Watch Art of the Japanese Sword

The Japanese sword ... prized as much for its exceptional beauty as for it's deadly cutting ability. It has endured for a thousand years as the pinnacle of Japanese culture. Now you can enter a world rarely seen by outsiders. To experience the true story of the Art of the Samurai Sword. A story told in the swordsmiths own words that separate the myth from the fact. Follow the swordsmiths dream of creating a masterpiece. From the quest to making an ancient steel to forging a blade equal to those of the Kamakura, a medieval period that produced the greatest swords in history. For the martial artist the Japanese sword is a precise cutting weapon and symbol of the Samurai. For the collector, it is an art form whose beauty is derived from its deadly function to cut. As our story of the Japanese sword unfolds, we bring together all the artists and craftsmen whose skills turn it into both a modern work of art and a window into the past.
Produced in association with Paul Martin, a leading Japanese sword expert and filmed throughout Japan with the very best swordsmiths and craftsmen who are the absolute masters of their art ... the art of the Japanese sword. Packed with never before seen footage, filmmmaker Jon Braeley was given unrestricted access to film inside the forges, workshops and Shinto shrines and museums. Featuring Japan's top swordsmiths: Kawachi Kunihira, Matsuda Tsuguyasu and Manabe Sumihira and many more.
It is a fascinating journey that starts with swordsmith Manabe who makes his own steel from an ancient recipe dating back to the 13th century. In this unusually detailed look into the making of the Japanese sword, this documentary "lifts the lid" off forging methods such as folding - filmed exclusively in the Kawachi sword foundry. Going beyond all films before it, Art of the Japanese Sword showcases the polishers, scabbard and metal fitting makers as well the handle wrapping ... the most comprehensive movie ever made on the Japanese swor

Art of the Japanese Sword is a 2010 documentary with a runtime of 1 hour and 22 minutes.