Cannes film fest: Your Japanese taxes at work

[Taro Toporific]

[Samurai_Jerk]

Goddam. I'm not even Japanese and I'm embarrassed.

[Behan]

They are really sparing no expense.

[bolt_krank]

<sarcasm> Good way to improve national image... </sarcasm>

[TennoChinko]

I was actually expecting the opposite when I clicked on this thread, so I was pleasantly surprised. Sparing no expense to impress the French and other Europeans with the best in Japanese cuisine? Pearls before swine. As if they'd know. Give them some conbini onigiri and they'll go away happy.

Plus wasabi, s'il vous plaît .

[sublight]

I'm kind of thinking the same thing as TC here, and I'm French (well, French-American). On the one hand, private filmmakers, production companies and distributors are trying to drum up publicity for their films (for which they'd receive the profits), so they can pay for their own damn catering instead of mooching off my tax yen.

On the other hand though, pop culture is fast becoming one of Japan's big-money exports, and France is one place that's become particularly crazy about J-stuff. METI and JETRO (whose logos are on the big display over the party snacks) have been desperate to try and drum up interest in Japan beyond the usual cars, TVs and cameras, so this would have been a good opportunity to make a good impression before a receptive audience.

In either case, they could at least have taken the damn wrappers off.

[dazz_in_japan]

They are really sparing no expense.

So bloody typical, and they probably spent months with meetings and paper work to get this finalised product! BWHAHAHAHA Good work guys!! You Nailed it and must be so proud of yaselfs!!!! BANZAI BANZAI BANZAI !

[sublight]

So bloody typical, and they probably spent months with meetings and paper work to get this finalised product! BWHAHAHAHA Good work guys!! You Nailed it and must be so proud of yaselfs!!!! BANZAI BANZAI BANZAI !

Without going into specifics (job non-disclosure and all that), you are exactly right. Not only months of meetings and reams of paper, but tens of millions of yen to the various ad agencies creating all their materials.

[Mulboyne]

CNNGo picks up Taro's observation.