2008 Culture relations
National Day Reception at the Consulate-General of Japan
On 1 December，2008，a reception was held in celebration of the 75th birthday of H．M．the Emperor of Japan，which is also the national day of Japan，at the garden of the residence of the Consul General of Japan in Jeddah．
At the reception，H．E．Ambassador Mr．Mohammed Bin Ahmad Tyyab，Director General of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs，Makkah Al-Mukarramah Region Branch，representatives of the International Organizations，top executives of business circles，heads of diplomatic corps，executives of Japanese companies and Japanese residents in Jeddah participated and celebrated the birthday of H．M．the Emperor．
Consul General Mr．Ishigure expressed his gratitude to all the guests for their participation and informed them that H．M．the Emperor，H．M．the Empress and other members of the Royal family were duly fulfilling their respective official roles and functions well．Mr．Ishigure also highlighted the recent developments of the relations between Saudi Arabia and Japan and could impress the guests that Japan was an important trade and economic partner of Saudi Arabia．
The guest of honour，Ambassador Mohammed Ahmed Tayyab said in his address：“We are happy at the excellent level of good old established relations between our two countries in the economic，cultural，investment and human resources development fields．I expect that Japan will become a strategic partner of Saudi Arabia and exercise leadership not only in the Middle East but also in the whole world．”
The invited guests enjoyed chatting while savouring Japanese cuisines such as various kinds of sashimi，sushi，tenpura，soba，etc．．The event was filled with a pleasant and sociable atmosphere．
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| H.E. Mr. Tyyab and Mr.and Mrs. Ishigure | Opening ceremony | Cake cut | Top businessman and H.E. Mr. Tyyab |
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| Sushi | Teppanyaki | Guests | Mesdames |
Piano Recital of Classical Music
On the night of 9 November，2008，a piano recital by Noriko Ogawa was held at the residence of the Consul General of Japan under the auspices of the Consulate-General of Japan in Jeddah，the Japan Foudation，Sumitomo Chemical Co．，Ltd．and Yamaha Music Gulf FEZ．Around 80 invited guests including diplomats and businessmen strained their ears to Ms．Ogawa's piano performance of the musical pieces composed by Beethoven，Debussy，Chopin，Rentaro Taki，Toru Takemitsu，Mussorgsky，Liszt and Gershwin．All the guests enjoyed the 2 hour recital．
When she completed all the programmes，the audience gave a burst of applause and the recital came to a close with a great success．
The guests deeply impressed by her wonderful performance also enjoyed the chat and took photographs with Ms．Ogawa in a pleasant and fantasied atmosphere in the garden．
Many guests voiced their admiration saying that Ms．Ogawa's performance was the best among those ever given by the musicians in the past．
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| H.E. Mr. Ishigure made a speech | Ms.Ogawa plays piano | Sociable Meeting |
Japanese Anime in the Jeddah Film Festival
Jeddah Film Festival was held for 4 days from 22 through 25 July，2008．The Consulate-General of Japan contributed 2 films which were screened during the Festival．
One of them was an animation entitled “Lupin the Third，the Castle of Cagliostro”
and another was a documentary entitled “Up from the ashes” which depicted how Japan achieved its postwar recovery．
On the night of 23 July when the Japanese films were screened，150 viewers gathered at the auditorium in the Jeddah Chamber of Commerce and Industry（JCCI）．They appreciated not only the films themselves but also the social significance in the screening of Japanese films．They could enjoy the films on a large screen．The film show on that night came to a close with a very favourable response．
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| Jeddah Film Festival Brochure | The animation film movie which was shown (TMS ENTERTAINMENT,Ltd) | Documentary entitled “Up from the ashes” which depicted how Japan achieved its postwar recovery (Arabic version) |
The lectures by members of SAJG
Mr.Ishigure's opening address and Dr.Samarkandi's Lecturing
Saudis enjoy “Sushi”
Japanese enjoy “Saudi food dishes“
Saudi homemade dishes
Lectures about “Saudi life style”, “History of Hijaz region” and “Saudi Food” were delivered by members of SAJG from 18:30 to 20:30 on Wednesday, February 27th at the library of the Consulate-General of Japan in Jeddah. These lectures were very informative and useful for members of the Japanese community in Jeddah. After the lectures, participants, Japanese as well as Saudis, enjoyed very much “Sushi” and Saudi food dishes at the garden of the Consulate-General of Japan.
Asian Film Festival 2008
Opening Ceremony （9 February）
Japan Film Day (10 February）
Saudi female animation artist work
Under the sponsorship of Asian Consuls General Club (ACGC) in Jeddah, Asian Film Festival 2008 was held at the events hall in the Indonesian Consul-General's residence by ACGC from 9 to 20 February, 2008.
Japan Film Day was also held in the evening on Sunday 10 February, 2008. Mr. Ishigure, Consul-General made a welcome speech and presentation about the Japanese animation film participating in the festival.
Japan presented two documentary films, “Hello Japan” and “Yokoso Japan” and also the following animation film:
“NITABOH”
Director/ Script : Akio Nishizawa.
Animation Director : Junichi Takaoka
Sound Director : Makoto Kuriya
Chief Graphic Director : Hiroshi Kugimiya
Tsugaru Shamisen Player : Hiromitsu Agatsuma
A large audience were present in the event including animation artists and fans, Saudi government officials, diplomatic corps, Saudi and Japanese businessmen and their wives.