In November 2007, a group of young Irish men and women travelled to Shizuoka, Japan to compete in the 39th Worldskills Competition, widely regarded as the Olympics of skills. ‘Made in Japan’ is an hour-long documentary for RTÉ which tells the story of their journey from the day they were chosen to represent Ireland, through their training and beyond to the pressure cooker of international competition.
The Irish national squad was made up of twenty-six of the most promising craftspeople, from all over Ireland competing against the best in the world in twenty-five skills categories ranging from welding to restaurant service, from cabinetmaking to cooking, from mechatronics to bricklaying and more.
After a rigorous selection process, years of training and months of preparation, the members of this Irish team were about to represent their country in one of the toughest competitions in the world. They would compete against more than eight hundred competitors from forty-five nations during four days of internationally regulated competition.
This hour-long documentary follows the highs and lows of their intense mental, physical and technical preparation and the ultimate test of competition on an international stage.
Made by veteran film maker James Brooke-Tyrrell and voiced by James Nesbitt, ‘Made in Japan’ gives us a fascinating insight into the people who made up that national squad and what it took for them to compete at the highest level in their field.