A French Influencer promotes Fujiyoshida to the World (Part 1) – Exchange with Locals –

As an Olympic Host Town for France during the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Paralympic Games, Fujiyoshida City has implemented several social, economic and cultural exchange programs.

As part of this effort, the city recently invited a YouTube influencer to create a video to promote local tourism, history, culture, industry and education via social media. The purpose of this project was to create a lasting impact of the Olympic Games by increasing the number of tourists from France to the region.

Guillaume Jamar, a famous French YouTuber, traveled to Fujiyoshida three times between April and September in order to promote the city to his predominately French audience via YouTube and other social media platforms. During his stay, he visited Fujigakuen Junior High and High School and explored the city while exchanging with locals. In part one of this project, we will introduce his experience visiting Fujigakuen Junior High and High School.

[Homeroom Introductions]

On his YouTube channel “Ichiban Japan” which has over 300,000 followers, Mr. Jamar creates content introducing Japanese culture and history and has been featured on several French television programs. Due to the popularity of such things as anime and manga, there is a large population of French who are interested in the daily lives of Japanese. This project was intended to introduce the daily lives of students while also touching upon tourist sites and the local tradition of textile production in order to spark the interest of French viewers as the world focuses on Japan during the Olympic games.

At Fujigakuen Junior High School, Mr. Jamar interacted with students for a full day in their classrooms, during lunch, and all the way through to school cleaning. In the morning he not only observed more typical classes but also participated in quintessentially Japanese classes like zen meditation and tea ceremony. He claimed that he was struck by how forthcoming and vocal the students were since he had had a preconceived notion of Japanese students being rather reserved. During lunch, several students excitedly approached Mr. Jamar with a French conversation guide in hand hoping to try out some new phrases.

【Tea Ceremony Class】

【Chatting during lunchtime】

In the afternoon, Mr. Jamar taught a special class and talked about French culture in which students showed great interest and asked many questions. In response to a question from a student who asked what he thought was so great about japan, he responded that he liked the way most Japanese people treat others with such respect. It was an important opportunity for the students to reexamine a part of their culture that they had come to take for granted.
The students listened intently as he asserted that through his experience as a YouTuber, a profession that many young people aspire to be, he learned the importance of working hard toward your dreams no matter what they may be.

【Special class led by Mr. Jamar】

Mr. Jamar also visited the school’s afterschool YouTube club which is unique within Japan. The students talked with Mr. Jamar about their mutual love of editing and creating videos and asked him for advice on what he believes is the most important thing to consider when making videos. To this, Mr. Jamar replied that researching your content fully is important for engaging your audience. He also advised the students that because there is such interest from the international community on Japanese school life, they should think about including English subtitles which may help them improve their English and increase their international viewership. Scenes from Mr. Jamar’s time with the club will be featured in an upcoming video on Fujigakuen High School’s YouTube channel. Stay tuned!

【Visiting the YouTube Club at Fujigakuen High School】

［Profile］

Channel: “Ichiban Japan” featuring and created by Guillaume Jamar

The most popular French influencer out of all channels introducing Japan travel and culture with over 300,000 followers. Created in a documentary style, his videos introduce largely unknown sites and delve into deeper content. One video lasts about 20 to 40 minutes and in each video he introduces new people, culture and cuisine. He has great influence on both French travelers and French nationals who reside in Japan and gets prompt reactions to his content. Mr. Jamar also formerly worked as the official Facebook content curator for the French Tourism Bureau.

[Continued in Part 2]

Fujiyoshida City Hall / City Planning Department
International Sports Competition Training Camp Invitation Promotion Office
TEL: 0555-22-1353
Email: s_camp@city.fujiyoshida.lg.jp
(Japanese Inquiries only)