The program [This is how we became warriors: The true face of Myanmar’s “student troops”] produced by Naoki Yonemoto, won The Grand Prize in the Documentary Section at the 42th ATP Award TV Grand Prix!
ATP Official Website
What is the ATP Award TV Grand Prix? Held once a year, the judges are creators of television programs and other video content, who select outstanding works from their unique perspectives. The awards were established in 1984 as the only awards in Japan in which the producers and directors of the production companies themselves serve as judges to select outstanding works, in order to enhance the social function of production companies, which are important players in Japan’s video content industry, and to respond to the passion and spirit of each and every production staff member working there. Works are accepted in three core genres: documentary, information/variety, and drama, and the top prize Grand Prix will be awarded.
『This is how we became warriors: The true face of Myanmar’s “student troops”』
NHK Educational 59-minute program First broadcast date: Mar 28, 2026
“It’s the darkness before sunrise,” said university student Okka as he headed into the jungle to take up arms. Five years after the military coup, why did these young people who longed for democracy transform into soldiers? A director raised in Japan, after being imprisoned and risking his life to return to the region, witnesses a student he knew back then becoming a commander leading an armed group. This shocking record delves into the struggles and unknown resolve of young people burning with the desire for freedom in the forgotten battlefield of Myanmar’s jungle.
[Director] Tura Win
[Researcher] Arai Kunikazu
[Producer] Yonemoto Naoki