The University Museum of the University of Tokyo came up with the new concept of the "Digital Museum" two years ago at the time it was reorganized from the Office of Collections. Welcome to our Exhibition "From Behind the Camera" From The Director
What is a digital museum? Since the specific details of that we reexemplified in the "Digital Museum Exhibition" that was held last year, I will not touch on that in detail here. What is important is at all costs not to get hung up on the fact that a digital museum refers to a museum that freely makes use of digital technology.
Of course, digital technology is important in a digital museum. Museum activities in a university are research, education, and experimental exhibition, which cover the whole process of collection, sorting, and preservation of academic materials. Chance is a great factor in the collection of academic materials. Trying to put this to work without a doubt raises the necessity of introducing digital technology. Also, that digital technology makes a great contribution in sorting academic materials is a well known fact. Furthermore, no matter what the nature of the academic material, it exists in a fate in which it cannot avoid deteriorating with time. Digital technology can be thought of even as a kind of magical technology in that it has made possible semipermanent preservation.
I could endlessly enumerate the outstanding characteristics of digital technology in this manner. However, we are taking up the digital museum with a greater concept. That is indivisible with taking up the contemporary meaning of the University Museum as a place for the creation of new knowledge. New knowledge is knowledge that overcomes the framework of traditional individual sciences. It is knowledge that becomes possible for the first time when academic materials that are subordinate to an individual science are opened up to all sciences.
Our current exhibit, "A Digital Exhibition of the Works of Yasujiro Ozu," will probably become something that opens up new horizons in the development of the Digital Museum. Among experimental exhibits called special exhibits, we can touch, feel, and taste the work process of transmitting to all sciences from the traditional sciences involved with cinema that have have made the works of Director Yasujiro Ozu an academic material.
This exhibition is something that was made possible for the first time through a donation by the family of the late Yuharu Atsuta of items related to Ozu's films. These items were left behind by Atsuta, who worked as a cameraman on Ozu's films over many years. Also, this exhibition is a product of joint work by the culture and representation researchers of the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences and the University Museum, who have been engaged in the difficult work called the creation of new knowledge. I would like to offer my heartfelt appreciation to the concerned persons and organization that extended their cooperation.
Director, The University Museum, The University of Tokyo
Professor, Graduate School of Agricultural and Life Sciences, The University of TokyoYoshihiro Hayashi
I am overjoyed that we have been able to hold an exhibition at this time in which almost all the materials related to Director Yasujiro Ozu in Japan have been gathered together. This is based on private materials donated to the University of Tokyo by the family of the late Yuharu Atsuta, the famous partner and cinematographer of Director Ozu. This is a precious opportunity both for researchers and fans of Ozu's films. Introduction
In addition, in this special exhibition of the digital museum, not only are we using digital technology as a means for sorting and displaying materials, but we have also utilized it in restoring a work of Director Ozu. Thus we have made it possible to show the results of today's digital restoration technology.
Digital restoration of old films is a field that is currently attracting a lot of attention as a technology for preserving the legacy of humanity, but the present state of affairs is that the necessary processing cannot be carried out due to budget problems and the like. The "old look" in a wooden structure is its history and also what's good about it, but an "old look" in film, which exists to be replayed, is nothing more than a tragedy in which the media loses its ability to transmit what the director intended. By using digital restoration and then the digital technology called digital preservation, it becomes possible for us to make this tragedy completely a thing of the past.
As is true of Ozu's early works, many films have been lost completely for various reasons. Among these, of course, are ones that have completely disappeared due to loss or fire. However, as for ones that are being lost due to changes in optical film over the course of time, we can now rescue them. And there are lots of films like this. The objective of this exhibition is to look for the secrets of Ozu's films on the basis of a large number of materials. But at the samet ime, I would like visitors to pay attention to this digital restoration technology. It would be an unexpected joy if this special exhibition serves as an opportunity to draw attention to this technical field, so that the many films that are being lost could enjoy its benefits.
I would like to express my gratitude that through the cooperation of many concerned persons we were able to reach the stage where this large amount of materials could be displayed. If many people rediscover the charm of old films through this exhibition, I believe it will be possible to repay to some extent this wonderful cooperation.
General Producer, Executive Committee of Yasujiro Ozu Exhibition
Professor, The University Museum, The University of TokyoKen Sakamura
