Tokyo Film Festival Panel: Five Directors on How Their Films Got Made
Directors of the Nippon Cinema Now selection discussed budgets, origins and a possible Japan-Mexico collaboration at Tokyo Midtown Hibiya.
Five directors from the Nippon Cinema Now selection spoke about how their films were made at a panel at the 39th Tokyo International Film Festival, held at Tokyo Midtown Hibiya and moderated by TIFF programming director Ichiyama Shozo, according to Variety. The participating filmmakers were Ueda Shinichiro, Saito Kisin, Natori Satoshi, Matsumura Shingo and Yaza Takenoshin.
Ueda said Earthlings in Love was adapted from a 30-episode vertical microdrama series and was made on a budget equivalent to a regular independent film. Saito said Kefi began from a sponsor's theme of maternal love and being a mother, but was ultimately made freely.
Natori said Chihiro | Akemi centers on a house in eastern Hokkaido and drew on his past experience as a hunter. He added that Nawata Canon, an actor and producer on the film, incorporated her experience of giving birth into it.
Natori also said Chihiro | Akemi won the Grand Prix in the feature film competition at the Split Film Festival in Croatia. Carlos Reygadas, who was on the Split jury, approached him and said he wanted to collaborate, with a potential Japan-Mexico collaboration planned for Natori's next film.
Matsumura said Between Us focuses on theater and how theater and reality overlap.
Quick answers
Which directors spoke at the Nippon Cinema Now panel at the 39th Tokyo International Film Festival?
Ueda Shinichiro, Saito Kisin, Natori Satoshi, Matsumura Shingo and Yaza Takenoshin, moderated by TIFF programming director Ichiyama Shozo.
What did Natori Satoshi say about Chihiro | Akemi?
He said the film centers on a house in eastern Hokkaido, drew on his experience as a hunter, and won the Grand Prix in the feature film competition at the Split Film Festival in Croatia.