News On Japan

Netflix Inks Multi-Picture Deal With Japanese Studio Babel Label

Jan 17 (news84media.com) - Netflix is ​​further boosting its Japanese live-action content slate with a multi-picture deal with Tokyo-based studio Babel Label. The partnership gives Netflix exclusive access to multiple titles produced and created by Babel Label for the next five years.

The studio, a subsidiary launched in 2013 by Japanese media company CyberAgent, is home to creators such as writer-director Michihito Fujii, winner of best director and best film at the 2020 Japan Academy Awards for The Journalist. The film was later adapted by Netflix as a series in 2022.

Netflix has grown increasingly bullish on Japanese live-action content over the past few years. The second season of the streamer’s Japanese sci-fi thriller series Alice in the Borderlands set a new record as the company’s most-watched Japanese show ever, taking the top spot on Netflix’s global non-English TV list with 61.2 million viewing hours over its premiere weekend in late December 2022. Last week, the company kicked off its 2023 Japanese releases with the launch of The Makanai: Cooking for the Maiko Housethe first streaming series from acclaimed Japanese auteur Hirokazu Kore-eda (Shoplifters, Broker). ...continue reading

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The Japanese government on April 21 revised the Three Principles on Transfer of Defense Equipment and related guidelines, in principle allowing the export of weapons with lethal capabilities. The move marks a major turning point in Japan's postwar security policy.

Japan's weather agency and the Cabinet Office issued a 'Hokkaido-Sanriku Offshore Subsequent Earthquake Advisory' after an earthquake measuring upper 5 on Japan's seismic intensity scale struck off Sanriku.

JR East has launched a preview version of its new online Shinkansen booking platform, JRE GO, promising reservations in as little as one minute and easier handling of sudden schedule changes.

A bear that had remained in a residential area in central Sendai since early Sunday morning was euthanized last night in an emergency cull. No injuries were reported.

Police investigating the death of an 11-year-old boy whose body was found in a forest in Kyoto Prefecture believe his father moved the remains between several locations over a number of days in an apparent attempt to conceal the crime.

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In today's video, we explore the April performances at the Kabuki-za theatre in Tokyo! (Kabuki In-Depth)

A man accused of violating copyright law by publishing so-called spoiler articles summarizing films on the internet was handed a suspended prison sentence after the Tokyo District Court ruled that the posts infringed copyright.

A theater directly connected to Tokyo Station is set to open in May inside a large-scale redevelopment complex scheduled to fully launch in autumn, marking a new step in efforts to strengthen the area’s cultural and artistic presence.

A farewell performance titled "Farewell April Grand Kabuki" is being staged at Osaka Shochikuza in Chuo Ward, Osaka, which is set to close in May due to the aging of the building, marking the beginning of a two-month run of kabuki performances that have drawn audiences with comedies and dances featuring a colorful cast of characters, continuing through April 26th.

Today we have a look at the kabuki performances taking this April at the Shochiku-za theatre in Osaka! (Kabuki In-Depth)

A talk event was held at a bookstore in New York on March 9th to commemorate the publication of the English translation "SAKURA" of the bestselling novel "Sakura" by Naoki Prize-winning author Kanae Nishi, who appeared alongside American translator Allison Powell to discuss the book’s central theme of family love.

The winner of the 2026 Japan Booksellers Award, in which bookstore staff across the country vote for the book they most want to sell, was announced on April 9th, with Ryo Asai, 36, receiving the top prize for the novel "In the Megachurch," published by Nikkei Publishing.

Athletes from across Japan boasting finely trained physiques are set to gather in Okinawa for a major fitness competition, as more than 300 participants prepare to compete in the "Muscle Gate" body make contest, marking the event’s first-ever staging in the prefecture.