Eight European (co-)productions to compete at Tokyo
- The 31st Tokyo International Film Festival will host the world premieres of the new films by György Pálfi and Veit Helmer
Today (25 October) sees the start of the 31st edition of the Tokyo International Film Festival, a gathering that has always saved a spot for European cinema in its main sections. Almost 200 films will be screened and a handful of film events will be held in the Japanese capital until 3 November.
This year, the Competition will welcome the world premiere of the new films by well-known European filmmakers György Pálfi and Veit Helmer, two of the most unique voices in Hungarian and German cinema, respectively. The former will present his latest title, His Master’s Voice [+see also:
trailer
film profile], an adaptation of the sci-fi novel of the same name by Stanislaw Lem, while the latter will lift the veil on his new feature, The Bra [+see also:
trailer
interview: Veit Helmer
film profile], a quirky comedy starring Miki Manojlović, Paz Vega and… a bra.
A clutch of other European (co-)productions will be competing for the awards, selected from among 1,829 titles, the highest number of entries ever submitted to the festival, hailing from 109 countries and regions. Amanda [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Mikhaël Hers
film profile] by French director Mikhaël Hers, Before the Frost [+see also:
trailer
interview: Elliott Crosset Hove
film profile] by Danish filmmaker Michael Noer, The Vice of Hope [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile] by Italian helmer Edoardo De Angelis and The White Crow [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Ralph Fiennes
film profile], the third directorial outing by Ralph Fiennes, will be present in the section, as will the co-productions The River [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Emir Baigazin
film profile] by Kazakhstan’s Emir Baigazin and Tel Aviv on Fire [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Sameh Zoabi
film profile] by Palestine’s Sameh Zoabi. The section is rounded off by a further eight titles hailing from Japan, Hong Kong, China, Mexico, Canada and Brazil. The jury in charge of handing out the awards in the section is headed up by Filipino director Brillante Mendoza.
As for the parallel sections, a smattering of European movies will be taking part in the Special Screenings and the World Focus, dedicated to successful foreign films that have no Japanese distribution company attached yet. The Favourite [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile], the Venice-awarded latest film by Greece’s Yorgos Lanthimos, which looks set to have a great run during this year’s US awards season, will be seen in the former, while the latter will host the Asian premiere of Paolo Sorrentino’s international version of Loro [+see also:
trailer
film profile] and Carlos Reygadas’ Our Time [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Carlos Reygadas
film profile], as well as screenings of Louis Garrel’s A Faithful Man [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Louis Garrel
film profile] and Olivier Assayas’ Non-Fiction [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Olivier Assayas
film profile], among other co-productions.
Furthermore, a special Focus on Israeli cinema will be held with the support of the Israeli Embassy in Japan and the Israel Film Fund.
The TIFFCOM, a market for film and TV content held in conjunction with the festival, is, as usual, presenting a vast array of Japanese and Asian projects to the world's film professionals who are in attendance from 23-25 October.
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