Mar 4th 2018 O.A.
The Reception Party of JBA’s 57th Anniversary
February 20th was the reception party celebrating JBA’s 57th anniversary at the official residence of the Consul General of Japan in LA. SoCal has the most Japanese businesses coming into the US and JBA is an economic organization supporting them since 1960. 500 companies join the organization and JBA is active in improving the business environment of Japanese companies, as well as contributing to the local community. 150 people including members, local community personnels and government agency epresentatives attended and socialized. General Manager of LA Economic and Workforce Development Department GM of LA Economic and Workforce Development Department, Jan Perry stated “Japanese businesses are a must have for the LA county and the State of California.” President, World Trade Center of Los Angeles President of the World Trade Center of LA, Stephen Cheung commented “The amount of the employment proves how much the Japanese businesses and the local community are involved to one another.” JBA was involved in solving the harbor strike that happened in the 1960s, along with the friction between the Japanese companies and the local businesses. In the 70s where the economy shifted to floating exchange rate system, they worked on fixing the tax system and improving the business environment. They have also contributed to local communities through donations and volunteering.
Pep Rally for Academy Award Nominees
A pep rally was held for the Japanese and Japanese Americans who were nominated for the Academy Awards on Monday, February 26th at the official residence of the Consul General. For the 90th Academy Awards 3 Japanese and Japanese Americans were nominated. They are: Kazuhiro Tsuji for Makeup and hairstyling; Kaoru Kuwahata for the Animated Short; and Ramsey Ann Naito for the Animated Feature. “Negative Space” nominated for the Animated Short is a stop motion film depicting the bond between father and son, where the father teaches his son how to pack a suitcase. Kaoru Kuwahata, who directed the film with her husband stated “I am honored to be one of the few women nominees.” “The Boss Baby” is an animated feature, where the main character is a baby executive who has the brain of an adult. Producer, Ramsey Ann Naito commented “I hope the audience can feel the message of sympathy and acceptance through the movie, which are two important factors for us.” Tsuji did the special effects makeup on Gary Oldman, transforming him into Winston Churchill for the “Darkest Hour”. He stated “I am happy that I got nominated with Gary Oldman for this film.” This is his 3rd nomination. The Academy Awards starts on 5pm tonight.