Springhammer (2014)

• 72%
• 2014
• Documentary

Springhammer is about Japanese blacksmiths who dedicate their lives to making culinary knives [it's also the actual mechanical tool used by the blacksmiths]. At the end of WWII, Japan was faced with a burdensome repurposing of many industries, and with military swords no longer in demand despite a tradition carried on since the samurai, the industry turned to the kitchen. Craftsmen, now applying ancient trade skills of the blade making to cookery, go largely unnoticed by their countrymen and have to find a new place in the world for their craft. Thankfully, the world seems to be starting to listen.