Japan Week | Screening: Carving the Divine: Buddhist Sculptors of Japan

When

Tuesday June 17, 2025: 5:30pm to 7:45pm  Add to Calendar /   Add to Google Calendar

Where

Downtown Library: 4th Floor Program Room

Description

Carving the Divine is a documentary film that offers a rare look into a 1400-year-old Buddhist woodcarving tradition and the practitioners struggling to preserve its legacy in a rapidly changing Japan. Produced, written, and directed by Yujiro Seki, this documentary tells the authentic story of busshi, Japan's Buddhist sculptors. For more than a millennium, Japanese people have confronted the suffering and meaning of life through this magnificent art. 

Carving the Divine has become the official selection for 33 film festivals, showing in a total of 22 countries, and has won awards at 13 festivals worldwide, including winning Best Director for a Foreign Language Documentary at World Cinema Milan and premiering at the Raindance Film Festival in London.

Following the screening there will be a Q&A with the writer, producer, and director Yujiro Seki.

This 100-minute documentary is not rated.

This event is part of Japan Week 2025 in partnership with the University of Michigan Center for Japanese Studies.