Japanese TV Team Take Films Of N.Z. Athletes

Press, Volume CII, Issue 30294, 21 November 1963, Page 25

Japanese TV Team Take Films Of N.Z. Athletes

' Three television photographers from Radio Japan : and the television news division of the Japan Broadcasting Corporation are visiting Christchurch to take sequences of leading athletes who are candidates for the 1964 Tokyo Olympic Games. On 'Tuesday they took sequences of Mrs V. Young and Miss M. A. M. Chamberlain at the Technical ground and filmed a television interview with their coach, Mr V. Briedis. The photographers are one of four television teams from Japan who are making a film survey of athletes in all countries who will take part in the 1964 Games. Their purpose is to stimulate 'interest in the Games. The films will be shown throughout Japan until the Games begin, and some of the films will be available to viewers in the countries in which the sequences were taken. Yesterday the photographers visited the Wharenui ! baths to take shots of lead-' ing swimmers, including the J national diving champion, L. Hodge. Escorted by the ’ chief j cameraman for the National Film Unit, Mr J. R. Hutchinson, the party has already filmed leading Auckland athletes and 60 joggers in the Auckland Domain. They took sequences of P. G. Snell, W. D. Baillie, K. L. Puckett, J. L. Julian, M, G. Halberg and other leading New Zealand athletes and filmed an interview with Mr A. L. Lydiard. The photographers will | leave Christchurch for Weli lington today to film athletes | there and will leave for I Sydney on November 21. I They will take films in six i other countries, including i Australia, Malaysia. India, • Thailand, the Philippines, ! Hong Kong, and Formosa. ; The leader of the party, Mr ' Kanji Kebayashi, said they i had already seen films taken by other Japanese television teams of athletes from other

countries sending teams to 1 the Games. Because of the help his i party had been given by the Government Film Unit and the co-operation of New Zealand athletes, the coverage in New Zealand would be one of the best so far completed by any of the television teams. The films would make a 20-' minute programme and I would reach about 50 million television viewers in Japan/ he said.