on my radar: Japan Film Festival 2024 - what to stream before June 19
personal recommendations and others worth noting in the line up
If you are a fan of Japanese cinema, this is definitely an event you don’t want to miss…
For non-film buffs, the Japanese Film Festival (commonly abbreviated as JFF) is an event by The Japan Foundation as an attempt to spread Japanese films worldwide. Beginning in 2016 and mostly in ASEAN countries as well as Australia, the event has since then expanded to China and India in 2017, and to Russia in 2018.
This year, starting from June 5, JFF has once again returned with a list of films available to stream for free. From June 5 to June 19, a variety of 23 films kickstarted the first two weeks of this one-month event, and will be followed by two TV dramas series (10 episodes each) starting from June 19 to July 3.
All films can be streamed multiple times and will have subtitles in up to 16 languages, available to stream for up to 27 countries.
For more information on how to stream, head over here to sign up for free.
Field Notes
Tezuka Osamu’s legendary animation and the first colour animation in Japan at the time – JUNGLE EMPEROR LEO, also known as KIMBA THE WHITE LION – is available to stream on JFF. Despite its flaws (so be sure to read the notes in the movie’s prelude), the entertaining absurdity of 60s-style animation is worth trying if you’ve never experienced it.
We can’t talk about JUNGLE EMPEROR LEO without reliving the controversy with Disney’s Lion King. I’m not spilling my thoughts here, but you can see it for yourself.
Keisuke Kinoshita’s 1954 release, TWENTY-FOUR EYES – a black and white, anti-war film following the lives of a high school teacher and her twelve students – is as interesting as it is conflicting.
We Made A Beautiful Bouquet
Nobuhiro Doi, 2021
Written by Cannes winner Yuji Sakamoto (Crying Out Love in the Centre of the World, Monster) is a romantic drama about Mugi (Masaki Suda) and Kinu (Kasumi Arimura), two individuals whose story starts at an all-night bar after they both miss the last train ride in Tokyo. They then discover that they have a lot of similarities – from liking the same manga, the same movies and art exhibition to wearing the same style of shoes. Having similar interests with someone also means allowing the possibility of having something more, which is exactly what happen to our ambitious and idealistic youths.
In essence, WE MADE A BEAUTIFUL BOUQUET is an ordinary story about two ordinary young adults. Mostly realistic, even sappy at times, this is precisely why the movie feels kind of personal for some. This story is not for everyone, but when it does hit, be assured that you’ll be entertained by Suda’s and Arimura’s chemistry.
A message from Director Noi
The Lines That Define Me
Nori Koizumi, 2022
You have to find your lines. And in turn, those lines define you.
A coming of age drama wrapped within the sentimental hue of sumi-e and suibokuga (Japanese ink wash painting), Director Koizumi’s take on Togami Hiromasa’s novel of the same name is a heartfelt experience filled with delicate shots, layered dialogues (most notably from Tomokazu Miura’s character, Kozan Shinoda) and philosophical nuances about, well, art. And much like its captivating direction, the idea of art itself serves as a liberating catalyst for our two main characters: Sosuke Aoyama (Ryuhei Yokohama), a college student shuffling from loss, and Chiaki Sonoda (Kaya Kiyohara), a talented yet conflicted suibokuga artist trying to find her footing, so to speak.
Zen-like storytelling submerged in a rather subdued, melodramatic cinematography by Ando Hiroki (Inakure Gunjo / Go Away, Ultramarine) paired with instrumental music and Yama’s iconic track, Lost, THE LINES THAT DEFINE ME grants me a sense of comfort that, while raw and arguably cliché for some, is reminiscent of my university days as an arts and design student. Even after the credits left my screen, I can’t stop thinking what if someone had told me that it’s alright to draw these strokes in a contrasting way compared to others, that art (or creativity even) transcends in a certain way when individuality is present.
My Broken Mariko
Yuki Tanada, 2022
Here comes the film I had proudly featured in my Motion Archive 007 newsletter – a heartbreaking yet beautiful story about losing a friend. Told from the perspective of Tomoyo Shiino (Mei Nagano), an OL (short for office ladies) in Japan, the plot follows her journey to steal the remains of her now-dead friend, Mariko (Nao), for an impromptu trip to Marigaoka Cape to save her soul.
Based on the webcomic by Hirako Waka, MY BROKEN MARIKO delivers compelling performances from Mei Nagano and Nao in less than two hours. The film may be short – only an hour and 25 minutes – but the impact leaves more room for us to face our inner conflict when it comes to grief, regret and acceptance.
A Message from Director Tanada
Anime Supremacy
Kohei Yoshino, 2022
When it comes to Japanese culture, there’s no way you can leave anime out of the country’s dictionary. Studio Ghibli, for example, is more than computer generated production – it is a phenomenon, a lifestyle even. Tourists go to Dogo Onsen in Matsuyama, Ehime Prefecture, because it reminds them of the bathhouse in Hayao Miyazaki’s SPIRITED AWAY, or board the train to see the Kiyosu Castle featured in Makoto Shinkai’s SUZUME NO TOJIMARI.
All of these are great, but in case you’ve been wondering what goes behind an anime production (and how competitive the industry is), here’s a dramatised version of what can and probably have happened in the real world by Kohei Yoshino.
The premise starts with Hitomi Saito (Riho Yoshioka), a seven years veteran in the anime industry who is finally given the chance to direct a new anime series. Ambitious but very much nervous for her directorial debut, she is rivalled by the so-called genius director, Chiharu Oji (Tomoya Nakamura), otherwise known as Hitomi’s inspiration and idolised figure. Together, the two of them compete against each other to earn the title haken (supremacy), a recognition given to the most popular animation.
I Am What I Am
Shinya Tamada, 2022
Director Tamada’s third film in his (Not) Heroine Movies project is a character study about Kasumi Sobata (Toko Miura), an aromantic asexual who works at the call centre, and her struggles with the amatonormative world. Constantly pestered by her loud family to get married (because she’s 30!), Kasumi’s definition of peace includes escaping conversations about romantic relationship to enjoy a bowl of ramen alone, and basking in the sunlight by the seashore. That is until she meets an old friend, Maho Yonaga (Atsuko Maeda), where she finds a flicker of hope about her sexuality.
Fortified by themes oftentimes ignored and/or underestimated, particularly in Asian culture, I AM WHAT I AM surely calls upon conversations about stigmas in modern day Japan, igniting the question on why these topics aren’t discussed more.
Single8
Kazuya Konaka, 2023
Have you ever wondered how the 1978 release of STAR WARS would affect a high school student?
In SINGLE8, Director Konaka (known for directing several episodes in the ULTRAMAN series) zooms in on this idea as a love letter to filmmaking. The film’s protagonist, easily recognised to be a character based on the director and his experiences back then, is a high school student named Hiro (Yuu Uemura). Like 13-year old Konaka who was inspired by JAWS (1975) at the time, Hiro is heavily inspired by the Star Destroyer shot from STAR WARS. In fact, his obsession with recreating the opening scene is the driving force behind filmmaking.
As the summer festival approaches, Hiro takes the chance to fulfil his dream – to direct a movie from start to finish. Together with his three classmates, the group experiments on a sci-fi romance story shot with Hiro’s titular camera which, I believe, is supposed to resemble the Kodak Super 8 camera (but don’t quote me on that).
You see, I always think there’s something so fun about youths who passionately pursue their dreams. It’s always fascinating to see the fire in their eyes – the unwavering determination despite the labour and skepticism from people around them. Naivety isn’t helpful when it’s overdone, but in this case, the ephemeral joy of borderless filmmaking is a much needed reminder that, deep down, good films are mostly rooted in passion.
A Message from Director Konaka
“With a good script, a good director can produce a masterpiece. With the same script, a mediocre director can produce a passable film. But with a bad script even a good director can’t possibly make a good film. ”
– Akira Kurosawa