Film Showing "Fukushima Hula Girls," and Information Booth at Auburn University
April 18

In commemoration of the one year anniversary of the Great East Japan Earthquake, The Consulate General of Japan in Atlanta screened the documentary film Fukushima Hula Girls (2011) at Jule Collins Smith Museum, Auburn University, on Wednesday, April 18, 2012 at 6:00 pm. The film was very well received by a large audience of students, faculty and Auburn residents.

Directed by Masaki Kobayashi and with original music by Jake Shimabukuro, Fukushima Hula Girls (Ganbappe fura garuzu! Fukushima ni ikiru kanojotachi no ima) follows a troupe of hula dancers at the Spa Resort Hawaiians in Iwaki, Fukushima Prefecture as the region deals with the aftermath of the Great East Japan Earthquake and nuclear disaster.

Spa Resort Hawaiians opened in 1966 as the Joban Hawaiian Center. It was the first Hawaiian themed resort in the country, and was a last-ditch effort on the part of the residents of Iwaki City, Fukushima Prefecture, to save their town when the Joban Mine, Japan’s largest coal mine, closed in the 1960s. Though many were skeptical at first, the Joban Hawaiian Center was a huge success, drawing 1.55 million visitors per year at its peak in 1970.

But Spa Resort Hawaiians, located just 40 miles from one of the nuclear plants, was heavily damaged during the March 11, 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake and was forced to close temporarily. Fukushima Hula Girls tells the story of how the lives of the employees of the spa were affected by the quake and nuclear disaster and how the hula girls once again saved their town by touring the country while the resort was being rebuilt to convince people it is safe to come to Fukushima.

Fukushima Hula Girls is the first film in the Auburn University East Asian Film Series, which will run through the month of April showcasing films from around the region. The East Asian Film Series is part of the Auburn University Year of East Asia, a celebration of Asian cultures and contributions. Additional events, including lectures, performances and culinary demonstrations, will be held throughout 2012.

In addition to the film, the Consulate also presented a booth in both the Student Center and the Museum which displayed information about the 100th anniversary of the donation of cherry trees from Japan to the United States.

Consulate Booth at Film Showing

Opening Remarks Before Film