Being Japanese Part 2 of 2 | Full Documentary

What makes a Japanese person Japanese? Is it the blood that runs through their veins? A parent they were born to? The country they grew up in? Is it how they look? How they act? How they speak? Their citizenship? A documentary exploring what it means to be Japanese.

*Subtitles Notes: There are 5 English and Japanese subtitle tracks. Because we had to use existing language names, here's what you'll actually see in each track:

English - Spoken Japanese to English only
English (United States) - English subtitles for everything
English (Canada) - Spoken Japanese to English + Spoken English to Japanese
Japanese 日本語 - Spoken English to Japanese only
Zulu - Japanese subtitles for everything

00:00 Watch part 1
00:05 Choose subtitle
00:15 What is Being Japanese?
04:14 Various Types of 'Japanese'
08:26 Speaking Japanese
13:54 Nikkei
21:16 Looking Japanese
26:20 Refugee
29:53 Naturalizing
42:40 Dual Citizenship
47:33 How do you be Japanese?
52:40 Credits

[LifeWhereImFrom]

If you haven't already, watch part 1 ttps://youtu.be/pmzWknYaNXg Don't forget to choose your subtitles パート１をご覧になっていない方は、こちらを先にご覧ください ttps://youtu.be/pmzWknYaNXg お好きな字幕を選んでください

[supersayre]

I wasn't expecting to sit down and watch 2 full hours of Youtube this morning, but this is an exceptionally well done documentary. Amazing job.

[SukaiTheKleptomaniac]

"Dedicated to my children", that made me tear up. Poetic. Reassurance from their father before their 'defining' years of adolescence.
What and who am I?
You are you.

[deanfleischer]

Fantastic documentary. I hope this will get recognised/awarded one way or another. Plus it would be great if it could be shown to Japanese children in schools. This is a great resource to foster discussion and reflection on the concepts of inclusion, acceptance, differences, etc.

[Victini]

This is one of the best documentaries I've ever seen on YouTube, or in general. There are so many touching stories and important discussions on identity from so many diverse perspectives. Thank you for making this, this documentary is incredibly important.

[ukmevy]

Thank you so much for making this amazing film! Also many thanks to everyone, who participated (I‘ll also get the great soundtrack from Bandcamp :)

Being half Japanese (German/Japanese) I saw myself in your interview partners. As a kid, teenager and in my early 20s I often struggled with my identity. Born in Germany and lived from 0 to 7 in Japan.
But now in my 30s I‘m in a similar stage like Max summarized in the end: „You are you“. With Japanese influences, German influences … even Austrian influences since I lived there for almost 10 years ^^ I hope more and more people will come to a similar state of mind. If I happen to live in Japan for longer … then yeah. Then I‘m Japanese :)

[iamkifo]

This is such an amazing documentary. Everyone who is remotely interested in Japan or Japanese culture and identity should watch this. Thank you so much Greg.

[stez-nqhs]

This documentary and the quality of this Documentary that was produce deserve an Oscar/Emmy level award.

[dweis]

I have a half Japanese daughter and we live in Tokyo. She's only 2 years old now and fits in well with everyone. One thing I've always worried about was how she would feel as she got older and starts to think about her place in the world. Some of these stories were both hard to listen to, but seeing how these people came into their own in a werid way made me reassured that she'll come out strong. Thank you, Greg.

[BanBanChi]

I just asked my 11 year old son "are you Japanese, Puerto Rican or American?" Without hesitation he emphatically answered "I'm all!". My high school age daughter said she's all but more one or the other depending on the company. I'm Puerto Rican, my wife Japanese and my children were born in the USA. We live in Japan so they've had contact with all three cultures. During the Tokyo Olympics, my children cheered for all three national teams but cheered the loudest when the Puerto Rican woman won the 100m hurdles race because they know how seldom we win at anything. On the odd moment that they faced each other, they were happy regardless the outcome. They are Japatoricans.

My wife and I have always taught them to never try to fit into any mold or try to simply "fit in". We have also taught them that all their heritages are rich and valuable and they are more powerful by embracing all three instead of trying to be one over the other. We also encourage them to seek the similarities instead of the differences.

I have mixed feelings about some of the reactions from the people featured in the film. Some seemed confused and clueless about who they were. It made me feel like their upbringings might have tried to encourage one heritage over another and that what they are has been emphasized over who they are. I just hope that those that seemed confused can come to a place in which they don't put pressure on themselves about fitting in or trying to be one thing over another.

[vanmaren]

The dedication at the end made me tear up, having realized that the love of a father was the motivation for producting this wonderful documentary.

[hi__catherine]

As an Asian American this documentary hits home, you always question your identity on which you relate to more. I noticed the overall theme with each persons story is that is doesn’t matter, you are what you identify with. Embrace all sides of yourself and that’s what makes you, you. Thank you for sharing these stories Greg 😊 This will be great to share with your kids who I’m sure will go through these questions. I hope to see more people be open to Foreigners or Mixed Japanese people, your documentaries like this help start conversations and teach everyone how to be kind and to be open.

[zerkol]

My wife is half Japanese, her dad was a career airforce nco. We live in US and have enjoyed many of your videos and appreciate your perspective and willingness to bring strangers into your home and family. Along with John from "Only In Japan" your videos help connect my wife to her mother's culture and introduce our son to it as well. We feel that your work really goes a long way to shrink this world and bring understanding and appreciation between cultures. Having said that, this has to be your greatest project to date and, as others have mentioned, captured us for two straight hours watching these two incredible videos. I hope they go viral and help change some misinformed views, such as the one at beginning of video. We wish you continued success and look forward to more videos in the coming year!

[ilzejansone]

Cultural identity is such a complex topic. Thank you for doing it justice in your films!

[maysun]

Thank you so much for acknowledging the WW2 Japanese Interment camps in the US! I have family who were interned. My dad was a “kibe nisei” - born in the US, went to Japan at 3 yrs old, returned to the US at 20 yrs old with no English. He was in Hiroshima when the bomb dropped. He just passed away in January at 92. He lived a wonderful life in California! Thank you for this documentary! I now have a group to identify with from your thorough research & excellent interviews! Absolutely outstanding!!!

[Hoolysegoo]

This is undoubtedly one of the most profound docuseries I have ever watched on racism and acceptance in different cultures. This has been an extraordinary journey walking through different lives of different people, and I wanted to relate in my own way, and cry for them. I cannot say in words how much I am moved by this, as we all experience some sort of bullying and thoughts that we "don't belong" in our lives. I think that all schools should require a class that addresses these problems and raises acceptance in cultural differences . Thank you for this!

[amonrei]

The amount of perspective provided here are just mind boggling. You have outdone yourself, Greg. I'm sure Aiko & Shin will appreciate this. Truly eye opening. I learnt so much.

[junichideleon]

I applied for Japanese naturalization a few months ago and was feeling anxious about the outcome but this documentary made me more relieved and more excited about it. I loved the documentary and it educated me about being Japanese. Please keep making content like this!

[kikonzx]

A true Masterpiece which reflects not only Japan, but many other countries. Congrats from Chile!

[MagicCuboid]

Not only is this documentary a fascinating glimpse into what it's like to live in Japan, but maybe more importantly it's an incredible resource for anyone who might struggle with their identity or how they are perceived by others. Really exceptional work, worthy of awards