SJS Students Promote TUFS Area Through Multicultural Collab PR Video Project Presentation

August 29, 2019

In the “Multicultural Collaboration” class of the School of Japan Studies (TUFS’ new school of study that started in April 2019), eight groups made up of both local and international students worked together to make PR shorts showcasing the beauty of the region around TUFS. On Friday the 19th of July, students held a presentation on the shorts they created.

This class is a compulsory subject for first year students in the School of Japan Studies (full course name: “Creating and Presenting Short Videos to Promote the Beauty of the TUFS Area”, course coordinators: Associate Professor OTSU Tomomi, specially-appointed lecturer YUKIMATSU Hanae). Through this course, TUFS aims to not only have both local and international students to develop autonomy, the ability to take action and communicativity through working together on a project to solve problems so close to themselves, but to also nurture “Human resources equipped with collaboration and cooperation skills who will contribute to solving problems in a multiculturalizing Japan”. Students of different cultural and linguistic backgrounds worked together in multicultural teams to tackle eight topics (tourism, traditional culture, sports, art, regional development, industries, history and agriculture) in relation to the area around TUFS. Together, these students conducted fieldwork and interviewed experts on their respective topics. Based on the data they collected, each group thought about who would sponsor their program and created a 5-8 minute short video.

During this course, a class on “Planning and Making Television Programs” was held four times by TV Asahi’s MATSUI Ekō (Public Relations Office Customer Front Department). Mr. Matsui also attended the presentation, and was joined by OSADA Akira (Director of TV Asahi Public Relations Bureau) in scoring each project based on audience rating predictions and sponsor satisfaction.

The highest-rated group was the “history” group. The history group imagined Seibu Railway as their sponsor, and created a romantic drama. This group was made up of students from Ecuador, South Korea, Brazil and Japan, who together conducted interviews at the The Center of the Tokyo Raids and War Damage and The Fuchu City Furusato Cultural Heritage Museum. The group also filmed at Chofu Airport, Shiraitodai Station (Seibu Tamagawa Line), Ozawa no Sato Water Management Farmhouse, Shiraitodai Bunker, Edo-Tokyo Open Air Architectural Museum and Musashinomori Park.

Each short will be available to watch on the official TUFS YouTube channel, TUFS Channel.