On March 20th, 1995 Atsushi Sakahara was one of over 6,000 people injured in the attack on the Tokyo metro by the Aum Shinrikyo cult, which still operates and recruits today. In his debut film, the documentary Me And The Cult Leader, Sakahara embarks on a journey with the cult’s executive, Hiroshi Araki, to record the parallel experiences of a victim and perpetrator. After being injured in the attack, Sakahara, who produced the 2001 Short Film Palme d’Or winning Bean Cake, directed by David Greenspan, suffered lifelong damage and post-traumatic stress disorder, and managed his recovery in a number of ways. He is a writer and host of the podcast Before After Aum, which focuses on the historical and social context of the doomsday cult Aum Shinrikyo. He currently resides in Kyoto and is working on a collection of stories and new film projects. Sakahara has been a vocal spokesperson for...
- 6/29/2020
- by Panos Kotzathanasis
- AsianMoviePulse
Atsushi Sakahara chronicles his intimate journey of confronting the doomsday cult behind the sarin gas attack on the Tokyo metro system on March 20th, 1995.
World Premiering as part of Sheffield Doc/Fest’s Digital Edition in the Ghosts And Apparitions selection. Festival to run from June 10 – July 10
On March 20th, 1995 Atsushi Sakahara was one of over 6,000 people injured in the attack on the Tokyo metro by the Aum Shinrikyo cult, which still operates and recruits today. In his debut film, the documentary Me And The Cult Leader, Sakahara embarks on a journey with the cult’s executive, Hiroshi Araki, to record the parallel experiences of a victim and perpetrator.
The two men are around the same age, grew up in the same region, and attended the same university, but their lives diverged dramatically in the late 80s as Hiroshi Araki joined the doomsday cult Aum Shinrikyo following a family illness...
World Premiering as part of Sheffield Doc/Fest’s Digital Edition in the Ghosts And Apparitions selection. Festival to run from June 10 – July 10
On March 20th, 1995 Atsushi Sakahara was one of over 6,000 people injured in the attack on the Tokyo metro by the Aum Shinrikyo cult, which still operates and recruits today. In his debut film, the documentary Me And The Cult Leader, Sakahara embarks on a journey with the cult’s executive, Hiroshi Araki, to record the parallel experiences of a victim and perpetrator.
The two men are around the same age, grew up in the same region, and attended the same university, but their lives diverged dramatically in the late 80s as Hiroshi Araki joined the doomsday cult Aum Shinrikyo following a family illness...
- 6/22/2020
- by Rhythm Zaveri
- AsianMoviePulse
The 1995 Tokyo metro sarin gas terrorist attack by the cult Aum (currently Aleph) has been one of the most shattering events in Japan’s modern history, with its implications and consequences for the 6,000+ people that were injured still being very significant. Director Atsushi Sakahara was among the injured, suffered lifelong damage and post-traumatic stress disorder, and managed his recovery in a number of ways, including being rather vocal about the event, both to the press and through his podcast, “Before After Aum”.
For “Me and the Cult Leader”, Sakahara embarks on a trip around the country with Hiroshi Araki, who is in charge of PR for Aum/Aleph, asking all these questions anyone would like to ask, and even more that have resulted from his personal experience and his deep thoughts on the matter. The result is dramatic, shocking, but also extremely sincere. It is also worth mentioning that the...
For “Me and the Cult Leader”, Sakahara embarks on a trip around the country with Hiroshi Araki, who is in charge of PR for Aum/Aleph, asking all these questions anyone would like to ask, and even more that have resulted from his personal experience and his deep thoughts on the matter. The result is dramatic, shocking, but also extremely sincere. It is also worth mentioning that the...
- 6/21/2020
- by Panos Kotzathanasis
- AsianMoviePulse
On 20 March 1995, 12 people died, 50 were severely injured and over a thousand suffered other forms of trauma when deadly sarin nerve gas was released on the Tokyo underground. More than 200 members of the Aum Shinrikyo cult were subsequently arrested and 13 of them, including its guru, Shoko Asahara, who had apparently hoped that the attack would bring about the apocalypse and thus end the torment of karma, were executed. Others, bearing no clear responsibility for the crimes, were released back into the community, some after serving short prison sentences. Amongst these people was Hiroshi Araki, who is now one of the highest ranking members of the cult to remain at large.
In this documentary, survivor Atsushi Sakahara, who has suffered lasting health problems as a result of the attack, spends time with him, visiting places that are important to them both, talking, and trying to uncover...
In this documentary, survivor Atsushi Sakahara, who has suffered lasting health problems as a result of the attack, spends time with him, visiting places that are important to them both, talking, and trying to uncover...
- 6/18/2020
- by Jennie Kermode
- eyeforfilm.co.uk
Director Atsushi Sakahara’s Me and the Cult Leader will make its world premiere as part of Sheffield Doc/Festival’s Digital Edition. The documentary will debut as a Ghosts and Apparitions selection. The Festival runs until July 10. Me and the Cult Leader chronicles a doomsday cult’s attack on Tokyo’s subway system. It was the deadliest act of domestic terrorism in the postwar era. Sakahara was one of the victims. He comes to find he has unlikely company.
On March 20th, 1995, the Aum Shinrikyo cult executed a coordinated attack on five trains in the Tokyo subway system. The group released a toxic nerve gas on the Tokyo metro during rush-hour. The gas killed 13 people and injured over 6,000, including Sakahara. In his debut film, Me And The Cult Leader, he “embarks on a journey with the cult’s executive, Hiroshi Araki, to record the parallel experiences of a victim and perpetrator,...
On March 20th, 1995, the Aum Shinrikyo cult executed a coordinated attack on five trains in the Tokyo subway system. The group released a toxic nerve gas on the Tokyo metro during rush-hour. The gas killed 13 people and injured over 6,000, including Sakahara. In his debut film, Me And The Cult Leader, he “embarks on a journey with the cult’s executive, Hiroshi Araki, to record the parallel experiences of a victim and perpetrator,...
- 6/14/2020
- by Alec Bojalad
- Den of Geek
"Why does he still believe?" An official trailer has debuted out of the Sheffield Doc Fest taking place in the UK (online) this month for a film called Me and the Cult Leader, originally titled Aganai: The Cult Leader and Me. In 1995, Tokyo was attacked by a doomsday cult known as "Aum". They left packets of sarin gas on subway trains in the city. One of the people injured, Atsushi Sakahara, has decided to make a film about Aum and who they really are. Sakahara meets with and travels with Hiroshi Araki, an executive of Aleph (formerly Aum Shinrikyo), visiting their own hometowns and the university they both attended. Conversations unfold, building intimacy: we learn why Araki joined the infamous organization led by Shoko Asahara and why, still, Araki remains an executive member of the cult, even though he was not directly involved in any of the crimes. The beginning of a friendship,...
- 6/12/2020
- by Alex Billington
- firstshowing.net
Set to enjoy its world premiere at the upcoming Sheffield Doc/Fest, Me and the Cult Leader tells the story of the 1995 sarin gas attack in Tokyo from the point of view of one of its victims. But the documentary promises to do more than that. Sakahara Atsushi "was one of over 6,000 people injured in the attack on the Tokyo metro by the Aum Shinrikyo cult, which still operates and recruits today," according to the official synopsis. "In his debut film, the documentary Me and the Cult Leader, Sakahara embarks on a journey with the cult's executive, Hiroshi Araki, to record the parallel experiences of a victim and perpetrator." What does the documentary reveal? The synopsis continues: "The two men are around the same...
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[Read the whole post on screenanarchy.com...]...
- 6/11/2020
- Screen Anarchy
Atsushi Sakahara, a survivor of the sarin gas attacks in Tokyo, unveils his documentary account of the Aum Shinrikyo cult and its continuing activities in “Me and the Cult Leader – A Modern Report on the Banality of Evil.” The film is expected to have its world premiere later this month at the U.K.’s digital Sheffield International Documentary Festival.
The film follows Sakahara, who has been outspoken over the years following his presence at and resulting injury from the sarin gas attack on the Tokyo metro system on March 20, 1995. The doomsday cult which perpetrated the attack is still active and recruiting. In the film Sakahara connects with a leading executive of the cult Hiroshi Araki, to record the parallel experiences of a victim and perpetrator. Araki’s life shares many parallels with Sakahara’s, and together they chronicle a moving portrait of humanity and reflection.
“Me And The Cult...
The film follows Sakahara, who has been outspoken over the years following his presence at and resulting injury from the sarin gas attack on the Tokyo metro system on March 20, 1995. The doomsday cult which perpetrated the attack is still active and recruiting. In the film Sakahara connects with a leading executive of the cult Hiroshi Araki, to record the parallel experiences of a victim and perpetrator. Araki’s life shares many parallels with Sakahara’s, and together they chronicle a moving portrait of humanity and reflection.
“Me And The Cult...
- 6/9/2020
- by Patrick Frater
- Variety Film + TV
On March 20th, 1995 Atsushi Sakahara was one of over 6,000 people injured in the attack on the Tokyo metro by the Aum Shinrikyo doomsday cult, who still operate and recruit today. In his upcoming documentary, “Aganai: The Cult Leader And Me” he embarks on a journey with the cult’s executive, Hiroshi Araki, to record the parallel experiences of a victim and perpetrator.
Now, on the anniversary of the tragic event, and amidst the current global climate and with the future of film festivals uncertain, Sakahara has pre-launched “Before / After Aum” to share a story of resilience with the world. He hosts the podcast that will cover post-war Japan, the rise of doomsday cult Aum Shinrikyo and its leader Shoko Asahara, the events leading up to the attack, how the government has treated victims, and more. Today, both a teaser for the doc and a trailer for the podcast are released,...
Now, on the anniversary of the tragic event, and amidst the current global climate and with the future of film festivals uncertain, Sakahara has pre-launched “Before / After Aum” to share a story of resilience with the world. He hosts the podcast that will cover post-war Japan, the rise of doomsday cult Aum Shinrikyo and its leader Shoko Asahara, the events leading up to the attack, how the government has treated victims, and more. Today, both a teaser for the doc and a trailer for the podcast are released,...
- 3/21/2020
- by Adriana Rosati
- AsianMoviePulse
Explores aftermath of 1995 Tokyo gas attack.
Hong Kong-based sales outfit Good Move Media is handling international sales on Japanese documentary The Atonement (Aganai), which explores the aftermath of the 1995 Tokyo sarin gas terrorist attack.
The director of the film, Atsushi Sakahara, was one of the 6,000 people injured in the attack on the Tokyo metro by the Aum Shinrikyo cult, which also killed 13 people. In his feature-length documentary, he embarks on a journey with the cult’s executive, Hiroshi Araki, to record the parallel experiences of a victim and perpetrator.
After being injured in the attack, Sakahara moved to the Us...
Hong Kong-based sales outfit Good Move Media is handling international sales on Japanese documentary The Atonement (Aganai), which explores the aftermath of the 1995 Tokyo sarin gas terrorist attack.
The director of the film, Atsushi Sakahara, was one of the 6,000 people injured in the attack on the Tokyo metro by the Aum Shinrikyo cult, which also killed 13 people. In his feature-length documentary, he embarks on a journey with the cult’s executive, Hiroshi Araki, to record the parallel experiences of a victim and perpetrator.
After being injured in the attack, Sakahara moved to the Us...
- 2/10/2019
- by Liz Shackleton
- ScreenDaily
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