WHEN THE SHOW TENT CAME TO MY TOWN

(2005) Japan, 107 minutes,
Language: Japanese with English subtitles,
Directed by Fukagawa Yoshihiro

Genre Feature Film

Synopsis

Young Akira Ohta is obsessed with the traveling circus. Even against his teacher’s orders, he sneaks off to the show tent to have a peak or to snatch one of their bizarre posters advertising the “Wolf Girl”. Unfortunately, his schoolmate, Hideko Komuro is reputed to be the “Wolf Girl” herself and teased endlessly. When a new popular new girl arrives, however, she begins to put things straight: defending Hideko Komuro and befriending Akira Ohta. Or at least until they discover a secret of the circus…

Key Themes

Friendship
Bravery
Curiosity
Prejudices
Misconceptions

Main Characters

Akira Ohta – a young boy who is fascinated by the visiting circus and befriends the new girl at school.

Kumiko Tezuka – the new girl from the city who is popular and brave.

Hideko Komuro – a young girl who is teased by her schoolmates and called “wolf girl”. She also delivers papers.

Before the Film

• Before beginning the film, ask yourself what type of film you are watching: this is called the genre. Genre means style of film. For example, is the film a feature film (a long film which tells one main story), a short film (usually from a few minutes to half an hour), a documentary or an animation?

• Ask yourself what the title of the film might mean: speculate as to why the filmmakers would have chosen the specific title. After watching the film, try to make sense of the title in context to the film. Compare your understandings about the meaning of the title before and after watching the film.

• Films use lighting, sound, different angles, movement, sequence and timing to convey meaning. Remember to keep these aspects in mind the following when watching a film.

Things to Think About Post-Screening

• Many of the effects of the circus were not technical ones so much as effects of costume and disguise. Did you find the look of the circus effective?

• When Akira Ohta approached the circus he sometimes became dizzy. Why do you think this way? Do you think the effects portrayed this well? Do you think Akira Ohta became dizzy because of the powers of the circus, or because of the powers of his own mind?

• The landscape was very important in this film. There were many establishing shots (see Film Terminology): the school yard; the road where Kumiko Tezuka gets out of the car when she sees Akira Ohta walking down the road; and the bridge where Akira Ohta and Kumiko Tezuka sat and talked many times. Why do you think the filmmakers used so many establishing shots in this film? What do you think they might have wanted to show by the landscape? Consider setting and colour.

• List three characters you wish you had better insight into. Explain why and at which points in the film you would have liked to “see through their eyes”.

• At the end of the film Kumiko Tezuka is driving away on the back of the truck, waving and shouting thank you to her friends. How do you feel about her having to leave her friends in the end? Do you think it made the movie more noble, or more brave, or more memorable? Or do you think it was sad and unfortunate? Explain why. Think about how you might have handled the situation if you were in Kumiko Tezuka’s shoes.

Questions and Discussion Topics

• What were the main themes of the film? Use examples from the film to demonstrate at least three major themes. Did you find any of these themes particularly important to you personally? Why or why not.
• What do you think the most important scene of the film was? What made it so powerful? Describe why you think it was important as well as what techniques were used to create and emphasize its importance: narrative, action, music, sound, lighting, camera work, framing and editing should be considered.

• If you had to eliminate one scene from the film, which would it be? Why would you choose that scene? What do you think would be lost from or change in the film by eliminating that theme?

• What scene was your particular favourite? Briefly describe what you thought the funniest, scariest and saddest scenes in the film were, and what made them this way.

• If you were to recommend When the Show Tent Came to My Town to a friend, why would you recommend it and what would you tell them?

Exercises/Activities

• Write a review of the film, 300-400 words long.

• Create a storyboard to the next scene after the film ended. What happened to the characters? Pick at least three characters and describe what happens to them afterward.

• Write a letter from the point of view of one character to that of another.

• Think of another film (or book) with similar themes and compare how the two films examined the issue and dealt with the issue. Were they similar or did they treat the issue very differently? Which film did you think better represented the theme/issue?

• Write about the film as if it were an event in a newspaper, a fairy tale or myth, or a personal diary of events that had happened to you!

• Draw a map of what you think the location might have looked like.

• Make a character sketch explaining how their appearance represents their character.

• Create a scene broken down into a sequence of six (6) pictures.