Faculty Invited Talk at Partner University: Assimilation: the Ainu in Postwar Japanese Cinema — Dr. Sean O’Reilly

On March 18, 2024, Dr. Sean O’Reilly (Global Connectivity and Japan Studies) was invited to Western Washington University, one of AIU’s partner universities, near Seattle, WA, USA to present an extended (one-hour) form of his research findings on what he has termed the “assimilation paradox” expressed by Japanese cinema depicting the Ainu.

His presentation focused largely on the earliest films to show Ainu, for example the movie Lila no hana wasureji (1947) and the original Jakoman to Tetsu (1949), but also ranged up in time to the 1985 film Kamui no ken. The attendees proved to be very enthusiastic participants, providing a valuable link between WWU and AIU.