JAPANESE FILM FESTIVAL 2018
Film Festival-attendees have warmed to the Japanese Film Festival now in its 22nd year in Australia, which boasts an exhilarating program consisting of 30 feature films and one documentary.
“We program to show the contemporary Japanese cinema for an Australian audience and now that we’re in our 22nd year we’ve matured our programming to deliver the stable box office hits, but we also take a lot of risks with our programming so we have some unusual titles including a five hour film and a zombie film on our opening night which breaks all the rules in festival programming,” explained festival programmer Alison Groves.
Emerging directors and directors who are yet to reach notoriety with Australian audiences are brought to the festival along with other guests who participate in Q&A’s which is always a highlight of the festival experience.
“The festival aims to profile not only the well-known hits from Japanese film of the last year, but also unearth the lesser known corners of the film industry which may not receive the attention which we think they deserve.”
One Cut Of The Dead is the opening night zombie film which was produced on a skeleton budget as a pilot and initially only intended to be seen by a very small industry audience with the view of receiving funding for a larger full-scale production. “The creativity that has gone into leveraging such a minuscule budget into a very clever, plot-twisting, genre-destroying, comedic and wacky zombie film is brilliant. Rated 100% on Rotten Tomatoes this has been a hit at many film festivals.”
Groves said that everybody should come along and watch a few Japanese films at this festival. “There is such a diverse spectrum of stories that I really do believe there is a film for every taste. Beyond the world of anime and samurai films, Japanese cinema culture is very diverse and sophisticated. There are pockets of genre strength which are just brilliant and unrivaled through high-level storytelling and superb acting.” (MMo)
Until Nov 25. Event Cinemas George Street. $18.50-$75 (5 film pass). Tickets & Info: www.japanesefilmfestival.net
HOT PICKS
THE THIRD MURDER – Cannes award-winning filmmaker Hirokazu Kore-eda’s first foray into the crime genre. A psychological thriller about a lawyer trying to find the truth in a seemingly straightforward murder case.
DETECTIVE CONAN: CRIMSON LOVE LETTER – Whiz kid detective solves crimes at a karuta card tournament in this family-friendly, adventurous, high-paced and entertaining anime.
COLOR ME TRUE – A princess literally falls from a black and white cinema screen into the reality of a young aspiring director who is smitten by her. Fantasy romance.
