｜Length : 10min. ｜Year : 1998 ｜

The production of finely-tuned optical lenses and prisms - used in cameras, telescopes and semiconductor manufacturing equipment - necessitates the sensitive touch of the human hand. Akira Hozumi produces prototype optical lenses and pentaprisms, which then become the standard for mass-produced goods. He uses his hands, fingertips and a sense of timing and intuition that has been honed over the years to produce these articles, some with angles to within 1/360 of a degree.

｜Length : 10min. ｜Year : 1998 ｜

Mr. Ugajin (74) and Mr. Suzuki (72) are among only a handful of people in the country who possess the skills and experience necessary to braid steel cables - used in construction of massive bridges and ski-lift equipment and requiring a high level of safety - into continuous loops. This work is done manually as it requires a sure hand and a well-trained eye that machines do not have. This episode focuses on these two senior citizens as they pass their skills on to the next generation of cable braiders.

｜Length : 10min. ｜Year : 1998 ｜

As technology has advanced, many firms have had to adjust by developing new products. One such company in Kyoto has switched from the manufacture of metal molds for automobile parts to high-precision molds for integrated circuits. Mr. Ebata's job is "mirror polishing," and he employs a wide range of tools, including willow wood and bamboo skewers. His skills in precision processing are essential, and it's just one example of how skills from an earlier era are now being employed in new, cutting-edge technology.

｜Length : 27min. ｜Year : 1998 ｜

El tradicional deporte de la pesca con cormoranes se ha practicado y respetado durante más de un milenio en Japón. En Japón sólo hay una persona que puede capturar cormoranes. Cada noche, un puñado de hábiles pescadores se encargan de hacer que sus cormoranes se zambullan en el agua para atrapara las truchas que se acercan a los botes atraídas por las antorchas.

｜Length : 27min. ｜Year : 1998 ｜

La laca japonesa ha sido reconocida durante siglos en todo el mundo por su refinado lustre, y el resistente tipo de laca shikki se considera uno de los símbolos de la cultura nipona tradicional. Este documental muestra el pequeño equipo de padre e hijo que mantiene vivas las ancestrales técnicas de "ordeña" al árbol de la laca y el laqueado.