Sunrise shots intercut with men waiting around near fire, priest blessing

Guys charge into sea

drinking

MUSIC

The hour is early, the sea is cold, and the men of Nada are ready to rumble.

NATSOT: RUNNING INTO SURF

The aim… to wash away evil spirits… then consume alcoholic ones.

It’s the biggest day of the cultural calendar… the kenka matsuri – the fighting festival.

IN: “Kio tsukete…”

OUT: “…naiyoni.”

And the biggest day in the life of this young man – Kunihiro Kono is making his festival debut.

NATSOT MUM THROWING SALT

TC 01.03.22 “Look after yourselves. Please don’t get injured.” TC 01.03.27

SON GRAB

01.03.22 “This is the most important thing in my life.” TC 01.09.00

FATHER GRAB

TC 01.17.16 “As his father, I believe today is the day my son becomes a man for the first time.” TC 01.17.26

The Hemeji heroes shoulder a massive burden… it’s known as a portable shrine, even though it weighs 2 tons.

NATSOT ROCKING AND SHOULDERING

Picking up shrine

IN: “Kono matsuri…”

OUT: “shite orimasu.”

IN: “Karadagane…”

OUT: “…yameraren.”

NATSOT

A few kilometres away, in the red corner of town, the might of Mega is on the march.

VOX POP

TC 01.35.37 “This festival excites my body, that is why I cannot give it up.”

VOX POP

TC 01.33.39 “This is more important than my life.” TC 01.33.41

Local legends look on.

This 90 year old still dreams of a comeback.

OLD GUY GRAB

TC 01.52.03 “I would like to bear it one more time. I feel I still have the energy.” TC 01.52.09

The rival neighbourhoods gather at the local shrine.

CUT THIS GRAB IN HALF?

Chicks in crowd TC 02.24.34; 02.16.40

Shot of guys’ bums

IN: “Kakoii…”

OUT: “…dokidoki suru.”

IN: “Mo na…”

OUT: “…asega kakoii.”

NATSOT

A few hours later the yatai from rival neighbourhoods gather at the local shrine.

For Konihiko the energy and excitement is everywhere Konihiko is in a select band… he gets to beat a giant drum inside the yatai.

His mother’s heart is beating, too.

MUM VOX POP

TC 01.15.09 “When I was younger, a former boyfriend got to hit the drum. When I saw him, I thought he was cool. Because my son is now doing it, I am happy.” TC 01.15.27

NATSOT

Lugging a huge weight at the height of summer is not my idea of fun, but the locals love it – young women, in particular.

For them, touching the Yatai is taboo, but as the local saying goes, “even if you’re on a diet, you can still look at the menu”.

VOX POPS

TC 02.17.42 “I feel their manhood.” “They look so strong.” TC 02.17.46

TC 02.21.54 “It is cool. It makes my heart beat fast. They are very cool.” TC 02.21.56

TC 02.22.21 “Men with sweat are cool.” TC 02.22.23

NATSOT BUMPING

PTC DROPPED FROM INT’L VERSION

Waving flag

IN: “Jimeno…”

OUT: “…yobisamasu.”

PTC

TC 02.31.12 “Well, I’ve never seen anything quite like this before.

It’s got the passion, aggression and tribalism of a football final, but also the tradition and significance of a religious ceremony.

The truly remarkable thing is that this is just a glorified training run. The really rough stuff is yet to come.”

NATSOT BLESSING

Inside the shrine, the custodian of the festival goes about his rituals.

Setsuo Kameyama is part priest, part umpire. He knows the significance of the festival better than anyone.

PRIEST GRAB

TC 03.38.45 “If you strike the ground powerfully, you can drive away the devils and call the Gods.” TC 03.38.56

Final day

IN: “Konohini…”

OUT: “…haitteirutu.”

Overlay with people screaming at each other 03.50.40; 04.59.56

NATSOT

The festival dates back one thousand years... to a naval clash between Japan and Korea.

The crashing of the shrines is meant to mimic the crashing of the boats.

Now, it’s mate against mate, weight against weight.

NATSOT CRASH

Serious injuries are commonplace. Every couple of years someone gets crushed to death.

PRIEST GRAB

TC 03.26.06 “Many locals have sea-related jobs. It is in their nature to be violent.” TC 03.26.15

While many ancient events like this one are losing their popularity in modern Japan, the members of this fight club go from strength to strength.

SON GRAB

TC 04.20.43 “Because it is such a joy to participate, I want to keep taking part for as long as I live.” TC 04.20.51

Apart from the guys with cracked skulls and crushed limbs, there are no losers… each year, the event ends with an honourable, exhausted draw.

The festival, as the local saying goes, is the winner on the day.

FIGHTING FESTIVAL

Reporter: Mark Simkin

Camera: Geoffrey Lye

Sound: Jun Matsuzono

Editor: Garth Thomas