<html><head><style>body{font-family:Helvetica,Arial;font-size:13px}</style></head><body style="word-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; -webkit-line-break: after-white-space;"><div id="bloop_customfont" style="font-family:Helvetica,Arial;font-size:13px; color: rgba(0,0,0,1.0); margin: 0px; line-height: auto;">I don't usually self-promote on KineJapan, but I think this was an important panel held in Tokyo last night:</div><div id="bloop_sign_1446169934915833088" class="bloop_sign"><div style="font-family:helvetica,arial;font-size:13px"><a href="http://www.filmbiz.asia/news/fixing-japanese-cinemas-image-problem">http://www.filmbiz.asia/news/fixing-japanese-cinemas-image-problem</a></div><div style="font-family:helvetica,arial;font-size:13px"><br></div><div style="font-family:helvetica,arial;font-size:13px">I wasn't able to transcribe the full introductory speech from the Cool Japan Fund representative, which I didn't quite understand. It was all about "exit points". I'm sure it was my own failing rather than his, or that of my excellent interpreter who sat with me at the back of the room.</div><div style="font-family:helvetica,arial;font-size:13px"><br></div><div style="font-family:helvetica,arial;font-size:13px">There was a bunch of interesting people in the audience, including the former head of TIFFCOM, a former sales head at Nikkatsu, and at least one film producer and one director that I recognised. I don't know if the discussion continued over drinks later at an izakaya</div><div style="font-family:helvetica,arial;font-size:13px"><br></div><div style="font-family:helvetica,arial;font-size:13px">Despite the threat to film studies in Japan, the forthcoming TPP treaty, the security law, etc, the level of discussion during the Tokyo IFF is still more keenly focused on directors' pets and favourites foods (an unidentified mutt and plain rice for John Woo) than anything deeper.</div><div style="font-family:helvetica,arial;font-size:13px"><br></div><div style="font-family:helvetica,arial;font-size:13px">I'm not clear to what this forum was an official or unofficial TIFF event. I only heard about it by chance about an hour before it took place.</div><div style="font-family:helvetica,arial;font-size:13px"><br></div><div style="font-family:helvetica,arial;font-size:13px">Stephen Cremin</div><div style="font-family:helvetica,arial;font-size:13px"><br></div></div></body></html>