CUTE CHARACTER BENTOS! KAWAII COOKING FOR NHK JAPAN TV DOCUMENTARY SHOOT, NEW YORK WAVE BENTO BOX SHOW.
NHK Japan documentary shoot, day one… lights, cameras, action!
Dress: Yumi, a flirty London brand inspired by Asian fashion. I couldn’t resist the Yorkie terriers print and the price (on sale for $70).
Leggings: Vivienne Westwood, a gift from my cousin and aunt. This is the first Westwood item I’ve owned!
Cute animal hair ties: from Daiso, the 100 yen (dollar) store.
TV shoots involve a truckload of equipment: lighting, tripods, cameras, you name it. The crew consisted of a cameraman, audio person, director, reporter, makeup artist — and yours truly. (The NHK team spoke to each other in Japanese; luckily, I knew what was going on!)
Before the cameras roll, there are hours and hours of preparations. The previous night was a mad rush to create sample character bentos (animal pancakes, frog pita sandwich, eggs dyed yellow with turmeric and transformed into chicks). I showed the host, Hana, how to draw kawaii animals.
Top: We had a five minute race to make cute faces out of healthy ingredients. Right: Our completed character bento sandwiches (can you recognize my cat, Basil Farrow?). Left: This is Japanese TV — so we had to be extra smiley and energetic and cute. Hana picked up a cashew nut and said, “This looks like a smile.” I held raspberries in front of her eyes and made them dance. V-fingers!
Filming involves take after take after take… Hana had to repeat a line six times: “Kawaii, ne? I’m going to turn this into a sandwich!” We began at 10 am and kept on going until well past 6pm. TV work is tiring, but oh so fun…
The New York Wave episode about cute bento boxes will air this February on NHK; I’ll be sure to let you know the exact time and put up segments on YouTube (please subscribe so you won’t miss out). More goofy photos from the shoot to come.
In recent press
† Popular Philadelphia radio show Chef’s Table interviewed me about my recipe book Cute Yummy Time (you can stream the show on the site).
† CNNGo is doing a four-part series about Cute Yummy Time recipes; the first one gives a tigerish makeover to India’s chicken tikka masala.
† If you’re interested in many more cute-faced recipes, please check out my new cookbook, in stores and available online.
Song of the Day #288: Rocky Horror Picture Show – Dammit, Janet (If you follow my Twitter, you’ll know I’ve been on a Rocky Horror kick…)
SHARE & COMMENT
LA CARMINA
52 Comments
Wow! we have to cook something while in L.A La Ca ! ;D
Everything you do looks so tasty and healthy !! a combination many believed didn’t exist!!
I’m worthless as a chef and all I try ends up in misery^_^
That’s not true — your spicy baked bread sounded delicious! We’ll have to film a DEATH COOKBOOK video in LA!
very cool. When is the documentary gonna air and will it be in English or Japanese?
In February, I dunno the exact date yet. I’m sure La Carmina will let everyone know as soon as she knows. As for language, the whole show was in English aside from lots of use of the word “Kawaii”
^___^
It will air in early February on NHK (but I’ll upload segments onto YouTube). It’s in Japanese and English; there will be subtitles under my English-speaking parts, I believe.
Oh yes, I forgot about voice overs >.<
Wow! we have to cook something while in L.A La Ca ! ;D
Everything you do looks so tasty and healthy !! a combination many believed didn't exist!!
I'm worthless as a chef and all I try ends up in misery^_^
aww they’re soo cute!! i think i wanna go make a kawaii bento for lunch now haha
Hahah awesome!!
so cute….nhamnhamnhammmm
They were delicious indeed
LOVE vivienne westwod. I am currenly lusting over her new bags..
La Carmina + Domo kun rulezz!!
^__^
You are really amazing artist :)
Forgot to say, i love your outfit <3
Thank you darling! <3 I really appreciate it!
Cute!
I want that dress!
I want that dress!
very cool. When is the documentary gonna air and will it be in English or Japanese?
Waah! That dress is adorable! Still waiting for pictures from the school! ^^
I’ll post them in the next week or so (gotta go chronologically!) But they turned out SO well — it was a big success! Thanks again for all your help!
i can’t wait to get ur book!! it’s exciting!! woot woot!! ^_~
In February, I dunno the exact date yet. I'm sure La Carmina will let everyone know as soon as she knows. As for language, the whole show was in English aside from lots of use of the word “Kawaii”
aww they're soo cute!! i think i wanna go make a kawaii bento for lunch now haha
so cute….nhamnhamnhammmm
LOVE vivienne westwod. I am currenly lusting over her new bags..
La Carmina + Domo kun rulezz!!
You are really amazing artist :)
Forgot to say, i love your outfit <3
Cute!
I want that dress!
I want that dress!
That's not true — your spicy baked bread sounded delicious! We'll have to film a DEATH COOKBOOK video in LA!
^___^
It will air in early February on NHK (but I'll upload segments onto YouTube). It's in Japanese and English; there will be subtitles under my English-speaking parts, I believe.
Hahah awesome!!
They were delicious indeed
Thank you darling! <3 I really appreciate it!
^__^
Oh yes, I forgot about voice overs >.<
Waah! That dress is adorable! Still waiting for pictures from the school! ^^
I can’t get over how cute ur chicks are! lol
They literally were too cute to eat… we had to throw them out after! (They were left out too long to be edible…)
I'll post them in the next week or so (gotta go chronologically!) But they turned out SO well — it was a big success! Thanks again for all your help!
i can't wait to get ur book!! it's exciting!! woot woot!! ^_~
Love your hair!
I can't get over how cute ur chicks are! lol
They literally were too cute to eat… we had to throw them out after! (They were left out too long to be edible…)
Love your hair!
Congrats on the show! I’ve seen Japanese shows and yes, they are extra perky on camera. The bentos look delicious.
Congrats on the show! I've seen Japanese shows and yes, they are extra perky on camera. The bentos look delicious.