10 posts tagged “hidden fortress”

SHOBANWA! Destini here~ So I was reading both the article about MatsuJun (also know as The MatsuJun) and the interview of The MatsuJun, both done by the Asia Pacific Arts at UCLA.

Ladies. Get used to him being called Jun Matsumoto. XD

Interesting points, ahoy!

APA: Your Arashi colleague Kazunari Ninomiya[1] has worked with Clint Eastwood on Letters from Iwo Jima. Are you interested in working in Hollywood as well?

JM: If I can. [laughter] I'm really honored to be here today and have the opportunity to see how people react to the film. There's nothing decided right now, but it'd be great to have more chances like today where the film can be screened for new audiences like here in America.

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APA: Arashi is approaching their 10th Anniversary as a group - do you guys have big plans? Will Arashi be doing any international concerts anytime soon -- like say, America?

JM: Well, I haven't had much time to think about a 10th anniversary as 10 years have passed really quickly for us, but I know that's because of the fans and staff around us who've supported us. I don't know how we five will celebrate the occasion, but I want to express our gratitude to as many people as possible.
Regarding acting, like I said before, I'd like to continue to do movies that interest me and talk to more interesting people above all else. For that, I know I'll have to try to improve my abilities – whether that be singing, dancing, acting, speaking – I know I have to continuously try to improve myself. I'm doing so many things right now I tell you, I don't have much time.

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APA: You've recently shot two movies back to back, and have been busy with new television shows, including the continuing Arashi no Shukudai-kun, and an upcoming dome concert with your other members of Arashi. When do you find time to rest?

JM: I was talking to some people from a Japanese TV station here in Hollywood, and I was really surprised. In Hollywood, you make movies that you assume will be shown around the world. I don't have much experience with that feeling. I had assumed I was making Japanese entertainment in Japan for Japanese people, but with the Internet, it's now being seen everywhere, much like movies. The fact that we can see Japanese variety shows here in the U.S. made me realize just how large the world had become. When I receive email or letters from people here in America, like this last time when I was in Las Vegas and got a letter saying, "When are you guys gonna have an American concert?," it made me realize that there is an audience for us here too, and makes me hope that one day we can hold a concert here in America or appear in international films. If Hidden Fortress can screen here in the future, I hope many people can see it.

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APA: Is there anything you'd like to say to your fans in America?

JM: Thank you for supporting us despite our being on a tiny island country across the ocean. It truly makes me feel happy.

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[1]: It's weird to see KAZUNARI NINOMIYA. I'm like, Call him Nino please....XD

Sorry, it's a bit shorter than I had wanted but if I remember anything, I'll edit it! Also - people posted a lot of information (including transcripts) so my post will be like a leaf in the wind. XD

Firstly, I want to just say thank you so much to everyone who attended the Meetup! It was truly a blast and I think we can all agree that meeting up with like-minded fans is both an amazing and rare experience! I'm truly glad to have meet you all - all you girls were total dears! ^.^

Goodness, the wait was so fun! We watched the TIME con DVD and sang along, we did random menomane of Arashi (where every answer was OhMiya. LMFAO) and we mocked Sho and his crazy shoulder shaking. We also have established that picking a favorite Arashi song/PV/solo is damn near impossible.

Oh! And I believe I was the only die-hard Sakurai fan in the group! It was awkward. Not really~ But we looked the the Dream "A" Live LE CD booklet and I think it was obvious when a picture of Sho was there. "long pause....squeal....Ok!" Look at me, being obvious.

Nextly, the film. The film was amazing. With or with MatsuJun, it would've been amazing. Of course, Jun's ability to kind of...create a new character once he's all suited up (make up + all) is truly astounding. I think more or less than that, I was so impressed with how this film was not watered down with a whole lot of unneeded special effects. I told NBC Nippon that it really have a sense of human relation and warmth and an excess of special effects can easily cover up.

There were a lot of differences from the original but I think the feeling of it is easily comparable. Also, as Higuchi-san stated, "He wanted to create a feel that left the audience with a refreshed feeling as they left the theatre." I also think that with a U.S. premiere and with Mr. Anthony Daniels involved with it, it will be released in this United States. Now, this is speculation so do not take this and run with it. :)

I honestly want to do a detailed compare - contrast to the original Kurosawa and the modern Higuchi versions of the films, but I will do it in a way where if you wish not to be spoiled, you don't have to be. Maybe I will post it in my LiveJournal, under a friends cut? I'm not entirely sure.

Now, MatsuJun. I'm sure you're all wondering how that went.

He's a total dear. I swear, I wish he didn't give off the aura of just...big meanie on television all the time because when the Fan Division gave him his flower bouquet, he looked HONESTLY TAKEN ABACK. It was really sweet actually! I'm sure he read the card we put in it as well. It held messages (in English + Japanese) to him. A lot asking that he try and bring Arashi to America...

Actually, after his introduction (in English, mind you! Relatively good English...) and he was walking back, I shouted "Bring Arashi to America!" and he kinda looked at me and waved. I flailed. XD

Then on stage, and I hope a full transcript gets online but he was extremely cute. Someone asked him something along the lines of, "Talk about how cool you are!" (literally a rough idea of the question) and he said, "I don't like talking about myself in that way, I'm not all that cool." and then in English, he's all, "I'm shy" and the fangirls were like OMG!KAWAII. It was funny.

You know - it was just great to see him smile! I came to the complete conclusion during the Hanadan shoot in Las Vegas that Jun was a very serious worker. In other words, while I'm sure he was extremely happy that he had fans there watching him film, he did not let it break his concentration. Therefore, he came off a bit serious. Well for this event, it wasn't a filming. It was just MatsuJun being MatsuJun so he was himself and it was really great. I know he loves his fans and I know he knows his fans love him now!

I talked to all kinds of reporters from Japan and to NBC Nippon and MADE SURE to get across that we fans want Arashi in America. They even asked for my name and age so it'll probably be in some newspaper. (EDIT: And I was. SCARY SHIT. Links at the end.) Also, for the record - the more foreign you look, the more questions you'll get asked! So be yourself, Arashians. XD I also gave pre-movie expectations and a post movie review on camera. It was kind of scary actually but I was like "This is your moment to spread the word!" and i'm sure the others that got interviewed felt the same. So yeah, honestly it was amazing.

Oh! One last thing. So one thing I had hoped. Well when Nino premiered Iwo Jima, Sho was there right? It was in Japan, I know but Sho was STILL there with News Zero. So someone comes and taps me - "There are News Zero microphones here!" so I like fell over in my chair into a fetal position! "I CAN'T SEE SHO IN REAL LIFE NOOOUUUU" it was kinda sad actually! See, because I've never been relatively close to seeing him. Of course he wouldn't be at the Hanadan shoot but at a movie premiere, it's a bit understandable. So with that said, I had a big moment! I calmed down though. ^.^

Ah! When the film started, they had up these posters, right? Well after the film, they said anyone who wanted one could take one! So I saw one and ran for it! Someone almost even tried to fight me for it, but I said "No!" and she backed off. So I ran outside, singing "I got a poster~" until I found Miss Iroiro and gave it to her! LOL, I love Jun but she is like dai-fan so there's no way I couldn't have. SO I HOPE YOU ENJOY THE POSTER! Don't sell it! XDD

Lastly! I realize that once the line moved, our small group of 10 grew to about 36. With that stated, I would like to apologize because it did push the line back a bit. After I handed over the fans their badges, they stuck around which I didn't think of much. Also though - for those who felt like they were pushed back, I sincerely wish you could have come said something. From the the start, we were sitting in front of the theatre and so whomever was behind that side wall - I had NO idea how many of you had been there from 9:30AM or even before. If I had been alerted, I wouldn't have objected. There's no way because being there THAT early is serious business. Also, there were a group of older Japanese women in front of me and they had been the only ones I saw from when I arrived so I did think that every earlybird was already in front. My mistake as well!  However, I still do apologize for the group for that happening but that's all I can really do. I'm not a mean person - none of us are are we know you all were fans who wanted the same opportunity as well so I do give my most heartfelt apology. We'll do it better next time!

Addendum to the Above: About 10 girls did get in front of us about 20 minutes before we went in...so if you were the ones that were there since early, YAY! Sorry, at least you actually GOT back in position like you were before. I'm glad that happened.

Media!

Ok, so Sanspo is who interviewed us! Terrifying...here's the link. Also, my name is Destini Johnson for the record. Not Jason. LMFAO
http://www.sanspo.com/geino/top/gt200804/gt2008042901.html

Another scary one, we're in Variety Japan:
http://www.varietyjapan.com/news/movie/2k1u7d0000012i57.html

Also, another fan gave me the idea of having those who do send images of themselves doing the 'himitsu' pose. You know, the 'shhh!' face. It's up to you, however. You do not have to! I will make it either way - it's YOUR badge. I do need them sent to me by tomorrow night - Thursday April 24th - at the LATEST.

Dress Code
Kaoruko e-mailed USC in regards to this. Their reply?

"There is no dress code, so t-shirts and jeans will be fine."

So, unless you just want to dress nice then go for it.

Cellular Phones with Cameras / Digital Cameras
Those of you who have gotten the re-confirmation e-mail from SCA know that camera phones and digicams are NOT to be in the theatre. However, it's obvious that some people's camera phone is their only means of communication with their rides home/family/etc. Also - like myself - a lot of you may want to photograph/film the madness pre-premiere!

With that, Kao-chan e-mailed USC and their reply to that was:

"USC will provide a box for cameras and phones!"

Problem solved. Go on, bring your cellphone and camera and they will hold it for you.

Catered Reception
Some people are still wondering if anyone can attend. As per USC:

"The reception is for everyone who attends the premiere."

Okay! Things are looking good!

Flowers for Jun Project
Liz has started a wonderful project to present Jun with a gorgeous bouquet of flowers after the premiere! Please visit her post here for more details!

Contact Information
For online contact, our e-mail's on the main web page, but here it is again:
Destini - dakedohappy[@]gmail[.]com
Kaoruko - Please PM her on her Vox account.

For offline contact - as in the day of the event, here is my cell phone number.
702-672-9591. Ask for Destini. :)

For Verizon Users: I can contact you back and forth through text messaging for free. Feel free to let me know if you are a Verizon user to make contact a bit more speedy and efficient.

For non-Verizon Users: If you don't mention you have Verizon and wish to text message me, I will call you as soon as I receive the text and reply/answer your question.

In any sense, you can call instead of text and we'll discuss whatever it may be that way.

Important Posts To Review
A few very important posts have sprung up on Vox and I'd appreciate it if you all took the time to look them over.
Regarding the SCA E-mail, Lining Up At The Event
The Actual Re-confirmation E-mail From SCA
USC Q&A
Mini F.A.Q.
Help Us Present A Flower Bouquet To MatsuJun!

Further Questions/Comments
Reply here, or use one of the above methods of contact!

Thanks you all for participating in this. I'll be honest - I wasn't sure how many people we'd get to be into the idea but I think Arashians love meeting other Arashians so it was to be expected. Me and Kao-chan are truly thankful for all your support and we cannot WAIT to meet you all this Sunday! So lets get in high spirits! See you all Sunday!

- Destini and Kaoruko
Arasick since...a long time.

BADGE SUBMISSIONS: 終わり!
No more!

Great news though - 34 badges! Which means 34 fangirls! Yes yes, get excited!

I am still looking for suitable nametags, so lets hope there are some good (and reasonable) ones out there. Otherwise, we might have to deal with "Hello, My Name Is" tags. o_o|||

BULK E-MAIL
The majority of you all that e-mailed me badge submissions or requested contact information have already gotten the mass e-mail I sent out yesterday.

However, I got about 10 more badge submissions in one night after sending that out. So you all have not received it. I'm going to send another e-mail to everyone to make it a bit more simple - it will restate information but it will have new information as well.

In other words, DO NOT DISCARD. Even if you received the first one, there may be information in it you are not aware of.

E-mail will address:

• Images on Badges
• Contact Information
• Dress Code
• Lining Up/Meeting the Group
• Passing Time
• Night Party
  
• Flowers for Jun Project
• Anything else I think of while typing the rest of this stuff!

So keep an eye out for it! It will be sent by tonight to everyone I've gotten badge forms from + anyone who has requested information about the meetup. If you read this post and want information, leave an e-mail or any means of sending it (PM on Vox/LiveJournal).

It's Wednesday, guys...

SCA HAS SENT OUT AN RECONFIRMATION E-MAIL. IF YOU RECEIVED IT, GREAT. YOUR RESERVATION WAS SUCCESSFUL. HOWEVER...

REMEMBER GUYS, BADGES FORMS DUE AT MIDNIGHT!
No later! I'm bringing Chu (my laptop's name, stfu) with me to school to get started on the submissions I have thus far.

TELL ALL YOUR FRIENDS IF THEY ARE GOING TO SUBMIT AND HAVE NOT BY THEN, TOUGH ONE!
I'd better get it by 12PM PST. XD

Any further questions - go on and e-mail me. I've gotten several e-mails about the event already and I usually reply rather quickly so no need to be shy. :) Also, .FA.Q. ahead because I've been asked questions twice/been asked once and want to stop it there. Probably will add these to the main site as well.

Mini F.A.Q.
Can we use any image ever on the badge?
Yes. No porn.

I didn't reserve on time. Can YOU help me get in?
No. This is a fan-organized event. We have no access to tickets.

What time will you all be there?
*I* will be there around 9:30-10AM that morning. Other fans are free to show up as they like.

How will I get my badge?
From me, Destini. Er, I'll have a red scarf on my wrist and...I'm short? You'll know it's me - trust me.

I want to go to the Fan Party! Can I stay all night?
Thaaat's the point~ Please do. :)

Can you pass a note to Jun for me?
Not so much. We will display your affection towards him as a collective though. :D

Can we bring uchiwas, penlights, and other fabulous concert goodies?!
No. A small sign is probably fine, but from my current understanding, things like uchiwas and large banners aren't appropriate.
Also keep in mind that ADDING IMAGES OF MATSUMOTO JUN TO A SIGN IS AGAINST JOHNNY'S ENTERTAINMENT POLICY. If you think that sounds weird - watch an Arashi con. JUN'S FACE IS ONLY ON UCHIWAS SOLD AT THAT CONCERT. NOT ON HANDMADE ONES. So decorate your hearts out - but no REAL images/PHOTOGRAPHS of MatsuJun himself.

Can I take one pict--
NO PHOTOGRAPHY OF JUN AT ANY ONE POINT. TIE DOWN THE CRAZY URGE TO SNAP PHOTOS OF HIM. Remember - this is what caused an issue at Hanadan Las Vegas filming.

Also: Keep in mind that this event is not meant to be a hindrance but a show of support to both Jun, his fellow cast mates, and the crew of The Last Princess. While we are there to represent both MatsuJun/Arashi fandom, we need to show respect as a whole in regards to the others that will be there.

If there are ANY Johnny's Entertainment-related rules I've left out, PLEASE inform me. I want this to be a problem-free gathering and to be honest, not everyone knows what you CAN and CAN'T do as a Johnny's fan. So be kind and let me know what else I should mention? :)

This post is really important - especially the last three points made so please inform EVERYONE YOU CAN. I don't want to have to be Mother during this event - we're all mature riiiight? Lets do this RIGHT but as PROPER FANS.

END SUBMISSION DATE IS MIDNIGHT, WEDNESDAY APRIL 23RD!
I need the two days to find a place to laminate them or do whatever it is they'll do to make them card like. No late submissions, no excuses. This already isn't an easy thing to do. But I love you all so it's ok. :D

IF YOU DID NOT PRE-ORDER A BADGE:
You will get one, but it's gonna be like name-tag. It'll have the same information but,
1) You'll write your name, location, etc on it yourself. (I even have a cute fine-point Sharpie for you to use! :])
2) No image. (Unless you bring one. It's around the size of an LiveJournal icon - 100x100)
3) It wont be a card, but like I said a name-tag sticker.

So, don't feel like you HAVE to get one, but if you WANT to, it'd rock!
Also, I'm assuming not only those who submitted badge forms are going so with 12 of those already...it's gonna be a big gathering! Man, I'm excited!!!!

I made a banner for Vox/LiveJournal/Blogs and Message Boards/BBS/Forums.

YOU'VE BEEN INVITED... |
Hello, operatives! You've been invited to be a part of the Arashi Secret Agency: Fan Division at the University of Southern California's movie premiere of Hidden Fortress: The Last Princess!

YOUR MISSION? |
Spot the Arashian! - In order recognize other fans, we've thought of a simple accessory you can wear so we can spot each other out!
Bandanna/handkerchief around your left wrist - Any color's fine! (Favorite Arashi member's color, perhaps? :D)
Ribbon Necklace/choker - Same deal, wear whatever kind you'd like!

Find MatsuJun's 'himitsu' in Hidden Fortress. - Fans will be arriving as early as 8AM to line up and gather for this special night! The goal is to have as many Arashians sitting together as possible so we can enjoy the film as a collective! (This, of course, applies to those who are already planning on traveling to USC for the event. We cannot promise admission or anything of that nature.)

SPECIAL PERK! |
Arashi Secret Agency badge - Just like the badges as seen in Himitsu no Arashi-chan, we'll be making personalized badges for all our agents! E-mail Destini (dakedohappy[at]gmail[.]com) before April 23rd to include any image of your choice on your badge! (pre-made, basically). Here is what the badge template looks like: click here for the image! (Still in the works!)

More information about the badges are at the end of this post!

Stormy Night Party - Ever wished you could hang out with a bunch of like-minded fangirls and watch Arashi media for hours and hours?! Well your wish may just come true! After the film premiere and catered reception, we'll be chilling at the Vagabond Inn (across the street from USC - minutes away!) for the night to have some fun and flail about the awesome that is Arashi until dawn! More details (instructions/maps) are below!

FURTHER INFORMATION |
If you are interested in having your badge pre-made, e-mail Destini with the following before April 23rd, 2008.

Email Subject: USC Fan Meetup Badge Form
Name: (Nickname/Internet Alias is fine)
ID Number: (any twelve digit number string in this format: 0000-00000000)
Gender: (Male or Female)
Hometown: (Where You Live)
Signature: (Optional, if you are able to scan your handwritten signature.)
Agent numbers will be chosen as I recieve applications so no need to request a particular number.

If you are interested in joining us for the Stormy Night Party, helpful links are below!

Vagabond Inn Los Angeles (USC)
3101 S Figueroa St
Los Angeles, CA 90007

Map to/from Vagabond Inn: Use Google Maps for directions there!
Also at least four of us who are staying at the hotel will be there for those who will walking there with us afterwards. If you do plan on attending and will not have a ride there, we'd strongly suggest you walk with the group for safety reasons.

General Links
Los Angeles Premiere of Toho's HIDDEN FORTRESS: THE LAST PRINCESS
Norris/Frank Sinatra Theatre
University of Southern California

Hidden Fortress premiere at USC.

ANYONE can attend. (It's been confirmed)

I'm going.

I'm giving him a note if possible.

I'm saying something to him (in Japanese) if possible.

WE GOT TO GET ARASHI OUT HERE.

So whoever is going, you are now America's representative.

DO WELL. ACT APPROPRIATE.

No more Hong Kong's and Las Vegas Day 2's.

:)