Benshi

[1] The earliest films available for public display were produced by Western studios, portraying brief scenes of everyday life, often less than a minute long.

The first benshi were thus hired to provide greater value for the high ticket prices charged by theaters relative to other public entertainment, while also giving technical and cultural context to the audience.

The operation of the projector itself would be described before the showing, and then explanations of Western culture would accompany the film with the benshi standing to the side of the screen.

[2] As film plots became longer and more complex, benshi often spoke for the characters on-screen in theatrical style and played multiple roles.

Stemming from the traditions of kabuki, noh and bunraku theaters, the benshi's narration and general commentary were an important part of the Japanese silent film experience.

[4] Famous benshi active in the silent era include Musei Tokugawa (at the Aoikan and Musashinokan theaters), Saburō Somei (at the Denkikan), Rakuten Nishimura, Raiyū Ikoma (at the Teikokukan), Mitsugu Ōkura, and Shirō Ōtsuji.

In the 1995 film Picture Bride, Toshirō Mifune portrays a benshi who traveled to sugar cane plantations in Hawaii during the early 20th century.