Round the Mulberry Bush

Last year,  Mrs. Mutoh and her husband hired private contractors to decontaminate the house where they live with their two children, son, Shougo, and daughter, Rimi.  The levels of radiation did initially decrease, but little by little, they started to increase, particularly on the second floor where the children sleep. 

She feels she has cause for concern: both of Mrs. Mutoh's children have been found to have thyroid cysts (that story HERE).

Mrs. Mutoh contacted a local non-profit that offers independent radiation monitoring, and they sent Mr. Fukada.  He started by measuring the radiation levels in the Mutoh's foyer and explained that this is often an area that becomes recontaminated because radiation is carried into the home from the outside on shoes and jackets.

Mr. Fukada then measured the radiation levels in the children's bedroom on the second floor and the study room where the children do their homework after school.  He took measurements both near the floor and close to the ceiling as well as facing towards the centre of the room and then near the windows.

 

As Rimi, played a video game, Mr. Fukada measured the family's living room.  He pointed at the greenery just outside the window and asked Mrs. Mutoh if it was on her property or her neighbor's.  When she replied that it was her neighbor's, he nodded his head and showed her the measurements.  "Radiation," he said, "can travel 80 meters."

Outside Mrs. Mutoh's house, Mr. Fukada explained that decontamination will not be effective if the surrounding properties are not also decontaminated.  As long as neighbors don't decontaminate their property, including cutting down most trees and shrubs, land that has been "decontaminated" will keep getting recontaminated.

Mr. Fukada pointed the monitor in the direction of the neighbour's yard to prove his point.

Back in the living room, Shougo and Rimi played while Mr. Fukada explained to Mrs. Mutoh his findings.  The radiation levels in the children's bedroom are indeed twice as high as on the first floor, although still within what is considered "safe" by the local government.  Although people in Fukushima have come to view these levels as a kind of "new normal", he said that if this amount of radiation was found in a public park in Tokyo, there would be a public outcry and a demand for immediate decontamination.

"On March 11, 2011, we were all given a lottery ticket," Mr. Fukada said.  "Nobody knows how many winning tickets or what the chances of winning are.  But the winners of this lottery get a terrible, terrible prize.  You, your two children, all of us: we were all given a lottery ticket on March 11, whether we wanted one or not."

Down the Rabbit Hole

Two years ago, Mr. and Mrs. Takahashi were evacuated from Iitate, Fukushima, along with the other 6,000 residents of the village.  Located outside of the 20 kilometer evacuation zone around the nuclear power plant, Iitate was contaminated with a radioactive plume that had traveled much further than the government had initially admitted.  The villagers of Iitate waited for nearly two months until they were finally evacuated in May 2011.

In June 2012, more than a year after the meltdown, the government admitted that the contamination in the district of Nagatoro in Iitate, where the Takahashi's farm was located, was so high that it actually required putting up a barricade to prevent entry into the area.

On Sunday, I accompanied Mr. and Mrs. Takahashi into the no-entry zone of Nagatoro (HERE).  Later that day, the Takahashi's showed me the temporary housing facility where they now live.  Having spent their entire lives in a big farm house in the countryside with their extended family, Mr. Takahashi said that he feels like the evacuees have now been forced to live in rabbit hutches.

Mr. Takahashi, who lives in the 3rd unit on the right with his wife, refers to the housing units as "rabbit hutches".

Mr. Takahashi stands in the area where two rows of housing units back up to each other.

Until the nuclear meltdown, Mr. and Mrs. Takahashi lived with their children and grandchildren on their farm in Iitate.  Like so many other evacuees, their family has now been split up; Mr. and Mrs. Takahashi live in temporary housing near Iitate, while their children and grandchildren have evacuated further away.

A picture of the home and farm buildings the Takahashi's shared with their children hangs in their temporary housing unit.

Mr. and Mrs. Takahashi in the temporary housing unit that Mr. Takahashi refers to as a "rabbit hutch".

One of the great joys in life for Mr. Takahashi had been growing the fresh food that his family ate.  Their rice, vegetables, and even beef, was either fresh from their farm or had been preserved by Mrs. Takahashi to be enjoyed throughout the year. 

The Takahashi's land has now been reduced to the space between the two yellow support cables at the back of their temporary housing unit.  Mr. Takahashi told me that he couldn't stand looking out the window and seeing the bare gravel, so he started to grow bonsai and other potted plants.  "Anyway", he said, "there isn't anything else to do."

The Takahashi's "backyard" consists of the space between two yellow support cables

As our time together was drawing to a close, Mr. Takahashi looked at the time.  "My throat gets awfully dry every afternoon around three," he said, as he reached under his desk and pulled out a large carton of shochu, a distilled drink.  "But don't worry, " he added, "I never drink too much."  Mrs. Takahashi just silently shook her head as she stood up and left the room.

Home is Where the Danger Is

Located in the beautiful mountains of Fukushima, the entire Village of Iitate was evacuated after the nuclear meltdown two years ago.  Officially, none of the more than 6,000 former residents of Iitate remain, and although they are allowed to return for short periods during the day, spending the night in the village is banned; that is, except for the 75 elderly residents of "Iitate Home", a nursing care facility located in the evacuated village.

Mr. Sanpei Masami, the director of Iitate Home, guided me around the vast facility and told me about the terrible decision that had to made two years ago as it became clear exactly how far the radioactive contamination had spread.  The problem he was faced with was that although there was inherent danger in remaining in the village, there was also a risk in moving the elderly residents, and there had already been cases of elderly people dying just from the stress of evacuation itself.

Eventually, although the entire Village of Iitate was evacuated, the decision was made to allow Iitate Home to remain open.  However, this then presented a new problem:  the staff members who care for the residents would have to commute from the relative safety of their temporary housing into a highly contaminated area.

Iitate Home had been established to provide its residents, most of whom had lived their entire lives in large, airy houses in the countryside, a place that felt more mountain cabin retreat than hospital.  However, one of the agreements the administrators made with the national government when they were negotiating remaining opened, was that the windows would stay closed and the elderly residents would not be allowed outside.  

So the staff decided to bring the green inside.

Amid the peace and tranquility of Iitate Home, a short-term visitor to the evacauted Village of Iitate almost forgets about the danger that lies just on the other side of the glass windows.  But for the 71 staff members who work at Iitate Home, it is a danger they must face everyday.

Saying Goodbye, Starting Anew

Today, as the cherry trees begin to blossom in Fukushima, the start of a new school year began.

Kae stood in front of her new school and showed me the new pink backpack that she is so proud of.  This school is new to Kae because she will be entering the first grade.  But it is also new to her because she and her family have evacuated from their home that was contaminated with radiation.  Evacuation has brought relative safety to Kae and her two brothers, but it has also meant leaving their familiar school and friends. 

Before the School Entrance Ceremony in the gymnasium began, Kae's mother pinned her name on her daughter's new uniform.  Her brother, Koutaro, signed the school-transfer paperwork as their little brother, Shinjirou, looked on.

At the front of the auditorium, Kae sat on a little chair where packets of textbooks had been neatly laid out for the new students.  As her parents and brother looked on, I wondered who was more nervous: Kae or her mom and dad.

All of her new classmates and teachers were gathered, and the ceremony was about to begin!  Kae turned around just one more time to check where her family was sitting.

The children listened intently to speeches about obedience and the importance of study.  Then the older children at the school made a short presentation about making new friends that ended with them holding up cards that spelled out "Congratulations for Entering School".

After the ceremony, Kae returned to say thank and farewell to the teachers at the nursery school she had attended until last month.  After saying goodbye, Kae put on her new backpack and left the nursery school for the last time.

  

(In October of 2012, I documented the decontamination of the home that Kae had lived in with her two brothers HERE, HERE and HERE, and then again in November of that year HERE and HERE.)

Leaving Tora behind

After the nuclear meltdown, the families of Iitate Village in Fukushima, were evacuated... but not until two months after the entire area was contaminated.  

(The documentary I filmed about Iitate as all the villagers were being evacuated two years ago is here:) 

The levels of radiation in the district of Nagatoro in Iitate Village are so high that barricades have now been set up along all roads leading into the area.  Access is restricted and special permission is required for non-residents to enter.  To limit negative affects on visitor's health, time in Nagatoro is limited to two hours.  I entered Nagatoro today.

Mr. and Mrs. Takahashi were evacuated from Nagatoro nearly two years ago, but they return every week to check on their home.

Mr.  Takahashi showed me the land where he used to grow food for his family and where his grandchildren used to play.  Until the meltdown, the Takahashi's lived here together with their children and grandchildren.  Like so many others, their family has been split up: Mr. and Mrs. Takahashi are in tiny temporary housing nearby, and their children and grandchildren have been evacuated further away.

Although it will probably be years before anyone can return to live and perhaps decades before food can be safely grown here, Mr. Takahashi runs the engines on his farm equipment to keep it in working condition.  Mrs. Takahashi feeds their cat, Tora.  The Takahashi's had to leave Tora behind because pets are not allowed in their temporary housing facility.

The two-hour time limit up, the Takahashi's locked up their home and reluctantly said goodbye to Tora.

The Takahashi's, who have lived their entire lives in this big house in the beautiful countryside, return to their cramped temporary house, but Tora must stay behind at their contaminated home in this exclusion zone.

The doctor will see you now.

Last month, I was contacted by the group International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War/ Physicians in Social Responsibility (IPPNW).  In the March issue of their members magazine IPPNW Forum, they were publishing an article by Dr. Alex Rosen,  a pediatrician who writes about the health effects of Fukushima, particularly on children.  They had seen my photographs of children undergoing thyroid tests on my blog (HERE) and wanted permission to use one of them to accompany Dr. Rosen's article.

I was honoured that a medical journal was interested in using my work, but before I agreed, I wanted to know what Dr. Rosen's article was going to be about.  The office contacted him for me and he e-mailed right away.  He told me he was "on a Sabbatical, traveling in the Indian Himalayas" at the time so to please understand any delay in getting back to me.

I asked him if he could summerize for me his personal opinion on the situation after having spent time researching the situation in Minamisoma, Fukushima (a place where I have also spent much time filming).  Then, for some reason, I felt the need to add this at the end of the e-mail:

I am not an anti-nuclear activist; I am simply a filmmaker who is documenting the very real fears that the mothers in Fukushima have for their children.

Dr. Rosen's reply:

Greetings from Bodhgaya, India... Internet here isn't great, so very briefly to answer your question:

Thyroid nodules and cysts in children are not necessarily a precursor to cancer and therefore do not necessarily pose a health risk. They can be monitored and more invasive diagnostics (like scintigraphy or even fine-needle biopsy) are rarely necessary and only come into play when the symptoms get worse (i.e. the cysts or nodules bigger or irregular). However, these findings are generally not found in healthy children. A study performed in Nagasaki in 2000, only 0.8% of the children showed thyroid cysts and none showed any kind of nodule (N = 250), while the study in Fukushima from 2012 showed thyroid nodules in about 1% of children aged 0-18 and thyroid cysts in about 35.1% (N = 38,114). Therefore, these cases should be well monitored, as they possibly have a higher risk for thyroid cancer - a big problem in the pediatric population affected by the Chernobyl disaster fallout.

And then Dr. Rosen added:

P.S.: Every good war journalist is always an anti-war journalist ;)

The hard copy of the IPPNW Forum arrived in the mail today.  I am so honoured to have my photograph published alongside Dr. Rosen's research.  The article can be found online, HERE.

My Fukushima doc 'In Containment' to screen in Paris

Post-production on my documentary 'A2' (WEBSITE), about the current conditions in Fukushima affecting the children still living there, continues.  I had been hoping to lock picture last Friday after handing the film off to the post-production team in the UK on March 11 (coincidentally the two-year anniversary of the disaster), but we are still tweaking the film a bit.  As soon as we lock picture, we'll do the colour grading and sound mix and then the film will be finished.

In the meantime, I have submitted the "rough cut" of 'A2' to several international film festivals and have recently confirmed our first two screenings, as well as our participation in a major documentary film market in Europe.  I will publish the details of these screenings soon.

This week I also have the additional honour of my documentary 'En confinement' or 'In Containment' (English version HERE and French version HERE) screening with Paul Johannessen's brilliant documentary 'Women of Fukushima' (website HERE) on Friday, March 22, in Paris.

Editing. Praying. Writing. Reflecting. Gratitude.

Today at 2:46PM it was exactly two years since the March 11, 2011 disaster.

A couple of months ago, I had wondered how I would spend the day.  Coincidentally, today turned out to be the last day I would be editing my documentary "A2" (WEBSITE), about the children living in Fukushima.  I have just now handed the film over to the post-production team in the UK.

It's bittersweet; I suppose like sending a child off to university.

I am honoured that Discovery News' March 11 anniversary coverage includes my guest blog (HERE), the 10th one I have written for Discovery since the earthquake struck two years ago, and it is also linked to the short documentary I compiled for today (HERE).

And today began with the humbling news that "A2" has been accepted in a competitive film festival in Europe in June.

Editing.  Praying.  Writing.  Reflecting.  Gratitude.

Remembering the March 11, 2011 disaster

On March 13, 2011, two days after the devastating earthquake and tsunami in Japan, I described the situation in Tokyo in an open letter to my friends and family (HERE).  I posted it along with a short documentary about panic buying and the following explanation:

I simply couldn’t stay inside today and just watch the news coverage, so I took my brother-in-law’s advice: I took my camera outside to see what was happening in my neighbourhood. The result is (this) ten-minute video about “panic buying”.

I could never have imagined at the time that this would be the first in a series of short documentaries that would eventually evolve into two feature films documenting the nuclear crises in Fukushima spanning the following two years.

As the two-year anniversary of the March 11 disaster approaches, I find myself reflecting on how it all unfolded.  As part of this reflection, I have re-visited my early documentaries and edited them together to see how my journey began.

The short films that I made during the first ten days of the crises document the path I took trying to understand the March 11 earthquake, tsunami and nuclear disasters.  Re-examining this journey is helping me to understand where to go from here; for although we move forward, we must not forget from where it is that we began.

Ian Thomas Ash
March 4, 2013
Tokyo, Japan

On the same page

The Associated Press (AP) published an article yesterday entitled "Japanese Disaster Films Highlight Victims' Stories" (HERE) by Yuri Kageyama in which two of my documentaries, "In the Grey Zone" (WEBSITE) and "A2" (WEBSITE), are featured.

To have my work included in a group of films made by award-winning directors such as Atsushi Funahashi and Lucy Walker is truly humbling.  I am so grateful for this opportunity to share my work with a larger audience.

"In the Grey Zone" to screen in Nepal

My documentary "In the Grey Zone" will screen at the Nepal Human Rights International Film Festival in Kathmandu this weekend.

"In the Grey Zone" (WEBSITE) was filmed in Fukushima in April of 2011, one month after the nuclear meltdown, as the local government was preparing to re-open schools just outside the 30 km radiation zone.

Where "In the Grey Zone" asks the question "what will happen to the children of Fukushima?", my new documentary, "A2" (WEBSITE), attempts to begin to answer that question. 

With all recent developments involving "A2" (HERE), as well as the upcoming 2nd anniversary of March 11, I am unable to attend the screening in Nepal, but I am very grateful to Purna Singh Baraily, the Chairperson of the Human Rights Film Center in Kathmandu (WEBSITE), for giving my film this opportunity.

My film is going international AND going to court?!

I am overwhelmed at the support I have received from people all over the world in the form of comments, e-mails and offers to help with my work documenting the current situation in Fukushima and particularly with my new documentary "A2" (WEBSITE).

Among some of the people helping me are Kna60 (CHANNEL), who translated the French subtitles for the "A2" trailer (below) along with some of my previous work (HERE), and "Miguel" Yasuyuki Hirota, who translated the Spanish and Portuguese versions (below).  Екатерина Коидэ translated the Russian version (below).

To have people want to volunteer their time to help is so humbling, and I am truly grateful.

As I was preparing the international versions earlier today, I was contacted by a lawyer who is representing a group of Fukushima children who have filed a law suit against the local government demanding their right to study in a safe environment.  The lawyer asked me for the full version of "A2" along with an official statement about my findings to be used as evidence in the trial.

Am I going to be subpenaed and required to testify?  What about the participants in the film?

Is the World Premier of "A2" going to be in a Japanese courthouse rather than an international film festival?!?!

***** UPDATED February 19, 2013 *****

I have spoken with the trial lawyer at great length and have shared with him my concerns, some of which are: 

• It is one thing for me to open myself up to being called as a witness, but I do not want the participants in my documentary to be required to testify.
• I am still in the middle of editing the film, so I will need to do a special "trial edit".
• I am not willing to hand over the 50 hours or so of unedited footage.

The lawyer clarified for me how this kind of court case works in Japan (I'm not sure I even understand how this would all work in the US!) and exactly what it is that he's asking me to.

After careful consideration and receiving the blessing of each of the mothers who appear in the film, I have decided to allow my documentary, "A2", to be used as evidence in the case.  I have already submitted my written statement to the lawyer so that an official Japanese translation can be made, and I am working on the "trial edit" today.  My statement and documentary film will be filed as evidence on Thursday.

The lawyer has assured me that if at some point it becomes clear that I require legal representation, which is a very real possibility, that he will represent me.

However, it is my most sincere hope that the focus of this trial remains on that which is the most important part of this story: the children of Fukushima.
 
Thank you all for your continued support and encouragement.

Ian Thomas Ash
February 19, 2013
Tokyo, Japan

 

 

Through the looking glass: Fukushima mothers

Today I did something I have never done, something I said I would never do:  I showed the rough cut of my latest documentary ("A2" website HERE) to the mothers who appear in the film.

Of course I always show the finished film to the people appear who appear in my documentaries, but I never show it to them when it is still a work-in-progress.  I feel that showing someone the rough cut of a film implies that you are open to suggestions, feedback, criticism; and while I am certainly open to all of these things from my colleagues, I generally am not open to them from the films' subjects themselves.

Can you imagine the Pandora's Box that would be opened if every scene in which someone didn't like their hair or the fact that they had stuttered had to be defended?

But this time it was different.  I wanted to share with the mother's of Fukushima how I was editing, how I was treating their story.  They have trusted me with their innermost thoughts and feelings and have allowed me to interview and film their children.  I wanted them to see how I am telling their story.

I was nervous.  Really nervous.  What if they hated the film?  What if they felt like "A2" wasn't a true reflection of their story?

When I arrived, the mothers were gathered around a hot plate making octopus balls for lunch.  They were relaxed and didn't seem at all anxious about seeing the film.  How ironic that I was seemingly more nervous about seeing the film than they were!

After we shared a meal together, we watched "A2".  I wondered what exactly each of them was thinking, what they were feeling as they watched scene after scene of their own faces, their own words, their own children through my eyes, through my lens.

After the film was over one of them simply said, "this is our story".

They talked about the common threads in their experiences, even though some of them were meeting for the first time.  One of the mothers starting crying and shared that her eight-year-old daughter had come to her and said, "Mommy, you're always worried about us kids, but I want you to be healthy, too".

The discussion about the film itself quickly lead to other topics affecting their lives and their children.  Although some of them had just met, it would have appeared to an outsider that they had all been long-time friends.

The mothers exchanged phone numbers and e-mail addresses, talked about the best websites to get up-to-date information about radiation levels and private testing facilities, and were sharing the information in real time with their friends via social media.

Before I realized what was happening, the mothers had formed a team and had given it a name and were handing out roles.  It was amazing to watch, to witness the birth of a movement that is so much larger than any one of its members.  No longer individuals, the strength of this group is palpable.

Later, one of them quietly came over to me and said, "Thank you for bringing us together".  Choking back tears, I replied, "Thank you for trusting me with your story."

Versions Françaises

The French version of the trailer for my documentary "A2" has been uploaded by my colleague Kna60.

Le 3 Février 2013, Ian Thomas Ash (auteur entre autres du documentaire "En confinement") a publié cette bande-annonce de son futur documentaire, "A2".

Synopsis : De nombreux enfants de Fukushima n'ont jamais été évacués, suite à la fusion des cœurs des réacteurs après le 11 Mars 2011. Maintenant, le nombre d'enfants chez qui sont détectés des kystes ou nodules de la thyroïde augmente. Quelles vont être les conséquences pour leur avenir ?

More French versions of my documentaries translated by Kna60 can be found in the playlist "versions Françaises" on my YouTube Channel (HERE).

A very big "merci beaucoup" to Kna60 for translating the French versions and to all the French-speaking viewers!

HUGE disappointment

My doc "A2" had been short-listed for inclusion in a major European documentary film festival, and I had just sensed through their communications that "A2" would be included in the competition.

Alas, it was not to be.  This e-mail came last night:

"Thank you very much for submitting your film A2 to the upcoming edition of (A SERIOUSLY MAJOR EUROPEAN DOCUMENTARY FILM FESTIVAL).

The selection process this year has been very long and difficult. We received and watched more than 2500 films and in the last few weeks we preselected around 100 films that we kept in our short list until the end. Among them your film, that captured the attention of our whole selection committee. Unfortunately we regret to inform you that we decided not to include the film in our programme. At this stage of our selection process we have to make choices and for any film we take in our program, there is another film that we can not keep with us. "

The submission process to film festivals continues.  I wonder where in the world the premier of "A2" will be held. Stay tuned.

Thank you for all for your continued support and encouragement.

A2

I just uploaded the trailer for my new documentary, "A2" (link below).   I will be posting more information about the film here on this blog and on the film's website (HERE).

It is thanks to your support and encouragement that I have been able to make this film.  Thank you all so much.

The number of Fukushima children found to have thyroid cysts and nodules is increasing.  What will this mean for their future?

“A2” (予告編) 嚢胞としこりを持つ福島の子供達の数が増加してきている。このことが彼らの未来に対して意味するものは？

A 'new normal' for the children in Fukushima

In January, I received a call from a worried mother in Fukushima: she was bringing her children to a private clinic to have their thyroids examined for cysts and nodules.  She asked me if I would go with her.

Although her children had been found to have no thyroid cysts during the official examination overseen by the government,  she was wary of the results and wanted to get a second opinion.

Many parents in Fukushima have trouble believing the official test results due to inaccurate results and other discrepancies that they see as being part of an official coverup, as I documented in November 2012 (HERE).

I accompanied the mother and her children to the clinic and witnessed what is now the 'new normal' for the children in Fukushima who were never evacuated after the nuclear meltdown on March 11, 2011.

福島の子供達の多くは、メルトダウン後も避難させてもらえなかった。

Recently, the number of children in Fukushima found to have thyroid cysts and nodules is increasing. 

How thyroid cysts and nodules will impact the children in the future, no one knows.

嚢胞としこりを持つ福島の子供達の数が増加してきている。嚢胞としこりが福島の子供達の未来にどう影響を与えるのか、誰にもわからない。

 
For the children of Fukushima thyroid tests are now just a part of life.

福島の子供達にとって甲状腺テストが生活の一部となっている。

Feeling grateful, honoured and on task for 2013.

My film “Gurei Zoun No Naka” or "In the Grey Zone" (website HERE), premiered last summer at the 2012 Rhode Island International Film Festival.  On the final day of the festival, I had the honour of receiving the “Filmmaker of the Future Award" (HERE). 

After the festival was over, the votes were tallied and the audience choice awards were announced in the autumn.  “In the Grey Zone” was given the Audience Choice Award for Best Documentary!

The certificate arrived in the post today. 

This gives me an extra boost to finish my new feature documentary film, about the children in Fuksuhima with newly discovered thyroid cysts and nodules, which is currently in the final stages of post-production.  I will be posting the trailer for that along with some new short documentary updates about Fukushima here on my blog and on my channel (HERE) very soon.

In The Grey Zone (synopsis)

In the zone 20-30 km from the damaged nuclear power plant in Fukushima, Japan, the
children of Minamisoma City are heading back to school amidst abnormally high levels
of radiation and toxic rain one month after the nuclear meltdown.

Filmmaker of the Future Award (description)

Presented to a filmmaker whose vision excites audiences and judges alike about the potential to produce compelling and successful films in the future
Gurei Zoun No Naka (In the Grey Zone) | Ian Thomas Ash, Japan, 2012

Fathers and sons.

My dad has been in Japan for the last three and a half weeks.  He left today.

We had many adventures together, traveling from Sapporo to Nagasaki and flying on a 787 (before they were suddenly grounded!).  We met lots of wonderful people along the way and partook in countless delicacies.  But most of all, we just enjoyed hanging out together, father and son.

After watching my documentary "Jake, not finished yet" (trailer HERE), someone who was familiar with some of my other work once asked me, "What is it with you and this theme of mothers and sons?"

These weeks with my dad have been so important to me and make me think: what is it that made this time together with my dad so special?

Fathers and sons.