My Japanese Video Final from Highschool. Let the Embarrassment Begin.

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The other day I came across a copy of the video I made (with a few other folks) for my Japanese final at the end of high school. I’m probably wrong, but I feel like video finals in Japanese high school classes are very common. It’s something that links us all together somehow.

Our video was originally going to be a two minute Japanese Mentos commercial…which then turned into a candy commercial…which then turned into a twenty minute ridiculous film that barely references candy or Mentos at all. I’ve abridged the video down so you can see just the interesting parts (including my commentary). You can see the abridged version (as well as the full, twenty minute version), after the break. Keep in mind, this was my first video ever, so it’s ever crappier than more recent work.

[yframe url='http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-hy0wDF4uRY']

At the part where we shoot the gun, our teacher let out a yelp of terror. This video was so violent that Tomoko Sensei (our teacher) told the class we got a C, even though we got the highest score possible. Still, what else can you expect from a bunch of high school guys? If anything, knowing us, I’m surprised there weren’t more fight scenes.

Here’s the full version, if you want to sit through the whole thing. Keep in mind that the entire thing is dubbed horribly, and should only be watched when you’re really really bored. One fun thing I like to do is go through this video and count how many times Viet’s limbs appear in the shots when they aren’t supposed to. How many can you count?

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=492307733129000407&hl=en

I don’t know if the people in the video want their identities to be told, so I’ll only include first names. Still, I’ve got to credit everyone. Here’s the rundown.

Directing / Editing: Koichi & Sean
Jack, the main character: Sean
Buddha: Koichi
Melvin, Great Warrior of the East: Viet (yep, Tofugu’s Viet)
Vincent, the roommate: Greg
Qwest Employee: Tom

So, how many of you have made Japanese video finals? I bet a lot of you have, at some point. I also bet half of them contained seppuku scenes. If you have one, please share! Link us somewhere down below, I love watching these kinds of things, haha.

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  • Jesse

    I can see why your teacher gasped. Buddha getting shot and all.

  • http://www.tofugu.com koichi

    ah, i was thinking of Melvin, Great Warrior of the East. At least Buddha was attacking the guy :)

  • fredydb327

    HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!
    Oh man…
    HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!
    I honestly thought it was funny. Hahaha. Well the abridged version.
    Maybe I should just make a video. Maybe I’ll do it while in Japan with the students I’ll meet. Maybe me and my exchange family can make one. Hahaha.
    I also thought that was Viet before the video.
    I think my favorite thing was the decisions on the background music. Was that the Naruto theme I heard?
    As for videos, i never got to do something like that for Spanish and I was very disappointed because of it. We did a bunch of improve and those were hilarious. Some were really good and I wish I had a camera. My friends in their classes did little videos on various topics like food.

  • http://www.tofugu.com koichi

    It could be naruto music. I edited about half of it. Myself and Sean (listed in the credits) took turns throughout the night before it was due sleeping and editing. It was on his computer, which basically means I’d look for random music on his computer. Good times that was.

  • David

    Your video is alright. It is very funny though.

  • http://www.tofugu.com Viet

    You dick.

  • http://www.tofugu.com koichi

    hahaha, good times, eh? Maybe this video will help us find Tom :P

  • http://www.tofugu.com Viet

    I can’t believe it’s still there on Google Video….

    Best part is the mailbox scene.

  • http://www.tofugu.com koichi

    well, i re-added it to remove the credits at the end, but the old one was there until i took it down today.

  • http://www.tofugu.com Viet

    Haha good seppuku reference. I guess you are still bitter that you and Sean couldn’t replicated the awesomeness we did in our だんじり祭 presentation.

  • http://www.tofugu.com koichi

    Glad you caught the reference ;P

  • http://tofugu.com Tofugu_Erin

    Maybe if the Tofugu audience is lucky, you’ll show them your samurai business man video, too. Honestly, though, I think some things should be kept private, eh?

  • http://aruri.deviantart.com 8Dhi

    Those special effects were EPIC.

    I totally forgot how awesome and catchy those mentos commercials were * 0*

  • http://kantanda.wordpress.com/ Mizuu

    仏はすごい馬鹿でした　XDDD
    That’s the part I LMAO’d and couldn’t stop laughing hard till the end.

    Oh, soetimes doing things “FOR TEH LULZ” is the best thing to do.
    Thanks for sharing!

  • diojenisu

    Quick guestion for Tofugu;

    Do the Japanese get circumcised?

    P.S. …nice video.

  • http://tofugu.com Tofugu_Erin

    The usual answer to that question is no, not too commonly (especially not during infancy), but I have a feeling that it is becoming more popular among Japanese men. Why’d you want to know?

  • diojenisu

    Just out of curiosity. I have no idea what’s Asia’s view on this matter. Never heard about it. Not mentioned in their history either. I sound like a pediatrician, don’t i? The matter has recently sprung up in Greece too, that’s how it got into my head.

  • Kitsune_the_Feytouched

    Off hand, the best part for me was “The tree of Reisen”… Let’s just say I was expecting a different Reisen. LOL. And finishing it off with the mentos… It’s just sort of thrown in there as though you’d forgotton until the last moment that you were supposed to be making a commercial! Definately Epic!

  • Rinrin

    This had to be the best 19 minutes and thirty two seconds of mentos commercial I’ve ever seen.

  • http://www.tofugu.com koichi

    circumcision was a very 70s / 80s thing. even now it is becoming much less popular in the United States as well. It isn’t very popular in much of the rest of the world, either, though there are definitely exceptions.

  • http://www.tofugu.com koichi

    by the way, super random. haha.

  • Vier

    My friends made one, but not in high school.

    The Adventures of Jacket-san 2

    It’s on google video, but I don’t know how to link it. It references Densha Otoko and whatnot

  • http://www.tofugu.com koichi

    You link by copy / pasting the URL, here it is, I’m gonna watch it now :)

    http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-555402…

  • Bence

    What a polite video.

  • gueru

    great soundtrack *o*

  • WOTDsctoo

    Awesome.

    We’re actually in the process of writing the script for our movie in class now, but I don’t think our fight scene is going to measure up to that. XD The Mortal Combat theme = win.

  • Fitz

    I want to kill you… I pray people from California never see this.

  • Evil P.O.’ed Fitz

    By the way… guns do solve everything… especially this.

  • http://www.tofugu.com koichi

    kekekekekekekekekekekekeke

  • Rua

    *rotfl* XcD
    Sugar rush + ADD = this…

    Guns, guns, guns!
    Make the world go round.
    Explodes a lovely wonderful sound.
    Up in the air!
    Leaves holes everywhere.
    Guns, guns, guns!
    Are fun!

    Mommy!
    Daddy!
    May I have one please?
    So that I may massacre all my enemies.
    If I cannot have one I’ll hold my breath.
    I just wanted to put bullets in my pet Duckie’s head.

    “NOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!” O_O

  • http://www.tofugu.com Viet

    Guns killed Melvin!!

  • kevinnwhat

    that was the freaking best thing ive ever seen. im sorry but that was more entertaining that all your previous tofugu videos, that was amazing, hahahahha i loved it.
    (im kidding your other tofugu vids are entertaining as well.)

  • http://www.tofugu.com koichi

    poor melvin! tomoko sensei freaked out on that part

  • Fitz’s poo poo butter

    I know where you live, unlike everyone else… feces in mail >.>

  • Fitz

    For the love of god keep that one in your HD… no internet… same goes to the Celeb Chef vid…

  • http://tofugu.com Tofugu_Erin

    Ah, it is so tempting.

  • http://www.tofugu.com koichi

    you know my new address??

  • mmnessa

    there’s candy on the tree! lol. I dont understand why koichi thinks this video is ridiculous , in fact, I think he should make more videos like that….without trying so hard

  • starboy55555

    This video is awesome. I can’t wait until your next one.

  • Chimiko

    I think so too.

    That was brilliant Koichi, and I wonder, why was Viet where he was during those odd moments when we could see his leg/body/shirt sleeve..?

    I wish it was more colourful. At least at the end where he eats the Mentos XD;;. Great job though. Do more~ XD

  • http://www.tofugu.com Viet

    The directors didn’t know how to control their sets properly. They’ll say otherwise, but that’s what it boils down to.

    :P

  • Fitz

    Actually, its called small view finder that doesn’t show all whats being recorded, and it was my first time using Adobe Premiere… so no cropping of the footage.

    Also if Viet wants to back me up on this… Koichi was the 5th man on this project, he wasn’t even in the class, this was after he came back from a 9 month stay Japan. He helped to edit at one point, but I deleted it and remade the video, since he was just playing around with Premiere for a few hours. Granted he helped a ton with the Japanese dubbing, but besides acting, that’s all he did. Just pray he doesn’t show the Samurai Business Man video… his edited version is even longer and slower then this one.

    You can debunk whatever I just said, Koichi, since I really don’t want this video to haunt me in California. Plus I don’t think you want to lose face in front of your online fans. Please find better and newer material to vlog about. No more of this >.<

  • Fitz

    Ha, I like how you just now took it off facebook.

  • keikan16

    I think this is a great video for the first time. Most high school students wouldnt even bother trying. Watashi wa daisuki desu ( Hope I said that right )

  • ghindo

    I too had to do a video final for high school Japanese. Our premise was “What would life be like if you were a Gundam?” It’s here: http://youtube.com/watch?v=uTwPXPCL8eM

    Another group did a “making of” for their project, which was cool.

  • http://tofugu.com Tofugu_Erin

    I was wondering when you were going to show up.

  • http://www.tofugu.com koichi

    i dunno, i might have been “fifth man,” but I came up with pretty much the entire story, edited a big chunk of it, and did a bunch of the directing. I was also technically in the class, though I was a “fifth year Japanese” student that just hung around with Jung in your class :)

    Samurai businessman wasn’t even in Japanese, so I wouldn’t show it here, and when you say “his edited version,” you mean the “only edited version.” If I remember correctly, you only edited one or two scenes :P

    Don’t be so hard on yourself, everyone knows this was made a long time ago and was for a mere high school project. In fact, nobody would know who you were except for the fact you keep bringing attention to yourself, and have now given away a good 75% of your entire name. bwahaha.

    And I agree with viet, we didn’t know how to control our set properly. It was your second video and my first, you can’t expect the world

  • http://tofugu.com Tofugu_Erin

    けんか、けんか！

  • http://www.tofugu.com Viet

    Yes… けんか in SSBB!

  • http://tofugu.com Tofugu_Erin

    Unfortunately, when I came home, I brought my Wii with me. Also, since I don’t technically have internet (don’t ask), I can’t play online with you, boo. I held my own that one time, though. Oh my, look how itty bitty our comment boxes are getting.

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