We have a lot of information to cover and to start off we want to announce our Online Anime Voice Acting Workshop from Tokyo. We have partnered with JVTA again to bring this exciting new event for your enjoyment so make sure to RSVP and show up for the event.

Through our exhibition support program, JFLA is supporting the photo exhibition celebrating the life of cinematic legend, Yasujiro Ozu, at the Margaret Herrick Library in Beverly Hills. It is free to attend and on view now so don't miss out. Later this month we will traveling out to San Diego for an English Rakugo Performance at the Japanese Friendship Garden so stay tuned for more information!

For all the Japanese language teachers, we just announced our Japanese language grants for the 2023/2024 school year so make sure to look over the information below if you are thinking of applying. This is for teachers and organizations in the US only so if you are in a different country, you will need to follow up with your local Japan Foundation to find out about grants available in your area.

Our Japanese language classes started off strong in the new year with the first in-person class since 2020 and if you missed winter term, our next series of courses will start in April with registration starting in late March.

This month, we are also saying goodbye to a long time colleague and also introducing J-LEAP assistance teachers currently experiencing the American education system in different regions around the country. We also welcome back our first participant in the in-person training program at our Japanese Language Institute in Kansai, so make sure to read about his adventures below.

And as always, we will continue our trio of wellness events so make sure to join us on Facebook every Wednesday at 12:30PM PT.

Finally, the Japan Foundation was founded 40 years ago in Los Angeles and we hope to continue providing Japanese arts & culture events in the community as well as support Japanese language education nation wide!

Join us in voicing your favorite anime -- in Japanese! Natsu Shinomiya, a professional voice actor from Japan, will be challenging us to voice popular Japanese anime such as "Demon Slayer". Learn in a fun and casual setting with Bill-sensei, from the Japan Visualmedia Translation Academy (JVTA), who will be moderating. This workshop is designed for beginners of Japanese, but all experience levels (including none) are welcome.

Event Details and Registration Information will be available soon on our website!

(Examples: Speech Contest, Quiz Contest, Japan-themed Festival for Learners, etc.)

Deadlines: March 1 and September 1, 2023

More info: https://www.jflalc.org/grants-jle-contest

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(Examples: Conferences/Seminars/Workshops for Teachers, Teaching Material Development, Research Projects, etc.)

Deadline: 2 months before the project start date

More info: https://www.jflalc.org/grants-jle-project

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Deadline: April 10, 2023

More info: https://www.jflalc.org/grants-jle-courses

Deadlines: March 15 and September 15, 2023

More info: https://www.jflalc.org/grants-jle-materials

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If your Japanese language program is in danger of being cut due to COVID-19, we will send a support letter to stakeholders (Superintendent, Principal, Dean, etc.).

Please contact us for details.

The entertainment world was dealt a big blow by the pandemic. One after another, theaters were forced to either postpone or outright cancel performances. Beginning in July 2020, freelance photographers (Arisa Kasai, Shizuka Minami and Maiko Miyagawa) took portraits of 18 groups of artists over a period of about 7 months guided by their concept of “capturing the ‘present’ during the pandemic, characterized by the way in which the subjects’ routines meshed with the demands of the moment”. The photographers captured these artists’ emotions and their performances that would have otherwise never come to light, but were forged in a state of emergency which rekindled their passions for the stage.

Whether at work or at home, let's refresh yourself for 15 minutes on your lunchtime together with us! Karate Exercise will be offered via JFLA Facebook LIVE!

World class instructors from Kyokushin Karate of Los Angeles will give you a set of beginner’s level exercises from their basic movement with their English instruction.

There will be one 15-minute session starting at 12:30pm. Just go to JFLA's Facebook page. Achieve the unity of body and spirit!

Bilingual Yoga will be offered this month via JFLA Facebook LIVE!

No need to change clothes or use a yoga mat; you will be seated in a chair at home and receive an instruction from our instructor in bilingual (English and Japanese). Easy and relaxed!

There will be one session starting at 12:30pm. Just go to JFLA's Facebook page. Refresh and recharge yourself with us at home!

Meditation with Japanese Singing Bowl will be offered this month via JFLA Facebook LIVE!

The singing bowl used for this program harmoniously combines the healing qualities of the Tibetan singing bowl and its Japanese traditional singing bowl. Relax and feel your stress dissipate into thin air as the sounds of the singing bowl lead you into a meditative state.

There will be one session starting at 12:30pm. Just go to JFLA's Facebook page. Stretch and refresh yourself with us at home!

In collaboration with Amazon Crossing, The Japan Foundation, Los Angeles invites you to watch the vido presentation program "World of Kamusari Series: Discussion with Shion Miura".

As the prologue, there is a video introducing the town of Misugi, Mie Prefecture, where both novels are set and movie "Wood Job" based on "The Easy Life in Kamusari", which was film there, and interviews with people who live in Misugi like Yuki or Yoki in the novels. Following these, in the feature program, the award-winning author of "The Great Passage", Shion Miura is joined by translator Juliet Winters Carpenter to discuss her rapturous novels, Kamusari series (The Easy Life in Kamusari / Kamusari Tales Told at Night) where the contemporary and the traditional meet amid the splendor of Japan’s mountain way of life to English readers. The discussion is moderated by Allison Markin Powell, award-winning translator and member of PEN America’s Translation Committee.

The photo exhibition to celebrate the life of cinematic legendary, Yasujiro Ozu is on view at the Margaret Herrick Library in Beverly Hills, CA. This year is his 120th anniversary of birth and also 60th anniversary of his death. 

Admission is free and you could get complimentary Ozu postcards. Articles of interview with Mr. Matt Severson, director of the library, who curated this exhibition are available at the Ozu Yasujiro Society Official Website 

If you missed our WINTER term, we got you covered.

SPRING term registration is scheduled to start from mid-March.

In this program, we invite students studying Japanese from around ten countries around the world to carry out an interactive program in Japan. We would like to continue to provide opportunities to realize coexistence with different cultures even in situations where it is difficult to travel overseas. In order to secure opportunities for exchange, we will introduce and implement a hybrid-type program that allows online exchange in addition to the conventional face-to-face content.

For more information, please check out the link below after January 6th. There are two components of the program so make sure you can fulfill that before applying. Please contact JFLA if you have any questions.

The initial Lead Teacher (LT)/Host Organization application period for the Japanese Language Education Assistant Program (J-LEAP) has ended, and now the Laurasian Institution and the Japan Foundation will select the best candidates from those who applied to move forward.

This month, we would like to introduce Eimei Onoda, currently at Lockport Township High School in Lockport, Illinois, Shiho Yabuuchi at John F, Kennedy High School in Iowa, and Tatsuro Otoishi at Eastern High School in Louisville, KY. You can read about her experiences in the program thus far at the links above.