Hiroshima high school students create video about graduate who spent decades researching American A-bomb victims
Jun. 28, 2017
by Eriko Shintani, Staff Writer
Fourteen members of the broadcasting club at Kokutaiji High School, located in Naka Ward, have created a video that traces decades in the life of Shigeaki Mori, 80, an A-bomb survivor living in Nishi Ward. Mr. Mori is a graduate of Kokutaiji High School and he spent many years investigating the American soldiers who were captured as prisoners of war and lost their lives in the atomic bombing of Hiroshima. The members of the broadcasting club interviewed Mr. Mori about how he felt when he met former U.S. President Barack Obama, who visited Hiroshima in May 2016. The video will compete in the NHK Cup National High School Broadcasting Contest that will take place in Tokyo in late July, and the students conducted their last interview with Mr. Mori on June 27.
The eight-minute video is titled Yonjuninenkan no Kiseki (The Path and Miracle of 42 Years) and charts the course that led Mr. Mori to embark on his investigation when he was around 38 years old and working as a company employee. The video mainly features Mr. Mori’s narration, describing how he searched for information both in Japan and the United States, finally concluding that 12 American soldiers who were captured as prisoners of war had lost their lives in the atomic bombing.
The video was entered into the Hiroshima prefectural competition for the national contest, which was held in the city of Kure on June 10 and 11, and it was composed of the interviews with Mr. Mori that had been conducted up to that point. The video was awarded a prize in the TV documentary division, thus earning a spot in the national contest. To strengthen the video further, a member of the broadcasting club recorded a speech given by Mr. Mori at the high school on June 27 and asked him to share his thoughts after the speech.
Mr. Mori gained worldwide attention after he was embraced by Mr. Obama during the former president’s visit to the Peace Memorial Park last May. But the members of the broadcasting club felt that Mr. Mori’s achievements were not known by many and so, in March, they decided to create a video about his life. Mr. Mori agreed to take part in the project, explaining, “These young people listening to my feelings. There’s nothing that could make me happier.”
In the video, Mr. Mori looks back on his meeting with Mr. Obama and says in a heartfelt voice that the results of his long years of research were recognized and appreciated. He also spoke about his motivation to continue with his investigation, saying, “Enemies or not, it doesn’t matter when it comes to feelings toward their families. I wanted to let the family members of the American soldiers know how their loved ones had died.”
Saki Hirano, 17, a third-year member of the broadcasting club, said, “I think that the first step toward peace is to know what happened in the war and the atomic bombing. I want to share Mr. Mori’s feelings in the video and convey them in a way that’s easy for high school students to understand.”
(Originally published on June 28, 2017)
Fourteen members of the broadcasting club at Kokutaiji High School, located in Naka Ward, have created a video that traces decades in the life of Shigeaki Mori, 80, an A-bomb survivor living in Nishi Ward. Mr. Mori is a graduate of Kokutaiji High School and he spent many years investigating the American soldiers who were captured as prisoners of war and lost their lives in the atomic bombing of Hiroshima. The members of the broadcasting club interviewed Mr. Mori about how he felt when he met former U.S. President Barack Obama, who visited Hiroshima in May 2016. The video will compete in the NHK Cup National High School Broadcasting Contest that will take place in Tokyo in late July, and the students conducted their last interview with Mr. Mori on June 27.
The eight-minute video is titled Yonjuninenkan no Kiseki (The Path and Miracle of 42 Years) and charts the course that led Mr. Mori to embark on his investigation when he was around 38 years old and working as a company employee. The video mainly features Mr. Mori’s narration, describing how he searched for information both in Japan and the United States, finally concluding that 12 American soldiers who were captured as prisoners of war had lost their lives in the atomic bombing.
The video was entered into the Hiroshima prefectural competition for the national contest, which was held in the city of Kure on June 10 and 11, and it was composed of the interviews with Mr. Mori that had been conducted up to that point. The video was awarded a prize in the TV documentary division, thus earning a spot in the national contest. To strengthen the video further, a member of the broadcasting club recorded a speech given by Mr. Mori at the high school on June 27 and asked him to share his thoughts after the speech.
Mr. Mori gained worldwide attention after he was embraced by Mr. Obama during the former president’s visit to the Peace Memorial Park last May. But the members of the broadcasting club felt that Mr. Mori’s achievements were not known by many and so, in March, they decided to create a video about his life. Mr. Mori agreed to take part in the project, explaining, “These young people listening to my feelings. There’s nothing that could make me happier.”
In the video, Mr. Mori looks back on his meeting with Mr. Obama and says in a heartfelt voice that the results of his long years of research were recognized and appreciated. He also spoke about his motivation to continue with his investigation, saying, “Enemies or not, it doesn’t matter when it comes to feelings toward their families. I wanted to let the family members of the American soldiers know how their loved ones had died.”
Saki Hirano, 17, a third-year member of the broadcasting club, said, “I think that the first step toward peace is to know what happened in the war and the atomic bombing. I want to share Mr. Mori’s feelings in the video and convey them in a way that’s easy for high school students to understand.”
(Originally published on June 28, 2017)
