Aaron Baggett

inding CineYama almost feels like you are not supposed to. Hidden deep in the hills of Uenohara, Yamanashi Prefecture, the independent movie theater sits inside a former Japanese kindergarten surrounded by trees, bamboo groves and narrow roads. In a country where many rural towns are losing businesses, schools and community spaces altogether, CineYama feels like a rare exception, an abandoned building brought back to life through a love of film.

If you’ve seen headlines claiming that “Japan will pay you to use Tinder,” you can relax — no one is wiring you money to swipe right. And even if they were, wading through endless photos of sunsets, food and the back of people’s heads might not be worth the effort (Tinder in Japan sucks). It’s actually a lot more bureaucratic.

Niigata has long been associated with sake in Japan, not just as a place where it’s made, but as a region that helped shape how it’s understood. With a high concentration of breweries and a brewing environment defined by cold winters, soft snowmelt water and quality rice, the prefecture became known for a style that emphasizes clarity, balance and precision.