Right off the bat you'll listen to "Inuyama Tofu", and you'll keep on listening, because Kelly Jones has the well-tempered vocal chords of real pro: pitch, volume, timber all support the text and advance the story.
"Inuyama Tofu" describes the evolution of Japanese tofu, the assault of western food and fast food and supermarket food. By-the-book ax-and-trax writing with good, if predictable, field sound, and a v/o interpreter who is comprehensible and not distracting (if a bit breezy) are perfectly presented. In the end, Takuji Yamato's black sesame and green avocado and purple shiso tofu evolutions help him stave off the beige inroads made by McDonald's and mass-produced soy product.
"Inuyama Tofu" would fit seamlessly in any of the network magazines; the other side of that shiny coin is it seems too seamless. This is an American story recorded in Japan – the same message could be conveyed presenting microbrewers or artisan bakers in the US. The frame seems focused too tightly on just one side of the street – no perspectives on the explosion of tofu consumption outside Japan, or the country's culture of absorbing and perfecting alien elements until they turn, uniquely, Japanese. Aside from being on the other side of the globe, there's not much globalism here.
Jones's tofu is a fine entree to her Japan reportage (the way to the heart of a country is through it's cuisine?); in future episodes, more depth and nuance will help flesh out the real Japan, beyond its American echoes.
This is a nice piece. The writing is solid and the production is polished. At six minutes, I found it a little long, but not terribly so. The narration and mix were all done well, though the laid-back tone of the male overdubbed voice, while very professional, kept making me think of the Americanized version of "Iron Chef." It seems almost too relaxed, and perhaps presumptuous of the character of the native speaker. But, I'm particular about these things because I speak Japanese and so it irks me when the voice-over doesn't capture the mood of the source tape. Plus, I've always been a sucker for the original Iron Chef broadcast in Japanese. ;-)
Also, you end on an actuality--and a dubbed actuality at that--before your outcue. So, you have forfeited the honor of making the final statement, not to one of your characters, but to your voice-over talent. I wish you had added something more about the piece (a forward looking statement or something) so that the last bit of information we got was from you. As it is, your outcue seems somewhat of an afterthought.
Lastly, I think tying the theme into a more universal theme of the ongoing recession or perhaps a timely news event will give the piece more punch.
Very well-written, contains lovely imagery, will strike emotional chord with listeners who feel that corporations are hurting cultural heritage. Kelly has a very pretty voice, too.
This is a great feature piece for the PR Collaboration. The universal themes of small business up against global market forces are something that every American business person could relate to. The corner Tofu shop is dwindling in Japan as much as the independent bookstore. Western influence has changed the tastes of Japanese young people as much as McDonald's has changed the eating habits of Americans. This is a well-produced, sound rich feature and would work well in any news magazine show especially if a station could make the connection to the struggles of American independent businesses.
Comments for Inuyama Tofu
Produced by Kelly Jones
Other pieces by Kelly Jones
Rating Summary
4 comments
Geo Beach
Posted on May 17, 2005 at 09:58 PM | Permalink
Review of Inuyama Tofu
Right off the bat you'll listen to "Inuyama Tofu", and you'll keep on listening, because Kelly Jones has the well-tempered vocal chords of real pro: pitch, volume, timber all support the text and advance the story.
"Inuyama Tofu" describes the evolution of Japanese tofu, the assault of western food and fast food and supermarket food. By-the-book ax-and-trax writing with good, if predictable, field sound, and a v/o interpreter who is comprehensible and not distracting (if a bit breezy) are perfectly presented. In the end, Takuji Yamato's black sesame and green avocado and purple shiso tofu evolutions help him stave off the beige inroads made by McDonald's and mass-produced soy product.
"Inuyama Tofu" would fit seamlessly in any of the network magazines; the other side of that shiny coin is it seems too seamless. This is an American story recorded in Japan – the same message could be conveyed presenting microbrewers or artisan bakers in the US. The frame seems focused too tightly on just one side of the street – no perspectives on the explosion of tofu consumption outside Japan, or the country's culture of absorbing and perfecting alien elements until they turn, uniquely, Japanese. Aside from being on the other side of the globe, there's not much globalism here.
Jones's tofu is a fine entree to her Japan reportage (the way to the heart of a country is through it's cuisine?); in future episodes, more depth and nuance will help flesh out the real Japan, beyond its American echoes.
Michael Rice
Posted on May 14, 2005 at 09:15 AM | Permalink
Review of Inuyama Tofu
This is a nice piece. The writing is solid and the production is polished. At six minutes, I found it a little long, but not terribly so. The narration and mix were all done well, though the laid-back tone of the male overdubbed voice, while very professional, kept making me think of the Americanized version of "Iron Chef." It seems almost too relaxed, and perhaps presumptuous of the character of the native speaker. But, I'm particular about these things because I speak Japanese and so it irks me when the voice-over doesn't capture the mood of the source tape. Plus, I've always been a sucker for the original Iron Chef broadcast in Japanese. ;-)
Also, you end on an actuality--and a dubbed actuality at that--before your outcue. So, you have forfeited the honor of making the final statement, not to one of your characters, but to your voice-over talent. I wish you had added something more about the piece (a forward looking statement or something) so that the last bit of information we got was from you. As it is, your outcue seems somewhat of an afterthought.
Lastly, I think tying the theme into a more universal theme of the ongoing recession or perhaps a timely news event will give the piece more punch.
Good job on field reporting.
Monique Daviau
Posted on May 13, 2005 at 08:39 AM | Permalink
Review of Inuyama Tofu
Very well-written, contains lovely imagery, will strike emotional chord with listeners who feel that corporations are hurting cultural heritage. Kelly has a very pretty voice, too.
Dmae Lo Roberts
Posted on May 02, 2005 at 06:59 PM | Permalink
Review of Inuyama Tofu
This is a great feature piece for the PR Collaboration. The universal themes of small business up against global market forces are something that every American business person could relate to. The corner Tofu shop is dwindling in Japan as much as the independent bookstore. Western influence has changed the tastes of Japanese young people as much as McDonald's has changed the eating habits of Americans. This is a well-produced, sound rich feature and would work well in any news magazine show especially if a station could make the connection to the struggles of American independent businesses.