Synopsis

82-year-old Charlie Nagatani operates a country & western bar named ‘Good Time Charlie’s’. He also created the biggest country music festival in Japan, for the past 32 years. Masabe Sasabe, leads one of Japan’s bluegrass bands. In the early 1970’s, he was in the first wave of Japanese to travel to America, seeking the source of traditional music. < Far Western > tells this lost chapter of music as Nagatani and Sasabe journey from Japan to the heart of American traditional music.​

Directors

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  • James Payne
  • Japanese Country Music is James Payne's first feature-length documentary. He co-directed The Creek Runs Red, a film addressing environmental issues, and has produced several works aired on History Channel and National Geographic. His produced and directed works have been screened at festivals such as SXSW, Toronto Film Festival, Hot Docs, IDFA, Berlin, and Sheffield Film Festivals.