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TIFF showcasing 200 plus films in Tokyo
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This year, 203 films will be shown at the TIFF, which opened on Tuesday, marking the third consecutive year in which it has presented more than 200 films. (Shutterstock/File)
T
he Tokyo International Film Festival, which launched its 29th edition this week, is expanding every year in a bid to become the No. 1 film festival in Asia.
This year, 203 films will be shown at the TIFF, which opened on Tuesday, marking the third consecutive year in which it has presented more than 200 films. The event will run through Nov. 3 at Roppongi Hills in Minato Ward, Tokyo, and other venues around Tokyo.
(Read also: Tokyo film festival lineup to include 12 Indonesian films)
The festival’s director general, Yasushi Shiina, named four points as the concept of this year’s TIFF: 1) Conveying information to people at home and abroad; 2) Establishing a stage to send creators out into the world; 3) Generating the film artists and fans of the future; 4) Creating a film festival everyone wants to take part in.
“We’ve worked hard and tried various ideas to raise our visibility, but we still have a long way to go,” Shiina said. “Compared to Busan and Shanghai [film festivals that are the TIFF’s rivals] the number of films we show is still small.”
Shiina said a film festival needs variety. “If there are many works, then we can offer various programs,” he said.
Sixteen films are vying for the top spot in the Competition, the hub of the film festival. French film director Jean-Jacques Beineix is president of the jury. Two Japanese films are taking part in the Competition: “Azumi Haruko wa Yukuefumei” (Japanese Girls Never Die) directed by Daigo Matsui, and “Yuki Onna” (Snow Woman) directed by Kiki Sugino.
Programming director Yoshi Yatabe said, “One of our goals is for people who see films in the Competition to learn what is happening in the world today.” Refugee problems stood out this year, Yatabe added.
(Read also: ‘Salawaku’ to have world premiere at Tokyo International Film Festival)
Shiina, who became the TIFF director general in 2013, regards three genres as the pillars of the TIFF — Japanese films, Japanese animation and films from other Asian countries — and said they distinguish it from other film festivals.
“Japan Now,” a special program for Japanese films, is showcasing 11 films, including “Kimi no Na wa” (your name.) and “Ikari” (Rage). Following the popular tradition of this program, most of the directors of the films will participate in a question-and-answer session after the screening.
“I can proudly say those films epitomize today’s Japan,” said Kohei Ando, a programming adviser with the festival.
This year’s TIFF also presents two special programs featuring popular directors, Shunji Iwai and Mamoru Hosoda. Iwai’s early masterpiece, “Uchiage Hanabi Shitakara Miruka? Yokokara Miruka?” (Fireworks, Should We See it from the Side or the Bottom?), will be shown outdoors at the Roppongi Hills Arena on Oct. 28.
This is the fourth year of the “Japanese Cinema Splash,” a competition for independent films. The program also includes an all-night screening of indie films outside the competition.
“Asian Future,” a competition for up-and-coming directors from Asian countries, is also in its fourth edition this year. Kenji Ishizaka, another programming director of the TIFF, said the rise of female directors is conspicuous in Asian countries.
(Read also: 6 Indonesian movies screened at South Korean film festival)
“Crosscut Asia,” a program jointly organized by the TIFF and the Japan Foundation’s Asia Center, focuses on Indonesian films.
The TIFF and the center have coproduced the “Asian Three-Fold Mirror 2016: Reflections” project, for which three directors jointly create omnibus films. The first three films under the project will be shown on Nov. 3. A related symposium will be held with Isao Yukisada and two other directors on Oct. 27.
Three films with young people as the protagonists are competing in the Youth division, which has been newly launched for this year’s festival.
“For the future of Japanese films, we’d like to put a lot of effort into artist training and build an environment in which young people can have easy access to films,” said Mitsuo Tahira, one of the festival’s programming advisers.
From Nov. 2 to 6, “TIFF Children,” a festival of films for children, will take place at several venues in Futako-Tamagawa in Setagaya Ward, Tokyo.
The Tokyo International Film Festival runs until Nov. 3 at EX Theater Roppongi in Minato Ward, Tokyo, and other venues.
This article appeared on The Japan News newspaper website, which is a member of Asia News Network and a media partner of The Jakarta Post
