interview

For Ikeda Shin, who’s passionate about Harleys, motorbikes have been a great means of self-expression. Editor-in-chief of the magazine Hotbike Japan, Ikeda Shin has been […]

Farmers have long been supported by a system that allowed them to to influence politics, but not anymore. There is growing concern among people in […]

Successful author Yumemakura Baku discusses his work with the mangaka who have adapted it. Yumemakura Baku is one of Japan’s most famous authors. His work […]

This month Zoom Japan met with film director Yaguchi Shinobu to talk about his latest project, a film about more than just lumberjacks!   Please […]

Rakugo is a very unique way of making laugh people in Japan. We met Katsura Sunshine, one of his best representative.   I hear that […]

This month we took a walk on the dark side of Japanese rock and tracked down Hyde to ask him how preparations were going. This […]

© 2010 ETO MORI / FUJI TELEVISION NETWORK, INC. / SUNRISE INC. / DENTSU INC. / ANIPLEX INC./SONY MUSIC ENTERTAINMENT (JAPAN) INC. / TOHO CO., […]

Tokyu Hands’ success can be explained by the will to share expertise about the various products they sell. Every working place needs its captain, even […]

The director of The Inner Earth and Realm of Agartha signals his comeback with The Garden of Words. His first work, The Place Promised In […]

Many foreign chefs travel to Japan to learn the techniques of preparing traditional Japanese cuisine. The rising interest in Japanese cuisine around the world has […]

The owner of two Michelin starred restaurants in Tokyo is moving to Paris to introduce the best of his cuisine. According to the respected Michelin […]

The Agency for Cultural Affairs plays a key role in defending Japanese cuisine. We interviewed one of its directors. By the time this issue of […]

For 40 years this modest high school teacher has been collecting everything to do with station lunchboxes. Passions can take many different forms and often […]

A rising star of the manga world, and the author of I am a Hero, Hanazawa Kengo lets usin on his work and his take […]

Hidenori Kusaka and Satoshi Yamamoto are the men behind the Pokémon manga series. Zoom Japan met them to talk about about their work. Please briefly […]

This year is the 60th anniversary of the release of Tokyo Story. Yamada Yoji drew inspiration from this major work. Directors Yamada Yoji and Watanabe […]

Before setting out on their first European tour, Asian Kung-fu generation (ajikan) agreed to answer Zoom Japan’s questions in an exclusive interview. If you’ve never […]

Moriyama Tetsuro experienced house sharing as a student. He decided to make a living from it and has had great success. Tell me the story […]

For some people, it’s hard to imagine living any other way that in a shared house. Cocoya Shibuya Usuki is a female-only, twostorey, four-bedroom share […]

Writer Takahashi Genichiro on writing, politics and the charms of horse racing. Takahashi Genichiro is one of the most important all-around Japanese writers of the […]

People say that your main weapons are a photocopier and a sewing machine. Narita Daisuke : They are right (laughs). You see, I graduated from […]

Zoom Japan have managed to get an exclusive interview with Ichimura Masachika, star of the play: Anjin: The Shogun and The English Samurai that is […]

One of Miyamoto Tsuneichi’s former students says it is essential to continue supporting the work of craftsmen. Situated down a street in the old town […]

After having been a buyer for the designer shop idée, Ôkuma Takeo worked for Tsubasa no ôkoku, ana’s inflight magazine. He is now director at […]

Barak Kushner teaches the history of Japan at the University of Cambridge. He is a specialist in Sino-Japanese relations and his second book, Slurp! A […]

On the European release of “Visual Kei” band the GazettE’s latest album, Division, the band members answered our questions during an exclusive interview. Tell us […]

From left to right, O.N.O. the beat maker, and Boss, the MC (master of ceremony). The two members of Tha Blue Herb.   You are […]

From left to right, Mono, Misako, Chibagin and Noko. The four members of Shinsei Kamattechan.   Could you tell us about the band ? Mono […]

Mori Yoshitaka is a sociologist and a professor at Tokyo University of the Arts. He carefully analyses the evolution of the music scene, and has […]

© 2012 “WOLF CHILDREN” FILM PARTNER The Wolf Children, Ame and Yuki, is this Japanese film director’s latest masterpiece. It was a great success throughout […]

Since August this year, legendary guitarist Hotei Tomoyasu has shifted his base from Japan to London and on Tuesday the 18th of December he will be […]

The folklorist Ueno makoto was born in 1960. he is an expert on the man’yôshû, the first anthology of Japanese poetry that dates back to […]

The local press plays an important role in the far flung regions of Japan, but how it works is quite a mystery. A respected academic reveals […]

Copyright Studios Ghibli On June 8th at 6 pm, during a weekend dedicated to anime, the BFI Southbank will be presenting Miyazaki’s long awaited From Up […]

Journalist Elin Lindqvist publishes a wonderful book in which she puts the tragic events of 11th May 2011 into perspective. Born in Japan in 1982, […]

Writer Mita Masahiro was born in 1948. He teaches at Musashino University in Tokyo. In 1977, he won the Akutagawa Prize, one of Japan’s most […]

Born in 1958, HARA Kenya is art director of Muji since 2001 and designed the opening and closing ceremony programs ofthe Nagano Winter Olympic Games […]