NOTE: these pages contain Japanese text encoded in UTF-8.
Overview
Japanese green tea (お茶 or "ocha") has recently been gaining international attention for its health benefits: it's a natural, energy-giving drink. While it may be a recent addition to your local coffee house, green tea has long been a central element in Japanese culture.
Shizuocha focuses on one of Japan's best places for growing the highest quality green tea: Shizuoka Prefecture. Specifically, the documentary concentrates on the practical aspects of producing green tea: how does the tea arrive at the store after being picked fresh from the fields? Footage from tea farms and interviews with the farmers describe the first steps in this process. The next few are observed at a tea factory, and interviews with the workers clarify the methods used to transform the raw leaves into loose-leaf tea.
The last half of the documentary addresses the health and cultural impacts of tea. General knowledge and anecdotal opinions are gathered not only from the tea workers, but also from their main customers: everyday people. In addition, an external voice (from China) provides interesting contrasts that bring a more international perspective to tea and tea culture.
Joe Friedrichsen, April 2006