Ms. Michelle So, Assistant Vice President for Marketing SM Prime;
Mr. Chris Coquia, SM Megamall Manager;
Ms. Lucillia Machuca, Deputy-General Manager for Toshiba;
Distinguished partners and guests;
Ladies and gentlemen:
Magandang hapon po!
It is my great pleasure to join you this afternoon to watch the youthful and energetic performances of the ten finalists of this year's J-Pop Anime Singing Contest Grand Finale.
I am pleased to inform you, and as our emcees announced earlier, that today is the Philippines-Japan Friendship Day. July 23 was designated as the Philippines-Japan Friendship Day in the Golden Jubilee Celebration of the diplomatic relationship between our two countries in 2006. To commemorate this momentous occasion, we have been celebrating the whole month of July as the Philippines-Japan Friendship Month since five years ago.
On behalf of the Embassy of Japan, I would like to take this opportunity to express our deepest appreciation to the Filipino and Japanese companies and organizations whose support and cooperation has made this event possible. I would like to acknowledge our sponsors: SM Supermalls, SM Megamall, Cyberzone, SM Cinema, HERO TV, Animation International Licensing, Center for Pop Music, Heritage Hotel, Nihongo Center Foundation, Toei Animation Phils., Yoshinoya, Ajinomoto Philippines, Canon Philippines, the Japanese Chamber of Commerce and Industry of the Phil., Inc., Panasonic Philippines, Sony Philippines, Toshiba Philippines, and Yakult Philippines. Your cooperation in making this event successful is also symbolic as this reflects the longstanding cooperation that our two countries have cultivated over the decades.
Indeed, the decades-long friendship between our two countries extends to our cultural exchange. I am pleased that Japanese pop culture, particularly anime, is popular here in the Philippines. One such example is the anime Voltes V , which has gained quite a following ever since it first aired during the 1970s. Watching the audience reaction this afternoon, I believe that Voltes V and its timeless songs still holds a special place in the hearts of the Filipino people. Indeed, as pointed out by famous poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, “Music is the universal language of mankind.”
Allow me to invite everyone to watch the anime movies about Doraemon and traditional Japanese music that we will have at SM Megamall Cinema 12 starting at 6 PM until 10 PM. The anime films will be screened only today to celebrate the Philippines-Japan Friendship Day. I am sure that you will enjoy the anime movies that we will be presenting. Admission is free.
Similarly, the Japan Kingdom of Characters Exhibit is still on-going at the Metropolitan Museum of Manila. Manga and anime enthusiasts will find the exhibits interesting. For those who did not catch the Japanese Film Festival or Eiga Sai early this month, you can still watch the movies at the UP Film Institute at the University of the Philippines Diliman from August 17 to 20.
In closing, I would like to once again thank the participants, our valuable partners for the event and the audience for celebrating the Philippines-Japan Friendship Day with us. I hope you enjoyed this event as much as I did. Maraming salamat po!
Embassy of Japan in the Philippines