall (Haverford) to Bryn Mawr Film Institute (BMFI), departing Haverford at 6:30 p.m. and leaving BMFI for Stokes Hall at 9:30 p.m.