The Japanese Canadian Cultural Centre's 13th annual Toronto Japanese Film Festival will be held from June 6th to 20th at the Jccc's Kobayashi Hall. The festival has now grown into one of the largest film events of its kind in the world and is recognized by the Japanese film industry as a vital conduit for bringing Japanese film to the world.
TorontoJFF is programmed to reflect the rich diversity of the world 4th largest film industry and the 2024 edition will feature 24 films including the International Premieres of Kosai Sekine's mystery drama Stay Mum「かくしごと 」starring Anne Watanabe and Eiji Okuda and Toshiyuki Teruya's heartwarming Okinawa-based comedy Kanasando「かなさんどー 」. The festival is also very proud to present the World Premiere of Alice Il Shin's Landscapes Of Home 「故郷の風景」 from producer Eiko Kawabe Brown. The film is an investigation of Japanese Canadian struggle from a new perspective redefining...
TorontoJFF is programmed to reflect the rich diversity of the world 4th largest film industry and the 2024 edition will feature 24 films including the International Premieres of Kosai Sekine's mystery drama Stay Mum「かくしごと 」starring Anne Watanabe and Eiji Okuda and Toshiyuki Teruya's heartwarming Okinawa-based comedy Kanasando「かなさんどー 」. The festival is also very proud to present the World Premiere of Alice Il Shin's Landscapes Of Home 「故郷の風景」 from producer Eiko Kawabe Brown. The film is an investigation of Japanese Canadian struggle from a new perspective redefining...
- 4/26/2024
- by Adam Symchuk
- AsianMoviePulse
The official site and social channels for the Mysterious Disappearances TV anime adaptation confirmed late Sunday that voice actors Masako Nozawa and Naomi Ozora are joining the series cast, with character settings for each featured below. Yorumun Himeuo voiced by Naomi Ozora Station Attendant voiced by Masako Nozawa As previously reported, a premiere date of April 10 was confirmed for the series and prior to AnimeJapan on March 10, an online event was held featuring a preview of the first three episodes and a chat with the main cast via YouTube. The main staff and the rest of the cast are featured below. Director, Series Composition: Tomomi Mochizuki Character Design: Takuya Tani Prop Design: Hiyori Denforward Akishino Art Director: Toshiyuki Sakae Color Setting: Miyoko Ichinose Director of Photography: Tomomi Saito Editor: Masaki Utsunomiya Sound Director: Fumiyuki Gou Sound Effects: Noriko Izumo Sound Production: dugout Music: Kayo Konishi, Yukio Kondo Animation production: Zero-g...
- 3/24/2024
- by Humberto Saabedra
- Crunchyroll
Eiji Uchida’s romantic drama Silent Love has been snapped up by a raft of distributors throughout Asia after a bumper opening box office weekend in Japan.
Leading Japanese indie studio Gaga Corporation has closed deals for South Korea (Media Castle), Taiwan (Big Art) and Vietnam (Nk Contents) as well as Thailand, Laos and Cambodia (Dream Express).
It follows a strong start for the film in Japan, where Gaga also handles distribution. Released on Friday (January 26), Silent Love ranked third nationwide and was the leading live-action title at the Japanese box office, which is regularly dominated by animated features.
The...
Leading Japanese indie studio Gaga Corporation has closed deals for South Korea (Media Castle), Taiwan (Big Art) and Vietnam (Nk Contents) as well as Thailand, Laos and Cambodia (Dream Express).
It follows a strong start for the film in Japan, where Gaga also handles distribution. Released on Friday (January 26), Silent Love ranked third nationwide and was the leading live-action title at the Japanese box office, which is regularly dominated by animated features.
The...
- 2/1/2024
- ScreenDaily
The Anti-Demon Corps 6th Unit has arrived! In this week's episode of Chained Soldier , we meet the dangerously beautiful trio in person — and the spotlight is on them for the anime's latest trailer. Meet the teleporting Tenka Izumo (voiced by Maaya Uchida), the time-stopping Yachiho Azuma (voiced by Nene Hieda), and super-strong Sahara Wakasa (voiced by Reina Ueda): Related: Chained Soldier Anime Turns Back Time with Yuchiho Azuma Character Trailer The trailer is set to Uchida's ending single for the series, "Cha∞In." The original Chained Soldier manga is written by Takahiro, illustrated by Yohei Takamura, and published by Shueisha in their Shonen Jump+ magazine. An English language version is also available from Yen Press. Junji Nishimura and Goro Kuji direct the Chained Soldier TV anime at animation studio Seven Arcs. Related: Chained Soldier TV Anime Unleashes Creditless Opening Theme Video The series is currently streaming on Hidive,...
- 1/19/2024
- by Kara Dennison
- Crunchyroll
Eiji Uchida and Shinzo Katayama are two of the most interesting voices active in Japanese cinema nowadays, with titles like “Lowlife Love” and “Midnight Swan” of the former and “Missing” of the latter being some of the best we have seen in recent years. Now the two combine their forces for “Life of Mariko in Kabukicho”, a movie that shares a lot of similarities with another work of Uchida, “Love and other Cults”.
“Life of Mariko in Kabukicho” is screening at Bucheon International Fantastic Film Festival
Mariko, a girl with a rather dramatic past, runs a small bar in Kabukicho filled with eccentric but loyal patrons which also doubles as a detective agency. Meanwhile, a missing scientist is running amok in the streets of the area, carrying with him an alien in a wooden box. The FBI are searching for both, and in their efforts to find someone who can...
“Life of Mariko in Kabukicho” is screening at Bucheon International Fantastic Film Festival
Mariko, a girl with a rather dramatic past, runs a small bar in Kabukicho filled with eccentric but loyal patrons which also doubles as a detective agency. Meanwhile, a missing scientist is running amok in the streets of the area, carrying with him an alien in a wooden box. The FBI are searching for both, and in their efforts to find someone who can...
- 7/8/2023
- by Panos Kotzathanasis
- AsianMoviePulse
Japan during the 1960s saw a surge in crime flicks. Examples include the stylish gangster features by Seijun Suzuki and the darkly comical underworld movies by Kihachi Okamoto. Yet, there were also slower pieced character study crime thrillers that took their time to develop their characters and create overwhelming suspense and atmosphere with powerful themes that made audiences think. Look no further than Akira Kurosawa’s terrific films “The Bad Sleep Well” and “High and Low.” Yet, Kurosawa wasn’t the only notable director to put out poignant noir tales. Right around this time, filmmaker Tomu Uchida had built quite a name for himself with the numerous jidaigeki pictures he made. Occasionally, Uchida would step away from cinematic depictions of feudal Japan to do something more unique in his filmography, such as his phenomenal crime epic, “A Fugitive from the Past.”
“A Fugitive from The Past” is screening...
“A Fugitive from The Past” is screening...
- 1/18/2023
- by Sean Barry
- AsianMoviePulse
For young Bitaté Uru Eu Wau Wau, the distant chattering of a buzzsaw sends an ominous signal. It’s the sound of his people’s land in the Brazilian rainforest being chewed up by illegal invaders.
The Oscar-shortlisted documentary The Territory, directed by Alex Pritz, shows how Bitaté and members of his Indigenous tribe, the Uru-Eu-Wau-Wau, are attempting to fend off loggers, miners and squatters devouring huge tracts of the Amazon. Among their only means of defense is media attention to their plight. Without it, their territory will continue to disappear.
Bitaté spoke with us through an interpreter from an Uru village in Brazil’s state of Rondônia.
Deadline: What has it been like for you to be the protagonist of an Oscar-contending documentary that’s been seen around the world?
BITATÉ Uru Wau Wau: I feel honored. It brings to the forefront the fight of my people. It displays...
The Oscar-shortlisted documentary The Territory, directed by Alex Pritz, shows how Bitaté and members of his Indigenous tribe, the Uru-Eu-Wau-Wau, are attempting to fend off loggers, miners and squatters devouring huge tracts of the Amazon. Among their only means of defense is media attention to their plight. Without it, their territory will continue to disappear.
Bitaté spoke with us through an interpreter from an Uru village in Brazil’s state of Rondônia.
Deadline: What has it been like for you to be the protagonist of an Oscar-contending documentary that’s been seen around the world?
BITATÉ Uru Wau Wau: I feel honored. It brings to the forefront the fight of my people. It displays...
- 1/14/2023
- by Matthew Carey
- Deadline Film + TV
Quite a weird year for Japanese cinema, since there was no definite masterpiece this year, in the fashion of “Shoplifters” for example, while short and mid-length movies seem to have been rising intently in quality, a tendency that actually extended to a number of Asian countries, including Korea. At the same time, the “issues” of Japanese cinema, particularly the lack of mid-budget films and the “Koreeda style” of filmmaking that usually results in invitations to (big) festivals continue to happen, and along with the #MeToo movement hitting the industry quite hard, resulted in a year for local productions that is by no means great. At the same time, however, the size of the industry in terms of number of productions still gave way to a number of titles to stand out, 20 of which are to be found here. This time, the main criteria, besides the always present diversity, is films...
- 12/23/2022
- by Panos Kotzathanasis
- AsianMoviePulse
Following the success of “Midnight Swan”, which won the Japan Academy Prize for Best Picture, Uchida decided to return to one of his favorite themes, the meta “film about films” concept, continuing in the same level of quality he exhibited in titles like “Lowlife Love” and “The Naked Director”.
Shrieking in the Rain is screening at Camera Japan
The story takes place in an anonymous studio during the summer of 1988, where video production for home rentals has reached its highest peak. First-time director Hanako Hayashi is in charge, but the truth is, she actually isn’t. At all. Instead, she experiences frequent meltdowns, as in the initial scene where she has locked herself in the prop car, not talking to anybody, exhibits rather eloquently, her directions are vague, contradicting, and rather annoying for the cast and crew who get increasingly fed up with her. The fact that most of them...
Shrieking in the Rain is screening at Camera Japan
The story takes place in an anonymous studio during the summer of 1988, where video production for home rentals has reached its highest peak. First-time director Hanako Hayashi is in charge, but the truth is, she actually isn’t. At all. Instead, she experiences frequent meltdowns, as in the initial scene where she has locked herself in the prop car, not talking to anybody, exhibits rather eloquently, her directions are vague, contradicting, and rather annoying for the cast and crew who get increasingly fed up with her. The fact that most of them...
- 9/26/2022
- by Panos Kotzathanasis
- AsianMoviePulse
Japan during the 1960s saw a surge in crime flicks. Examples include the stylish gangster features by Seijun Suzuki and the darkly comical underworld movies by Kihachi Okamoto. Yet, there were also slower pieced character study crime thrillers that took their time to develop their characters and create overwhelming suspense and atmosphere with powerful themes that made audiences think. Look no further than Akira Kurosawa’s terrific films “The Bad Sleep Well” and “High and Low.” Yet, Kurosawa wasn’t the only notable director to put out poignant noir tales. Right around this time, filmmaker Tomu Uchida had built quite a name for himself with the numerous jidaigeki pictures he made. Occasionally, Uchida would step away from cinematic depictions of feudal Japan to do something more unique in his filmography, such as his phenomenal crime epic, “A Fugitive from the Past.”
on Amazon by clicking...
on Amazon by clicking...
- 9/14/2022
- by Sean Barry
- AsianMoviePulse
Following the unexpected and quite significant success of “Midnight Swan”, which took home the Best Film and Best Actor Awards for Tsuyoshi Kusanagi by the Japanese Academy, it was expected that Eiji Uchida would find access to the highest echelons of the local movie industry, as the presence of Hiroshi Abe and the overall production quality of “Offbeat Cops” highlights.
Offbeat Cops is screening on New York Asian Film Festival
Tsukasa Naruse is a workaholic detective working on homicide cases, who, as the movie begins, is researching a group of conmen who rob old people after giving them a call posing as the police to discover if they hide money in their houses. His methods, however, are not exactly by the book, as his new partner, young Shota Sakamoto soon discovers. At the same time, his obsession with his job has led him to a divorce and a daughter, Noriko,...
Offbeat Cops is screening on New York Asian Film Festival
Tsukasa Naruse is a workaholic detective working on homicide cases, who, as the movie begins, is researching a group of conmen who rob old people after giving them a call posing as the police to discover if they hide money in their houses. His methods, however, are not exactly by the book, as his new partner, young Shota Sakamoto soon discovers. At the same time, his obsession with his job has led him to a divorce and a daughter, Noriko,...
- 7/23/2022
- by Panos Kotzathanasis
- AsianMoviePulse
Hiroshi Inagaki’s “Samurai I: Musashi Miyamoto” was a critical and box office success. It was time to continue the narrative in the second entry of “The Samurai Trilogy.” Inagaki would raise more stakes, and much of Musashi’s history would be covered, albeit in a more theatrically romanticized way. Also, a major player in the narrative would be introduced, one that would participate in a significant event in the life of Musashi Miyamoto. So much content would be covered in the entertaining follow-up “Samurai II: Duel at Ichijoji Temple.”
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A majority of the cast from the previous returned, but some were recast here. Rentaro Mikuni was replaced in the part of Matahachi Honiden by Sachio Sakai. This change was likely due to Mikuni’s demanding schedule as he became more and more of a popular star in Japan. The renowned talent would work with...
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A majority of the cast from the previous returned, but some were recast here. Rentaro Mikuni was replaced in the part of Matahachi Honiden by Sachio Sakai. This change was likely due to Mikuni’s demanding schedule as he became more and more of a popular star in Japan. The renowned talent would work with...
- 7/15/2022
- by Sean Barry
- AsianMoviePulse
Translation by Lukasz Mankowski
Eiji Uchida was born in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, in 1971, and returned to Japan at the age of 10. Uchida worked as a journalist for Playboy magazine, assistant director in TV under Takeshi Kitano, and scriptwriter and director for TV series, before he moved on and became a director for Japanese indie films. His most renowned works include “Greatful Dead”, “Lowlife Love”, “Love and Other Cults”, while he was also involved in the direction of the recent Netflix hit, “The Naked Director”. “Midnight Swan” which screened in 2020, won Japanese Academy Awards for Best Film and Best Actor.
On the occasion of “Midnight Swan” screening at Toronto Japanese Film Festival, we speak with him about the Japanese Academy awards, the story behind the movie, ballet and transgender people, parenting, and other topics.
“Midnight Swan” won Japanese Academy awards for Best Film and Best Actor. How do you think...
Eiji Uchida was born in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, in 1971, and returned to Japan at the age of 10. Uchida worked as a journalist for Playboy magazine, assistant director in TV under Takeshi Kitano, and scriptwriter and director for TV series, before he moved on and became a director for Japanese indie films. His most renowned works include “Greatful Dead”, “Lowlife Love”, “Love and Other Cults”, while he was also involved in the direction of the recent Netflix hit, “The Naked Director”. “Midnight Swan” which screened in 2020, won Japanese Academy Awards for Best Film and Best Actor.
On the occasion of “Midnight Swan” screening at Toronto Japanese Film Festival, we speak with him about the Japanese Academy awards, the story behind the movie, ballet and transgender people, parenting, and other topics.
“Midnight Swan” won Japanese Academy awards for Best Film and Best Actor. How do you think...
- 6/17/2022
- by Panos Kotzathanasis
- AsianMoviePulse
Winner for Best Film and Best Actor awards from the Japanese Academy, as much as the Audience Award from Udine in 2021, “Midnight Swan” is a film that essentially establishes Eiji Uchida on the top level of local cinema, and an excellent drama that works on a number of levels.
“Midnight Swan” is screening at Toronto Japanese Film Festival
Nagisa is a transgender on the process of a sex change operation, who grew up in Hiroshima as a man but now lives in Shinjuku as a woman, working in a night club as a dancer. Due to an accident, she begins to live with middle school student Ichika, a distant relative, who has been suffering from neglect from her alcoholic mother Saori for years, to the point that she barely utters two words to anyone. The cohabitation is as difficult as possible, with Nagisa making no effort to hide that she...
“Midnight Swan” is screening at Toronto Japanese Film Festival
Nagisa is a transgender on the process of a sex change operation, who grew up in Hiroshima as a man but now lives in Shinjuku as a woman, working in a night club as a dancer. Due to an accident, she begins to live with middle school student Ichika, a distant relative, who has been suffering from neglect from her alcoholic mother Saori for years, to the point that she barely utters two words to anyone. The cohabitation is as difficult as possible, with Nagisa making no effort to hide that she...
- 6/13/2022
- by Panos Kotzathanasis
- AsianMoviePulse
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