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Today's guest is journalist Robert Whiting, author of several highly successful books on Japan, including the Pulitzer Prize-nominated book 'You gotta have WA', and Tokyo Underworld. Living on and off in Japan for several decades, he is a Japan expert and one of the few Western writers who has a regular newspaper column in Japanese.   In his latest book “Tokyo Junkie: 60 Years of Bright Lights and Back Alleys . . . and Baseball” Bob reflects on his time in Japan, how it has changed, and why it has provided him material for several great movie ideas. We see his life through the lens of several movies he has referenced in his book and the possibility of one of his own books becoming a movie that could shape the view on Japan for years to come.

Martin Fluck, the upscale hospitality expert, has worked in the hotel industry for over 20 years at hotels including the Park Hyatt, Tokyo Hilton and Oakwood. We ask him about his thoughts on if and when Japan will open its borders again for tourism as well as probing him about some tips on how to enjoy traveling in Japan. He also discusses how the hotel industry suffered during COVID-19 and how they were able to pull through. How do you choose the best hotel, entertainment and food while traveling in Japan? Watch to find out as Martin Fluck gives us his expert tips!

Dr. Andrijana Cvetkovikj joins us in today’s episode to discuss her career and thoughts on stereotypes in movies. Dr. Andrijana Cvetkovikj was the first Macedonian ambassador to Japan who received her PhD from Tokyo University. On top of that she is an entrepreneur, advocate, public speaker, worked in the AI field, and is also a filmmaker. She created two films, Purple and Gold and Nami no Jikan, both of which received awards at local Japanese film festivals.    What is the inspiration behind this impressive woman’s drive? Who is her role model? Listen to this episode to find out! 

World-renowned chef Grace Choy joins us in today’s episode of Eyes on Japan. She shares with us her inspiring story of quitting her job and chasing her dream to become a chef. She opened up a restaurant in Hong Kong after years of working in an office. She quickly became the talk of the town with her delicious recipes, even gaining attention from CNN and Japan’s TBS. In 2019, she decided to move to Japan and open up her own restaurant: Choy Choy Private Kitchen. Her restaurant is so popular that it is fully booked for the next several months!  Grace Choy also published her own cookbook and shares with us her favorite recipe.   

Charles Glover joins us in this episode and shares his experience on what it is like working in the Japanese entertainment industry as a foreign actor. He has worked as a narrator for NHK since 1997 and has also appeared in movies alongside big Hollywood stars such as Nicholas Cage and Ken Watanabe.

In today’s episode we talk to the legendary sumo wrestler Konishiki Yasokichi. He shares with us his story of becoming a foreign sumo wrestler in Japan.

João Paulo Lima de Oliveira (born 13 July 1981) is a Brazilian professional racing driver currently competing in the Japanese Super GT series. He won the Super GT GT300 class championship in 2020 and the Formula Nippon championship in 2010. In this episode JP, as all his friends are calling him, discusses how he came to Japan, what it takes to succeed in the country of the rising sun and what one of his greatest challenges was during his long career. Also, listen whether his favorite restaurant in Japan and where he likes to hang out. Watch the interview on YouTube: Instagram: @jpdeoliveira

Today’s guest is Moe, the Kimono Mom. She is a former Geisha who is now a YouTube content creator who gained 1.2 million followers in 2 year. At 16 years old she left high school to become a geisha after interviewing craftsmen in Kyoto for her summer holiday homework. She became inspired by the maikos and geikos, who showed independence and a strong passion for Japanese traditions. Eventually, Moe decided to marry and become a mother which meant she had to leave the geisha life behind. These days, while juggling her duties as a mother and a wife, she regularly creates videos about how to cook home-cooked Japanese food while donning beautiful kimonos. Her recipes are tailored for people living abroad where some Japanese ingredients are inaccessible. 

Today’s guest is Lyena Yonekura. She is a woman of many talents; a director, actress, casting director, translator and acting coach. She is the daughter of Yoko Narahashi and Johnny Nomura. Growing up in a talented family certainly influenced Lyena to follow in her parent’s footsteps in the entertainment world. Lyena travelled to America to study acting at New York University and even gained some on-set experience as an actress until she came back to Japan. She is the first Japanese female actor to become an official member of The Actors Studio.

Robert McGuinness was born to a military officer in Australia. He had to move around the country every year, never being able to put down his roots. However, several years ago he came to Japan and he has finally established a family and home in Japan. He is now a CEO of Knect Japan, as well as a TEDxOgikubo Host. Recently, he started importing among many interesting products organic honey from Australia. 

He has appeared on Japanese television in a variety of shows, including dramas and cooking shows. He has also been featured in fashion magazines. Panzetta voiced the Italian car Luigi in the Japanese version of Cars. He is also the author of several books and essays. He appeared on over 170 front covers of every edition of Japanese men's fashion magazine LEON since its launch in September 2001.  Perhaps Panzetta’s lack of pretense stems from the fact that working in the entertainment industry was never his intention in the first place. Born in the small southern Italian town of Avellino, he was raised in nearby Naples – known for its art, pizza and crazy drivers. He studied architecture in college and was on his way to working for his family’s restoration firm, but as it turned out, destiny had other plans. Accompanying his father on a research trip to Japan about 23 years ago, a seed was planted the moment he stepped off the plane.

Today’s guest is the famed entertainer Steven Haynes. Steven Haynes was born in San Francisco, USA and came to Japan in the 80s. Since then, he has worked as an actor, model, dancer and as a walking instructor. Steven soon became a part of the entertainment crowd in Japan and has mingled with several big names in the entertainment industry such as Cyndi Lauper, Jackson 5 or Robert DeNiro.

Andrew Koji visited Japan to work on his latest project. He is the new Storm Shadow in the G.I. Joe spin-off Snake Eyes. The movie will be released in October 2020. Andrew emphasized that the new movie is more authentic in its cultural background story, in its Japanese sword fights, Ninja culture and shotting places. While in Japan, Andrew had a chance to revisit his own cultural background and family heritage, enjoying good Japanese food and many interesting locations Japan has to offer.

Our special guest is a well-known activist and former Miss International 2012 - Ikumi Yoshimatsu. We met her and her manager at the Andaz Hotel in the heart of Tokyo. Besides her career as Miss International, she is known as an actress and stuntwoman in Hollywood. She’s currently back in Tokyo to shoot multiple episodes for a new Hollywood TV series and to promote her youth education program named Global Student Diplomacy Network or GSDN. She talked about her new movies and her career as a stuntwoman. As the interview progressed, we dived into her passions and her movement as a women's activist in Japan. She also introduced some helpful products in the fight of the coronavirus that can strengthen our immune system. 

We had the honor of interviewing Karolina Styczyńska. She is a Polish women's professional shogi player and the first non-Japanese to be awarded professional status by the Japan Shogi Association. During her interview, she described how she came to playing Shogi, her adventures to visit Japan for the first time and her professional career as a non-Japanese Shogi master where she finally became an anime character herself and was able to meet both the Polish and Japanese Prime Minister.

Cardinal Browns defensive tackle Larry Ogunjobi visited Japan for the first time in his life. Together with his buddy Michael, they stayed in Tokyo and also visited some relatives living in Kyoto. Listen here what his impression of Japan, Tokyo, and Kyoto was ranging from his experiences with Japanese food, people and nightlife.  

We had the honor of sitting together with Josephine Skriver, a Victoria’s Secret Angel and the face of luxury watchmaker IWC, in late August 2019. She was visiting Japan with her fiancé Alexander DeLeon, to attend a “Meet & Greet” in Tokyo.