On February 4th, The Consulate-General of Japan in Houston presents the Japanese film “Space Brothers (Uchuu Kyoudai)” (2012) in cooperation with Space Center Houston. This show was a part of the 21st annual SPACE EXPLORATION EDUCATORS CONFERENCE (SEEC) and about 100 audiences joined the screening.
This movie is based on a comic, the Japanese manga series by Chūya Koyama, which has been serialized in Kodansha's Weekly Morning since December 2007. It was adapted into a live action film starring Shun Oguri and Masaki Okada, two popular young actors, playing the roles of Mutta and Hibito, respectively. When those two brothers were young, they promised each other they would become astronauts in the future, though only Hibito became an astronaut while Mutta struggled in his life. Eventually, Mutta was accepted to join a JAXA training program for new astronauts. Astronaut Wakata acted as a commander of ISS in 2014. To commemorate his work, this movie was shown in Space Center Houston for the first time in the U.S.
In his welcoming remarks, Consul-General Takaoka explained about Japanese contribution to space development, including unmanned space vehicle and participation of Japanese astronauts to International Space Station (ISS) mission. Astronaut Kimiya Yui will be in orbit in just a few months. Also, astronaut Koichi Wakata, the first Japanese commander of ISS greeted guests.
The visitors gazed at the powerful pictures in a huge screen of IMAX theater and enjoyed the space movie in Houston where is the center of space development. |
