Check Out the 2nd Block of Films Planned for the 2012 Shinsedai Cinema Festival!

by Marc Saint-Cyr

Recently, the Pow-Wow's editor-in-chief Chris MaGee has been hard at work preparing this year's Shinsedai Cinema Festival, which will be held in a new venue, Toronto's Revue Cinema, from July 12th to the 15th. Co-directed and co-programmed by Chris and Jasper Sharp, author of "Behind the Pink Curtain: The Complete History of Japanese Sex Cinema" and the recently released "Historical Dictionary of Japanese Cinema" and co-founder of Midnight Eye, the festival will be continuing its mission to bring rare and exciting new films from the current independent film scene in Japan to eager and curious North American audiences. This past Monday (April 16th), thanks in large part to the efforts of the festival's web manager Robert Harding, Shinsedai announced its second wave of films that will comprise the complete festival lineup (set to be revealed in its entirety sometime in May). Here's a look at the films featured in the announcement:

• End of the Night (Daisuke Miyazaki) - Helmed by Kiyoshi Kurosawa's assistant director on "Tokyo Sonata," this fusion of the Nikkatsu crime films of the 1960s and Takeshi Kitano's yakuza works, follows hitman Tamegoro as he raises a child claimed from one of his jobs as his own son, training him to take up his legacy of crime (pictured above).

• Zero Man vs. The Half-Virgin (Sakichi Sato) - From the writer of Takashi Miike's "Ichi the Killer" and "Gozu" comes an eccentric comedy about a policeman who is stricken with amnesia and begins seeing mysterious numbers on people's foreheads whenever he becomes aroused - perhaps indicating the number of sexual partners each person has had? This film is co-presented by the iconic Toronto DVD rental and sale shop Eyesore Cinema.

• The Naked Summer (Kenji Okabe) - This music documentary, shot by regular Hirokazu Kore-eda cinematographer Yutaka Yamazaki, follows butoh dancer Akaji Maro as he organizes his annual retreat in the countryside for dance professionals and amateurs alike, who will devote themselves to learning more about the fascinating dance form in preparation for a performance.

• From the Great White North: Yubari Fanta Special - Yasuhiro Togawa, director of Hokkaido's legendary Yubari International Fantastic Film Festival, assisted in the selection of three fascinating short films: Takuaki Tsunemoto's 'sexual martial arts' film "Hole and Pole," Yumehito Imanari's wrestling documentary "The Student Wrestler" and Kotaro Terauchi's marital comedy "Mrs. Akko and Her Husband."

• Battle Girls and Bondage: A Pink Film Double Bill - In what will be the first-ever theatrical screening of pink films in Toronto, Shinedai is proud to present, in collaboration with both L.A. distributor Pink Eiga and Toronto fetish clothier NorthBound Leather, a double-bill of Mototsugu Watanabe's "Sexy Battle Girls" and Osamu Sato's "New Tokyo Decadence: The Slave." Please note that this will be an 18+ age-restricted screening event.

As you can see, there is a pretty diverse selection of genres to viewers to choose from, illustrating the festival organizers' goal to bring many different facets of Japanese culture to the Revue this upcoming summer. With such films on the way plus the attendance of special guests and availability of Ontario Spring Water Sake from the festival's official beverage sponsor at the theatre bar, this is sure to be a very fun and memorable event.

The full announcement at the Shinsedai website can be visited here. Follow the Shinsedai Cinema Festival on Facebook and Twitter, and be sure to stay tuned for the final announcement that will reveal the festival's full lineup!

New Films from Kôji Wakamatsu and Takashi Miike Included in Cannes 2012 Lineup

by Marc Saint-Cyr

This past Thursday, April 19th, the main section lineups for the 65th Cannes Film Festival were finally revealed, sating film fans' curiosity about what new works would be appearing on the Croisette this year. While there is an abundance of treats for lovers of arthouse cinema from all over the world (new works from Anderson, Resnais, Loach, Mungiu, Reygadas, Vinterberg, Cronenberg, Haneke and more!) Japanese cinema has only a small handful of representatives...but what will be showing up looks quite special. Firstly, in the Un Certain Regard section there is "11.25 The Day He Chose His Own Fate," Kôji Wakamatsu's portrayal of the famous incident in 1970 in which renowned writer Yukio Mishima stormed the Ministry of Defense in Tokyo in a failed attempt to ignite a rebellion and committed seppuku. This film is the latest effort in what is turning out to be a very impressive late-career run for Wakamatsu, who has recently enjoyed acclaim for such works as 2007's "United Red Army," 2010's "Caterpillar" and this year's "Petrel Hotel Blue," which was recently featured in the Japan Society's "Love Will Tear Us Apart" series in New York. Meanwhile, the festival's Midnight Screening section will include Takashi Miike's newest film "The Legend of Love & Sincerity," based on a manga by Ikki Kajiwara. Those who are intrigued can check out the film's visually impressive trailer at the film's MUBI page.

While it seems that will be it for Japanese-directed films, it is also certainly worth mentioning that Iranian director Abbas Kiarostami's "Like Someone in Love," his new film set in Japan which we have been following, is part of the Competition lineup for the much-coveted Palme d'Or. The delightful teaser trailer, which was previously posted online only to be removed shortly after, can now be viewed once more - we've included it below:



Looking beyond Japanese cinema, it is nice to see other areas of Asian cinema included in this year's lineup. Among the honoured filmmakers of interest in that respect are South Korea's Hong Sang-soo ("In Another Country") and Im Sang-soo ("The Taste of Money"), India's Ashim Ahluwalia ("Miss Lovely"), China's Lou Ye ("Mystery"), Kazakhstan's Darezhan Omirbayev ("Student") and Thailand's Apichatpong Weerasethakul ("Mekong Hotel"). It certainly looks like this will be one of the more fascinating years at Cannes, and we eagerly look forward to following news and reports from the south of France once the festival (which will be held between May 16th and the 27th) gets underway.

Many thanks to the MUBI Notebook for its comprehensive roundup.

Cast of Takeshi Kitano's "Outrage Beyond" Announced

by Marc Saint-Cyr

PLEASE NOTE - the following story contains spoilers for Takeshi Kitano's "Outrage."


It appears that Takeshi Kitano is making good progress with the sequel to his 2010 return to the yakuza genre "Outrage." The film shoot, which began on April 2nd, is now apparently half-way finished, and the finished project, entitled "Outrage Beyond," is set to be released in Japan by Warner Bros. on October 6th, 2012. In a press conference that was held this past Tuesday (April 17th) in Chiba Prefecture, the main cast was revealed. Kitano, Tomokazu Miura, Ryo Kase and Fumiyo Kohinata, who all appeared in the previous film, will be returning, while new actors will include Toshiyuki Nishida, Yutaka Matsushige, Katsunori Takahashi, Kenta Kiritani and Hirofumi Arai. Perhaps the most interesting tidbit of information in this story is the re-appearance of Kitano in his role as the yakuza Otomo, since the character was assumed to be killed at the end of "Outrage." Producer Masayuki Mori cleared up some of the confusion by saying that Otomo in fact survived the film's brutal events, and that "Outrage Beyond" will see the return of the character, but will not be focused on his attempts to gain revenge. The new film's story will instead involve a clash between the Sanno-kai and Hanabishi-kai crime organizations, which control the Kanto and Kansai regions, respectively, while Otomo confronts the police's efforts to eradicate the yakuza. Taking into consideration many viewers' criticisms of the first film being too detached and hollow, it will be interesting to see if Kitano keeps up that trend or decides instead to throw some interesting curve balls, be it through more compelling plot developments or new formal techniques, with "Outrage Beyond."

Many thanks to Nippon Cinema for providing the details for this story.

North American Release Date and Trailer for Hirokazu Kore-eda's "I Wish" Unveiled

by Marc Saint-Cyr

Here is some news that is surely getting a lot of Japanese film fans very excited: Apple's trailer website recently posted a new, polished trailer for "I Wish" the latest film by Hirokazu Kore-eda, the master behind such beloved works as "After Life," "Nobody Knows," "Still Walking" and "Air Doll." The film's North American release will be handled by Magnolia Pictures, which will be putting the film in theatres on May 11th. Additionally, Toronto audiences will have the opportunity to see the film earlier than that when it screens at the Japanese Canadian Cultural Centre on the evening of April 26th. Having seen the film last year at the Toronto International Film Festival, I can fully state that this was a welcome treat certainly worthy of holding company with Kore-eda's past successes. This new trailer does a great job of highlighting the complex layers of emotions and detailed perspective on the bonds between parents and children that all make the film such a pleasurable experience. Hopefully, Kore-eda fans out there will take note and make this a priority when it comes out in select theatres in a few weeks time - it is certainly worth it. To read more about what some of us at the Pow-Wow thought of it, feel free to check out Nicholas Vroman's site review and my guest review for VCinema.

Readers can now watch the trailer in HD over at Apple and visit Magnolia's main page for the film.

New Trailer for Naoko Ogigami's Latest Film "Rent-a-Cat"

by Marc Saint-Cyr

One of the more accomplished filmmakers in the independent Japanese film scene today is Naoko Ogigami. With such films as "Kamome Diner," "Glasses" and "Toilet," she has developed a personal style distinguished by well-written contemporary characters, light-hearted humanism and a polished visual sensibility. Just a few days ago, the online community got a brand new trailer (included below) for her latest film, "Rent-a-Cat," which screened at the Berlin International Film Festival. The story revolves around Sayoko (Mikako Ichikawa), a lonely young woman who runs a business in which people can rent cats for a time to lighten their lives a little. Living on her own, she doesn't seem to handle connections beyond her feline companions very well, though the re-appearance of a person from her past soon enough shakes up her self-imposed isolation. Judging from the two-minute glimpse we are given, it certainly looks like Ogigami's recognizable charm, humor and sensitive characterizations will carry on strong with this fresh effort.

"Rent-a-Cat" will be released in Japan by Suurkiitos on May 12th. To read more about Ogigami's previous works, check out Eric Evans' profile of the filmmaker here.

Source: Nippon Cinema

UK Theatrical Release for "Mitsuko Delivers" set for May 11th

by Marc Saint-Cyr

Third Window Films has repeatedly proven to be an absolute gift for eager fans of independent Japanese cinema with its caringly prepared theatrical and DVD releases. Very shortly, the company will be adding yet another worthwhile event to the calendar when, on May 11th, the 2011 film "Mitsuko Delivers" receives a theatrical release within the UK. "Mitsuko" is one of the most recent efforts from Yuya Ishii, a filmmaker who has steadily been making a name for himself with such works as 2007's "Girl Sparks" and 2010's "To Walk Beside You" and "Sawako Decides." The new film stars Riisa Naka as the titular character who maintains an optimistic attitude as she returns to Japan from California following an ill-fated relationship with an American. Far along in her pregnancy and facing grim financial prospects, she encounters certain figures from her past including her parents' former landlord and a young man who has long harboured feelings for her.

Check out Third Window Films to see the trailer, poster and more details on "Mitsuko Delivers." Many thanks to SciFi Japan for highlighting this story.

Katsuhiro Otomo returns to manga... but this time looks to the past instead of the future

by Chris MaGee

Katsuhiro Otomo -- the name is synonymous with modern Japanese pop culture. His epic sci-fi manga-turned-anime film "Akira" almost single-handedly introduced Japanese animation to the world in 1988, defining the futuristic aesthetic of cyberpunk fiction and Hollywood blockbusters like "The Matrix". Despite his less than stellar animated follow-up, 2004's "Steamboy", Katsuhiro Otomo's place as a master of contemporary Japanese animation and manga remains intact; so when word comes down that the now 57-year-old artist and director is planning a new manga series, well, anime, manga and J-film fans get very, very excited.

Word started breaking about Otomo's new series after Shinchosha's Geijutsu Shincho magazine hit newsstands in Japan both with a newly drawn, one-off short manga story titled "DJ Teck no Morning Attack" (his first manga since 2006), but also an interview with Otomo in which he discussed a new short animated film he is producing tilted "Hi-no-Youjin (Combustible)"... and a coy little statement about a new manga series he was working on for ""a certain shonen magazine."

What could this new series be? Which "shonen magazine" was Otomo referring to? And would this new series further expand on Otomo's groundbreaking futuristic "Akira"? It turns out that the latter is not the case... not at all. Just recently Anime News Network came forward with details on Otomo's upcoming manga series, an ambitious venture that the artist plans to draw entirely on his own, and without any assistants or staff.

Instead of taking us boldly into the future, Otomo has opted instead to go back in time to the Meiji Era (1868-1912), a time that saw Japan emerge from 260 years of self-imposed isolation and begin a rapid push towards modernization to come up to speed with Western powers. Not the futuristic dreamworld that most of us are used to from Otomo, but a world in which Japan was stridently looking towards the future. Otomo said he had spent the last four years doing research in Kyoto for this new series, as well as reading books by Hirotaka Ichiyanagi and Mizuki Kondo such as "One Hundred Stories Set in the Bakumatsu and Meiji Eras". Finally, Otomo has revealed that this new series will appear in the pages of Shonen Sunday Magazine. No word yet on when this new manga adventure will begin, but seeing that fans have waited for years for this, we're sure they can wait just a little longer.

Animator Koji Yamamura teams up with Takeshi Kitano for opening of new TV show

by Chris MaGee

Comedian/ actor/ director Takeshi Kitano and animator Koji Yamamura -- these are two men that have a lot of fans around these parts. Obviously the former is someone who needs no introduction, but if you're hesitating a little on the second name then let us refresh your memory. Yamamura is the man behind the Oscar-nominated short film "Atama Yama (Mt. Head)" as well as the equally trippy "Franz Kafka's The Country Doctor". So, what do Kitano and Yamamura have in common? Well, the latter has just animated the opening sequence for the former's latest NHK TV show titled "Takeshi's Art Beat". Any of you who have spent time in Japan know that Kitano is one of, if not the most ubiquitous celebrities on the small screen, and this latest program follows Kitano as he explores one of his favorite subjects: contemporary art. (Kitano's a painter as well, you know!)

You can check out the opening for NHK's "Takeshi's Art Beat" by following this link and scrolling down to the flash video. Thanks to Catsuka for this fun bit of news.

Overseas filming trend continues with Eriko Kitagawa's "Atarashii Kutsu wo Kawanakucha”

by Chris MaGee

We've discussed the trend of Japanese films shooting overseas before here on the J-Film Pow-Wow. It seems that recent films like "Amalfi: Rewards Of The Goddess" (shot on Italy's Amalfi Coast), "Paradise Kiss" (shot in part in New York City) and "Terumae Romae" (shot in Rome) have all captured the imaginations of Japanese audiences and have dollar signs dancing in the eyes of big studio producers. It now looks as if this trend will continue with a new film being produced by none other than Shunji Iwai.

Titled "Atarashii Kutsu wo Kawanakucha”, the film stars Miho Nakayama (above right) as a freelance writer living in Paris who falls in love with a young photographer, portrayed by Osamu Mukai (above left)... and you guessed right, the film is shooting entirely in the French capital. The script, penned by Eriko Kitagawa, is apparently based on her lead actresses own years spent living overseas in Paris. Kitagawa, last in the headlines for directing the youth drama "Halfway", will also be in the director's chair for "Atarashii Kutsu wo Kawanakucha”. Another similarity with "Halfway" is that Kitagawa's mentor, Shunji Iwai (Swallotail Butterfly, All About Lily Chou-Chou) will be assisting her behind the camera as the film's producer.

"Atarashii Kutsu wo Kawanakucha” is currently shooting in Paris and is scheduled for an October theatrical release in Japan. Thanks to Tokyograph for this news.

Teaser Trailer for Abbas Kiarostami's Japanese Film "Like Someone in Love" Emerges

by Marc Saint-Cyr

Previously on the site, we've reported the progress in Iranian filmmaker Abbas Kiarostami's most recent feature film following 2010's "Certified Copy," which is set in Japan and focuses on a young female student (Rin Takanashi) who works as a prostitute to help pay off her fees and one of her clients, an elderly academic (Tadashi Okuno). Formerly known as "The End," it seems the project has been renamed as "Like Someone in Love," which is nicely illustrated by the new teaser trailer that has recently surfaced online (via The Film Stage). Set to the titular song as sung by Ella Fitzgerald, it provides a calm and rather lovely tone that will hopefully carry on into the finished film. As the Cannes Film Festival draws closer, speculation continues to grow surrounding both what will be included in the assorted lineups and what actually stands a chance of winning the Palme d'Or. It probably wouldn't be too much to imagine Kiarostami's latest at least turning up at the festival this year.

Here's the trailer (click its main title to view it in a larger window at Youtube):



UPDATE (03/28): Well, it seems the powers that be (specifically, the ones at MK2 International) have temporarily yanked the leaked teaser trailer off Youtube. However, while we wait for an official trailer to arrive, there are still three beautiful stills from the film (including the one below) that you can check out courtesy of The Playlist.

Hirokazu Kore-eda's Latest Film Gets Underway with Masaharu Fukuyama in Lead Role

by Marc Saint-Cyr

Great news for fans of contemporary auteur Hirokazu Kore-eda (like myself) recently surfaced at Tokyograph: the director has just started shooting his new feature film. After expressing to Kore-eda an interest in collaborating on a project together, musician and actor Masaharu Fukuyama ("Suspect X") seems to have gotten his wish, and will apparently be playing a despicable salaryman who devotes himself to negative thoughts towards others and a preoccupation with money. The film will be distributed by Gaga Communications and is planned to be released in Japan in 2013 following a run through the international film festival circuit. After the deeply satisfying nuance of Kore-eda's previous film "Kiseki" ("I Wish"), this should represent an intriguing step in his body of work that, hopefully, will continue to maintain the high level of quality that film-goers have come to expect from the filmmaker.

Online Tributes to Akira Kurosawa for the 102nd Anniversary of his Birth

by Marc Saint-Cyr

March 23rd is a particularly noteworthy date for admirers of Japanese cinema, as it marks the birth of one of its most beloved figures: Akira Kurosawa. In the time since the master's centenary two years ago, the month of March has come to be recognized by some as "Kurosawa Month," used by many as a welcome opportunity to revisit and rediscover his incredible works. I myself took the opportunity this year to see his 1985 film "Ran" after a long break, and was once more enthralled by the vision and power that he wielded so ably, and in so many different ways, throughout his career. This year, among the more impressive online tributes to Kurosawa was a "Great Kurosawa-thon" of posts by the tumblr blog This Must Be The Place which assembled posters, stills, quotations and even gifs(!) that take visitors on a journey through his career and some of the events and ideas that helped shape it. Along with getting highlighted by MUBI's Notebook, the post series inspired Flavorwire to take a closer look at the paintings that Kurosawa often composed (particularly in the stunning late, color-saturated phase of his career) as references for his onscreen compositions.

How did other Kurosawa devotees celebrate the great one's legacy? Any films watched or pieces written (or spotted beyond the sites listed above)?

Opening and closing night film of 2012 Shinsedai Cinema Festival announced!

by Chris MaGee

I have to admit that since last weekend I have been swimming in work... or maybe treading water in work is more accurate. This mostly has to do with my work organizing the 4th Shinsedai Cinema Festival happening here in Toronto at The Revue Cinema, July 12th to 15th. It was last weekend that the fest held a special screening and fundraising charity raffle, and it was during the night that we announced both the opening night film and the closing night film of the 2012 film fest.

Shinsedai 2012 will open with Yu Irie's rock comedy/ drama "Ringing in Their Ears" (above). The film centers around real life indie rock band Shinsei Kamattechan and their transition from underground group to major label commodity. Around this struggle Irie, director of "8000 Miles", weaves the stories of a group of the bad's most loyal fans: a young boy obsessed with its lead singer, his mother who works part-time as an exotic pole dancer, and a young high school girl who is attempting to become a professional shogi (Japanese chess) player. "Ringing in Their Ears" will open the fest on July 12th at 7:00PM.

Closing the fest is a film that just in the few days since we announced it is already gaining some serious buzz in the city. That would be Masafumi Yamada's surreal and blackly comic "Tentsuki". The film tells the story of a man who is on the run from a pair of yakuza thugs. He ends up hiding out in a back alley neighbourhood in Kyoto that doesn't appear on any of the city maps. Here he encounters a cast of very quirky characters, including a security guard who collects strange fossils, an insane widow and a beautiful alcoholic who believes she is growing a pair of wings on her back. You can check out the trailer for "Tentsuki" below. Suffice to say that if you love the films of David Lynch or the stranger films of Takashi Miike you'll love this one.

The 4th annual Shinsedai Cinema Festival will be taking place at Toronto's Revue Cinema this July! We'll be announcing our next block of films on April 16th, so keep checking the fest's official website here.

An astounding line-up of Japanese films at this year's Hong Kong IFF

by Chris MaGee

The 36th Hong Kong International Film Festival will be kicking off this Wednesday and fans of Japanese film have got a lot... and we mean A LOT... to look forward to during its 16-day run.

There will be a number of brand new films on the big screen in Hong Kong, starting off with Yu Irie's third installment in his "8000 Miles" series, "Roadside Fugitive". Irie's new film will be joined by another hip hop-based indie buzz film, Katsuya Tomita's "Saudade". Hong Kong audiences will also get a chance to see the new film "Heaven's Story" director Takahisa Zeze, "Life Back Then", and indie wunderkind Yuya Ishii, "Mitsuko Delivers". It won't all be indie films on show though. Programmers at HKIFF will also be screening studio films like Takashi Miike's "Hara-kiri: Death of a Samurai", Hirokazu Koreeda's "I Wish", Kaneto Shindo's "Postcard" and Shinbu Yaguchi's "Robo-G".

What will be especially exciting for Japanese film fans at this year's HKIFF are the retrospectives. Coming off it's screening at last year's Tokyo Filmex, Hong Kong will host a retrospective of the work of lesser known Golden Age director Yuzo Kawashima, including such films as "Between Yesterday and Tomorrow" (1954), "Burden of Love" (1955), "Elegant Beast" (1962) and "Our Doctor, Our Chief" (1952), "Suzaki Paradise: Red Light" (1956) (above), "The Sun in the Last Days of the Shogunate" (1957). Fans of the recently released Eclipse box set will also be happy to hear that HKIFF will also be host to a retrospective of the films of Koreyoshi Kurahara, which will include "Black Sun" (1963), "Glass-Hearted Johnny" (1962), "Intimidation" (1960), "The Third Dead Angle" (1959), "The Warped Ones" (1960) and "Thirst for Love" (1966). Most interesting on the retrospective front at HKIFF is its Takashi Ito Programme, highlighting all the films of one of Japan's most-respected experimental filmmakers.

Although there's just too many films from Japan at Hong Kong this year to outline all of them here, we have to give a special notice to their offering of 3/11 documentaries, including Yojyu Matsubayashi's "Fukushima: Memories of the Lost Landscape" and Atsushi Funahashi's "Nuclear Nation".

To browse a full listing of all the films in the 36th Hong Kong International Film Festival line-up (and have your mind boggled) click here. This year's HKIFF runs from March 21st to April 5th.

Kazuyoshi Kumakiri adapts gangster manga "Bakugyaku Family"

by Chris MaGee

Kazuyoshi Kumakiri has certainly done the rounds in terms of genres in his roughly 15-year feature filmmaking career. Most of you will best remember Kumakiri for his gory 1997 debut "Kichiku: Banquet of the Beasts" which told of the fictional dissolution of a leftist terrorist group. Since then, though, the 38-year-old Kumakiri has taken on everything from baseball films to dystopian sci-fi. Of late he's been gearing himself towards straight drama with films like "Non-ko" and "Sketches of Keitan City", but now comes word that he is going gangland with an upcoming manga adaptation.

Toei has Kumakiri helming its adaptation of Hiroshi Tanaka's popular street thug manga "Bakugyaku Family", a.k.a. "Bad Boys". The film, starring Sado Abe, Nao Omori, Arata, Kento Hayashi and Yoshimi Tokui, tells the story of a family of bōsōzoku, or violent motorcycle riding street thugs. You can check out the cast decked out in their gang outfits above. Apparently we can expect to see Kumakiri's "Bakugyaku Family" hit Japanese theatres this September.

Thanks to Toei's official site for this news.

Japan Foundation commemorates 3/11 with a series of free screenings in Toronto

by Chris MaGee

It's nearly been a year since the Great Tohoku Earthquake and Tsunami and the subsequent nuclear disaster at the Fukushima Dai-ichi plant. Over 300,000 people are still homeless and the estimated cost of rebuilding is rising into the billions of dollars. Events to commemorate the first anniversary of this historic tragedy have been planned around the globe. Here in Toronto is no different, and the folks at the Toronto Japan Foundation office have assembled a programme of free 3/11 documentaries to share messages of hope and renewal with Canadians and Japanese alike.

Starting on March 13th and continuing throughout the month the Japan Foundation will present six films, both documentaries and fiction, dealing with 3/11 at Innis Town Hall Theatre 2 Sussex Ave.) on the University of Toronto campus. The series kicks off with Masaki Kobayashi's "Masaki Kobayashi" (above), which chronicles the famous Iwaki City "hula girls" as they tour Japan and promote the rebuilding of the Hawaiian-style resort made famous in Sang-il Lee's "Hula Girls". "Setting Sail from the Ruins", produced by NHK, tells the story of fishermen in Ofunato, Iwate who struggle to continue their work in the three months following the tsunami. Isamu Nakae's "Rock: A Dog’s Island" is a heartwarming and heartbreaking tale of a family who reunites with their lost pet in the aftermath of 3/11. Akio Kondo's "Éclair ", a drama set in post-war Japan, doesn't deal directly with 3/11, but it was shot in Ishinomaki, Miyagi Prefecture and many of it's cast, crew and extras were injured or killed in the quake and tsunami. The series wraps up with two additional NHK documentaries "Can You See Our Lights" and "Light Up Nippon".

For a full listing of screening times and additional details on each film visit the Japan Foundation's website here.

Nippon Connection 2012 announces first films in their line-up

by Chris MaGee

Spring is on it's way, and for Japanese film fans that means that it's also coming up time for the annual Nippon Connection Japanese Film Festival in Frankfurt, Germany. Yes, once again I and the Pow-Wow's Marc Saint-Cyr will be on hand, and we're getting very hyped about being over in Europe and glutting ourselves on the latest and best in cinema from Japan. The question is, what films will be screening? The programmer of Nippon Connection recently announced a few titles of this year's line-up via their Facebook page to whet everyone's appetite.

Audiences in Frankfurt can expect to see Shinya Tsukamoto's psychological thriller "Kotoko", Toshiaki Toyoda's latest art house offering "Monster's Club" (above), Shuichi Okita's charming comedy/ drama "The Woodsman and the Rain", Nobuhiro Yamashita's period biopic "My Back Page" and Yoju Matsubayashi's 3/11 doc "Fukushima: Memories of a Lost Landscape." More titles should be announced soon, and it will be interesting to see which of these filmmakers will be making it to Germany to present their films in person.

Also, on the Nippon Connection from is the newly minted VGF Nippon in Motion Award. Created in conjunction with Frankfurt’s transportation association VGF, the competition is open to filmmakers to create a 12-second short film on the theme “Nippon in Motion”. All the competing short films are now loaded up here, and voting is as simple as liking your favorite entry. The winner will receive 250 euro.

The 12th annual Nippon Connection Japanese Film Festival will take place May 2nd to May 6th on the Goethe-Universität campus, Frankfurt Germany. Click here for full details on the fest.

Takashi Miike to get dark again with "Aku No Kyoten (Lesson Of The Evil)"

by Chris MaGee

For a while now the general consensus is that director Takashi Miike, once the go-to guy to shock and disturb, had gone mainstream. His recent output had kind of bore that out: big budget remakes like "13 Assassins" and "Harakiri: Death of a Samurai", childrens' films like "Ninja Kids" and video game adaptations like "Ace Attorney". There's still a lot to like in Miike's recent films, but where are the dark visions from films like "Audition" and "Gozu" that are still haunting us Japanese film fans? It's possible that Miike's next project will be a throwback to those grotesque days... maybe.

Twitch announced this week that Miike's next project will be a screen adaptation of Yusuke Kishi's novel "Aku No Kyoten (Lesson Of The Evil)". Originally published in 2008 thge books tells the story of a seemingly respectable high school teacher who harbours murderous obessions, namely offing his students. It's reported that actor Hideaki Ito, who previously starred in Miike's "Sukiyaki Western Django", will star in the lead role.

While Tetsuya Nakashima seems to have sparked an interest in films about teachers doing ill to their students with his 2010 film "Confessions", we have to remember that Miike did that formula much better justice with his 2006 thriller "Scars of the Sun". Here's hoping this will be just as strong, and just as disturbing a film.

We're back in business... and getting ready for a big night on March 10th!

by Chris MaGee

Well, we're back in business here at the J-Film Pow-Wow after a month of being off. Well, it hasn't actually felt like a month of rest and relaxation. During the break I've been kept insanely busy preparing for the Shinsedai Cinema Festival launch event on Saturday, March 10th here in Toronto at CINECYCLE (129 Spadina Ave.).

The night kicks off at 7:00PM when the doors open and there's a bit of a reception before we announce the opening night film of the 2012 Shinsedai Cinema Festival! It's a great one, but you'll have to come out to CINECYCLE to find out what film it is!

We'll also be running a charity raffle for Tohoku Relief. We've got a ton of great prizes (most of which I'd love for myself!)and what's best is that $1 from every raffle ticket sold will go to help the Niji-Iro 'Rainbow' Cinema Support Project, a charitable initiative that organizes free film screenings and provides free hot catered meals to families in the Tohoku region who are still living in temporary housing a year after the earthquake, tsunami and nuclear disaster.

The main feature of the night will be the comedy omnibus film "Quirky Guys and Gals" (above, and trailer below) from the makers of "Survive Style 5+" and "Fine, Totally Fine". That will be followed up with a live DJ set by our friend Brandon Hocura from Invisible City Sound System.

It's be a great night, so please come out to say hi to Chris and some of the Pow-Wow crew and mingle with lovers of Japanese film, art, music and culture! More details here, and a full list of the great raffle prizes we have here.

Love Will Tear Us Apart at The Japan Society New York this month

by Chris MaGee

Tomorrow one of the Asian film events of 2012 will be kicking off in new York City. The Japan Society Film Program and their Programming Director Samuel Jamier are bringing Love Will Tear Us Apart to the Big Apple. Between March 2nd through March 18th New Yorkers (or those of you lucky enough to be passing through New York) will be able to catch a programme of 22 Japanese and Korean "twisted, obsessive, heart-blazing love stories".

The series kicks off with the U.S. Premiere of Shinya Tsukamoto's latest psychological thriller "Kotoko". This topped both my best of list for last year as well as Matthew Hardstaff's. A very rough but astounding cinematic ride! Two other Tsukamoto films will be joining "Kotoko" in the line-up, "Snake of June" and "Vital". Audiences will also be able to catch the latest film by pink film veteran Koji Wakamatsu, "Petrel Hotel Blue". My own personal recommendations in "Love Will Tear Us Apart" have got to be Hideo Nakata's criminally under-appreciated mystery mind-bender "Chaos" as well as Ryuichi Hiroki's amorous road movie "Vibrator" (above).

Head to The Japan Society's website here for full programme details and info on how to get tickets!