News

Graduate student Aiko (Rena Matsui) has always had low self-esteem and not much of a social life because of a conspicuous birthmark on her face. When her life story as featured in a book is to be adapted into film, she falls for the director Tobisaka (Ayumu Nakajima) who accepts her as she is. [Source: Jfdb]

A romance based on a 2013 novel by Naoki Prize-winner and author of “Narratage”, Rio Shimamoto. Directed by Yuka Yasukawa (Dressing Up), this film received its world premiere at the Tokyo International Film Festival in October 2021.

Theatrical release in Japan: September 16, 2022.

Dealing with themes of sexual/domestic abuse in mainstream (Japanese) cinema is not exactly the easiest thing to do. Yukihiko Tsutsumi, however, who shot “12 Suicidal Teens” back in 2019, seems like the man to do the job, in adapting Rio Shimamoto’s Naoki Prize novel. Let us see how he fared.

“First Love” is screening as part of the Japan Foundation Touring Film Programme

The protagonist of the story is Yuki Makabe, a psychologist who believes that the main blame for the violent behaviour of any children lies with their parents. Yuki lives a nice enough life, being respected in her field and married to photographer Gamon, who is set on taking care of her, essentially being in charge of all house chores due to his wife’s rather busy schedule. At one point, Yuki becomes fascinated by the case of Kanna Hijiriyama, a college student who has been arrested for...

To many women and men, marriage is not only a happy occasion, but ultimately the center goal in their lives, unrelated to their cultural background. Especially in Western civilizations, marriage is not only connected to love and the concept of an eternal bond between people, but also a certain feeling of safety, emotionally and, perhaps more significantly, economically. Similar to the decision to buy a house and start a family, it sets a direction in one’s life, a victory, so to speak, to meet people’s expectations. In her home country, as director Yukiko Mishima explains, marriage, having children and buying/owning a house have become cultural rather than individual standards. Especially with regards to women, marriage as a means to create stability in one’s life also creates an immense pressure not to “slip up”.

Shape of Red is screening at Japan Foundation Touring Film Programme

In her...

New York, NY –Japan Society and the Agency for Cultural Affairs, Government of Japan (Aca), in collaboration with the Visual Industry Promotion Organization (Vipo), announce the inaugural Aca Cinema Project online film series 21st Century Japan: Films from 2001-2020, streaming nationwide on Japan Society’s Virtual Cinema from February 5-25, 2021.

As Japan’s film industry enters its third decade in the new millennium, this 30-film online series takes a look back at the last 20 years of Japanese cinema to celebrate some of the most remarkable narrative fiction films and filmmakers that define the era. Covering a wide range of production styles and genres—from small budget independent debuts to festival favorites and award-winning major studio releases—this diverse slate of feature and short films offers a guided tour of modern Japanese cinema, including special spotlights dedicated to the work of Kiyoshi Kurosawa and a selection of breakout films by up-and-coming filmmakers.

Rio Shimamoto’s novel “First Love,” won the 159th Naoki Prize for it’s unpredictable ending and the dense human drama hidden behind the title. The best-selling “rare-problem work” has been made into a complete movie by the casted staff representing the Japanese movie world.

Kitagawa, who boasts tremendous support from a wide range of people, plays Yuki Makabe, the main character of a certified public psychologist who covers the case. Keiko, in addition to top-class actors such as Tomoya Nakamura, Kyoko Yoshine and Sho Kiyohara. Gorgeous faces gather, and the story is spun more realistically and emotionally with a real performance.

The director is Yukihiko Tsutsumi, a hit-maker who has produced enthusiastic fans with numerous stylish suspense. The theme song and insert song are produced by singer Uru, who is attracting attention for her singing voice and mysterious presence.

Why did she have to kill her father?...

To many women and men, marriage is not only a happy occasion, but ultimately the center goal in their lives, unrelated to their cultural background. Especially in Western civilizations, marriage is not only connected to love and the concept of an eternal bond between people, but also a certain feeling of safety, emotionally and, perhaps more significantly, economically. Similar to the decision to buy a house and start a family, it sets a direction in one’s life, a victory, so to speak, to meet people’s expectations. In her home country, as director Yukiko Mishima explains, marriage, having children and buying/owning a house have become cultural rather than individual standards. Especially with regards to women, marriage as a means to create stability in one’s life also creates an immense pressure not to “slip up”.

“Shape of Red” is screening at Nippon Connection 2020

In her adaptation of Rio Shimamoto...

Chicago’s Asian Pop-Up Cinema has announced the full line-up for its 10th Season including 16 new films from across Asia. Season Ten runs for five-weeks from March 10 through April 9, 2020. Each week will be dedicated to highlighting films from the same geographic location with one film shown on different days each week. A majority of the screenings will be presented at the festival’s primary venue, AMC River East 21. Select titles are screened at collaborative partners’ premises: Chicago Filmmakers, Alliance Française de Chicago, and the Chinese American Museum.

Asian Pop-Up Cinema’s Season Ten opens by honoring Hong Kong filmmaking with two North American Premieres starting with “I’m Livin it” on March 10. Nominated for 10 awards from the 39th Hong Kong Film Awards, “I’m Livin It”, tells the story of a man who was once a star in his finance firm (Aaron Kwok), but now spends his life in a...