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Tokyo-based Chinese filmmaker Li Ying burst onto the international film stage last year with his documentary about the controversy surrounding the Yasukuni Shrine. His film, simply called Yasukuni, received rave reviews and accolades from many international film festivals, including Busan 2007 (South Korea) and Sundance 2008 (United States). It will make its European debut at the 58th Berlin Film Festival (February 7 to 17).
"What I am hoping to do with this film is look at history, and help people rethink the war legacy in Japan that seemed to be ignored for a long time," Li told Beijing Review.
Yasukuni Shrine was founded in 1869. It was built to commemorate and worship those soldiers who have died in Japan's conflicts between 1853 and 1945, according to the shrine's website. A massive political controversy surrounds the site due to the addition of the names of fourteen Class A war criminals in the Second World War, that have been enshrined since 1978. With former Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi visiting the shrine since 2001, it has become a worldwide topic and drawn strong protests from various Asian countries, including China and South Korea. The site has been widely regarded as a symbol of Japanese militarism and ultra-nationalism, and many are taking such actions as a sign that Japan's political leaders are not looking critically enough at their country's history.
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