Bucknell University’s Japanese Paper Film Presentation — with live music
by Adrianne Lundy (NYU Cinema Studies, MIAP Program)
The theme Work & Play takes a rare and delightful form in Eric Faden and Jackson Rubiano‘s presentation of three Japanese paper films (also known as “kami firumu”). Just as it sounds, these works were originally printed on paper instead of celluloid throughout the 1930s. They were produced and sold by Japanese companies (the most prominent were called RECFY and Katei Toki), which also sold the means to view the films in the form of small hand-cranked projectors. The films could be live-action or animated, oftentimes in color, and with synchronized music or sound on 78rpm records. Stills from surviving prints certainly reflect a whimsical, playful tone. However, substantial work was involved to be able to screen these films at the 14th Orphan Film Symposium.
Today, very few Japanese paper film prints survive. Those that have present challenges to standardized film scanners, as they were not created with uniformity in mind. Gauges vary between 26 – 27mm (approximately), perforations are horizontal and can appear above or below the frame line, and frame sizes were dependent on reels that were hand-glued together.
In an effort to tackle these issues, Faden (Professor of Film/Media Studies at Bucknell) began The Japanese Paper Film Project in 2020. This initiative has been joined by other faculty and students of media studies, East Asian studies, mechanical engineering, and computer science. The project also partners with institutions such as The Toy Film Museum in Kyoto, and the Itabashi Science Museum in Tokyo. In 2023, these collaborations led to the digitization of 85 Japanese paper films through the creation of a custom scanner, Kyōrinrin.
The scanner is appropriately named after a Japanese spirit of forgotten scrolls and knowledge. Kyōrinrin was designed by Nate Siegel (Professor, Mechanical Engineering) and student Alina Arko. Unlike other scanners that capture film frames one at a time, Kyōrinrin captures the reels in-motion to account for the variations in image. The Blackmagic 6K camera is given specific settings to ensure that there is proper color information and no motion blur. Meanwhile, the fragile print passes through on a custom built, low-tension transport rig.
Credit: Japanese Paper Film Project Twitter @kamifirumu
Additionally, a custom software needed to be developed in order to detect the frame lines and stabilize the image. This was created by Joshua Stough (Associate Professor, Computer Science), and students Yuhan Chen, and Jackson Rubiano.
These customized preservation efforts reflect a hand-crafted care that was present in this film oddity’s production life. The unique opportunity to view the fruits of these labors will take place at the symposium April 11 at the Museum of Moving Image. This will include two animated films, Express Chushingura (1930s) and The Battle of Monkey and Crabs (1930s), and one live-action film, China Incident Glorious Battle (1930s).
Enhancing the experience, Yoko Reikano Kimura accompanies the screening with a performance on the koto. Made possible by the Lisa Lu Foundation.
