Washtub Boat Race

The coastal town of Ito in Shizuoka Prefecture holds one of the wackiest sporting events in Japan every July - the Washtub Boat Race. Javier Mejia Nieto from Colombia has won the international section for foreign an incredible 15 times. Can Javier make it an unprecedented 16 titles this year?

Classical Japanese Horserace

The ancient Japanese horserace of Ashi Fuse Soumei takes place at Kamo Shrine in Shiga Prefecture every summer. The shrine is a sacred place for horses and the land was once the first national pasture to train horses built by Emperor Tenchi in the 7th century.

International Budo Seminar

Feature story about a martial arts seminar that brings together foreign practitioners from all over Japan.

Bonds Beyond Borders

Documentary about a Kuwaiti man living in Japan's disaster area following the 2011 earthquake and tsunami. We follow his efforts to help rebuild his adopted hometown and support members of the international community.

Tokyo’s Hidden Homeless

Thousands of people below the poverty line in Japan flocked to live at decaying capsule hotels and internet cafes after being laid-off during the 2008 financial crisis.

Japan's EPA Nurse Program

News feature about Indonesian caregivers who are in Japan under an Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA). Staying in Japan and gaining a nursing license is extremely difficult, however, as they have to pass a Japanese language, medical test, given once a year over three years. Japanese phonetic symbols have since been added to the exam to make it easier for the foreign nurses to pass.

Samurai Horseracing

Kacchu Keiba is a samurai horserace in Fukushima Prefecture with origins over a thousand years old.

Kite Battle

The Hamamatsu Kite festival, Shizuoka. Our reporter joins one of the neighborhood teams to fly their kite for a member's recently born son.

Sonar Media is a video production based in Tokyo that produces documentaries, news features, sports programs, corporate films and web content.

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