Deborah Ann DeSnoo

Criss-cross Japan by rail. Enjoy an amazing diversity of nature and scenery across the four seasons, exploring both well-known and hidden Japan.

Commanding shoguns and samurai warriors, exotic geisha and exquisite artisans—all were part of the Japanese “renaissance”; a period between the 16th and 19th Centuries when Japan went from chaos and violence to a land of ritual refinement and peace. But stability came at a price: for nearly 250 years, Japan was a land closed to the Western world, ruled by the Shogun under his absolute power and control. Japan: Memoirs of a Secret Empire brings to life the unknown story of a mysterious empire, its relationship with the West, and the forging of a nation that would emerge as one of the most important countries in the world.

Japan blossomed into its Renaissance at approximately the same time as Europe. Unlike the West, it flourished not through conquest and exploration, but by fierce and defiant isolation. And the man at the heart of this empire was Tokugawa Ieyasu, a warlord who ruled with absolute control. This period is explored through myriad voices-- the Shogun, the Samurai, the Geisha, the poet, the peasant and the Westerner who glimpsed into this secret world.

This documentary looks at the culture of Japanese horror, which has a history of over 1000 years. The Japanese have always recognised the presence of the dead as an integral part of their daily lives. In the program, Japanese filmmakers, Hollywood producers and scholars talk about the traditions of horror in Japanese writing from the past, which often featured demons, hell, vengeful spirits and other supernatural entities.