[KineJapan] 21st Nippon Connection Film Festival

[Marion Klomfass]

Dear all,

we are pleased to inform you about the program of the *21st Japanese 
Film Festival Nippon Connection*, which will run from *June 1 to 6, 
2021*. Due to the ongoing pandemic situation, it will be held entirely 
online for the second year in a row.

Around *80 Japanese short and feature-length films* will be playable as 
*video-on-demand* throughout Germany and in some cases outside of 
Germany during the festival period from June 1 to 6, 2021. In addition, 
online live *film talks 
<https://db.nipponconnection.com/en/2021/event/accompanying?english_title=film+talks&event_type_id=&free=0&tag=&date=&english_title=film+talk&event_type_id=&free=0&tag=&date=>* 
with the directors (including Sion SONO, Koji Fukada, SABU, Miwa 
Nishikawa, Takahisa Zeze, Toshiaki Toyoda, Shinichiro Ueda, Atsushi 
Funahashi, Yukiko Sode, Nobuhiro Suwa etc) and *more than 50 workshops, 
lectures, concerts and performance**s* invite exchange and interaction. 
All tickets and information are available on the festival website 
*NipponConnection.com* <http://www.nipponconnection.com>.

The majority of the films will have their German, European, 
International or World Premiere at the festival. From family dramas and 
musical comedies to socially critical documentaries and independent 
animated films, the program is a diverse panorama of contemporary 
Japanese cinema. Big names of Japanese cinema such as Miwa Nishikawa, 
Takahisa Zeze and Koji Fukada are represented in the *Nippon Cinema 
<https://db.nipponconnection.com/en/2021/section/1/nippon-cinema>* 
section with their latest works.

Among the world premieres is the politically explosive documentary 
*Ushiku* <https://db.nipponconnection.com/en/event/1079/ushiku> by 
award-winning director *Thomas Ash*, filmed with a hidden camera in the 
immigration center in Ushiku near Tokyo.

The thematic focus *Family Matters - The Japanese Family between 
Tradition and Modernity* 
<https://nipponconnection.com/en/program/family-matters/> deals with old 
and new family models, gender norms and unusual perspectives on the 
institution of family. Complementing the diverse film program, film 
scholars Chantal Bertalanffy and Claudia Bertolé talk about family 
images in Japanese cinema in their online lectures.

Ten years after the devastating disaster in northeastern Japan on March 
11, 2011, two films show the still noticeable effects on Japanese 
society and for those affected: *Bolt* 
<https://db.nipponconnection.com/en/event/1036/bolt> by Kaizo Hayashi 
and *Voices In The Wind* 
<https://db.nipponconnection.com/en/event/1053/voices-in-the-wind> by 
Nobuhiro Suwa. A *panel discussion 
<https://db.nipponconnection.com/en/event/1131/311-10-years-after-everything-under-control>* 
moderated by Prof. Dr. Steffi Richter (University of Leipzig) will 
address the current situation in the disaster region from different 
perspectives.

Unusual perspectives and socially critical films will be shown in the 
*Nippon Docs* 
<https://db.nipponconnection.com/en/2021/section/5/nippon-docs> and 
*Nippon Visions* 
<https://db.nipponconnection.com/en/2021/section/2/nippon-visions> 
sections. In the Nippon Visions section, *Along The Sea* 
<https://db.nipponconnection.com/en/event/1056/along-the-sea> by Akio 
Fujimoto deals with the precarious situation of migrant workers. 
*Company Retreat* 
<https://db.nipponconnection.com/en/event/1058/company-retreat> by 
Atsushi Funahashi is a powerful film about sexual harassment.

In the Nippon Docs section, we show eight documentaries. As a world 
premiere we present *Ainu Neno An Ainu* 
<https://db.nipponconnection.com/en/event/1072/ainu-neno-an-ainu> by the 
artist collective Lunch Bee House about the indigenous Ainu population 
in northern Japan. *I Quit, Being "Friends" * 
<https://db.nipponconnection.com/en/event/1073/i-quit-being-friends>focuses 
on deaf filmmaker Ayako Imamura's friendship with Ma-chan, who is 
affected by Asperger's Syndrome, and leads to the question of how people 
can communicate with each other at all. *Sayonara TV* 
<https://db.nipponconnection.com/en/event/1076/sayonara-tv> by Koji 
Hijikata provides an unvarnished look behind the scenes of the Japanese 
media landscape and plays with the audience's expectations.

Please find below the full line-up.

We would be happy to welcome you at our Nippon Connection online film 
festival!

Best,

Marion Klomfass
Festival director

Nippon Connection ONLINE
** * *
21st Japanese Film Festival
June 1 – 6, 2021
NipponConnection.com

Office:
Nippon Connection e.V., c/o Atelierfrankfurt, Room 5.08
Schwedlerstr. 1-5, 60314 Frankfurt am Main, Germany
Mobile: +49 177 467 11 41
Phone: +49 69 847 765 65, Fax: +49 69 847 765 66
Marion at NipponConnection.com
NipponConnection.com


*The Line-up of the 21st Nippon Connection Film Festival**
**June 1–6, 2021**
*
All films will be shown in the original version with English subtitles 
except where stated otherwise.

NIPPON CINEMA
Aristocrats (Anoko wa kizoku) by Yukiko Sode, J 2020, 124 min., German 
premiere
Bolt by Kaizo Hayashi, J 2019, 79 min., European premiere
Can't Stop The Dancing (Dance With Me) by Shinobu Yaguchi, J 2019, 103 min.
The Day Of Destruction (Hakai no hi) by Toshiaki Toyoda, J 2020, 57 min.
Family Of Strangers (Heisa byoto sorezore no asa) by Hideyuki Hirayama, 
J 2019, 120 min., German premiere
A Girl Missing (Yokogao) by Koji Fukada, J/FR 2019, 111 min., German 
premiere
his by Rikiya Imaizumi, J 2020, 127 min., German premiere
Hit Me Anyone One More Time (Kioku ni gozaimasen!) by Koki Mitani, J 
2019, 127 min., German premiere
My Blood And Bones In A Flowing Galaxy (Kudakechiru tokoro o misete 
ageru) by SABU, J 2019, 126 min., German premiere
One Night (Hitoyo) by Kazuya Shiraishi, J 2019, 123 min.
Our 30-Minute Sessions (Sayonara made no 30 pun) by Kentaro Hagiwara, J 
2020, 114 min.
The Promised Land (Rakuen) by Takahisa Zeze, J 2019, 129 min., German 
premiere
Red Post On Escher Street (Escher dori no akai posuto) by Sion Sono, J 
2020, 147 min.
Sea Of Revival (Nagimachi) by Kazuya Shiraishi, J 2019, 124 min., German 
premiere
Shiver (Senritsu seshimeyo) by Toshiaki Toyoda, J 2021, 89 min., no dialog
Special Actors by Shinichiro Ueda, J 2019, 109 min., German premiere
The Stormy Family (Taifu kazoku) by Masahide Ichii, J 2019, 108 min., 
European premiere
To The Ends Of The Earth (Tabi no owari sekai no hajimari) by Kiyoshi 
Kurosawa, J/Uzbekistan 2019, 120 min., original version with German and 
French subtitles
Under The Open Sky (Subarashiki sekai) by Miwa Nishikawa, J 2021, 126 
min., German premiere
Voices In The Wind (Kaze no denwa) by Nobuhiro Suwa, J 2020, 139 min.
Wolf's Calling (Noroshi ga yobu) by Toshiaki Toyoda, J 2019, 16 min., no 
dialog, German premiere
Wonderful Paradise (Noten paradaisu) by Masashi Yamamoto, J 2020, 97 
min., German premiere
Special screening: A Town And A Tall Chimney (Aru machi no takai 
entotsu) by Katsuya Matsumura, J 2019, 130 min., original version with 
German subtitles

NIPPON VISIONS
Ainu Mosir by Takeshi Fukunaga, J/US/China 2020, 84 min., German premiere
Along The Sea (Umibe no kanojotachi) by Akio Fujimoto, J/Vietnam 2020, 
88 min., German premiere
Aster School Days by Mone Inada, J 2020, 38 min.
Beyond The Infinite Two Minutes (Droste no hate de bokura) by Junta 
Yamaguchi, J 2020, 70 min., German premiere
Birdland by Takeshi Kogahara, J 2019, 20 min., European premiere
Company Retreat (Aru shokuba) by Atsushi Funahashi, J 2020, 135 min., 
German premiere
Daughters by Hajime Tsuda, J 2020, 104 min., German premiere
Extraneous Matter–Complete Edition (Ibutsu -kanzenban-) by Kenichi 
Ugana, J 2021, 61 min., world premiere
Idol by Ryushi Lindsay, J 2020, 21 min., German premiere
I'm Really Good (Watashi wa genki) by Hirobumi Watanabe, J 2020, 61 
min., German premiere
It's A Summer Film! (Sama firumu ni notte) by Soshi Matsumoto, J 2020, 
97 min., international premiere
Kamata Prelude (Kamata zensokyoku) by Ryutaro Nakagawa, Mayu Akiyama, 
Yuka Yasukawa & Hirobumi Watanabe, J 2020, 117 min., international premiere
Kontora by Anshul Chauhan, J 2019, 144 min., German premiere
Lucky Owl With Shimako by Yoko Kuno & Nobuhiro Yamashita, J 2020, 1 
min., no dialog, German premiere
Montage Of Hong Kong by Ikuma Hori, J 2020, 28 min., European premiere
Muito Prazer by Jengil Park, J 2020, 31 min., European premiere
Nosari: Impermanent Eternity (Nosari no shima) by Tatsuya Yamamoto, J 
2021, 129 min., European premiere
O-Bon, Anecdotes From Kyoto by Jénay Vogel, Schweiz 2021, 10 min., 
German premiere
Project TANUKI (Tanuki keikaku) by Yu Hsin Chiueh, J 2020, 41 min.
Sasaki In My Mind by Takuya Uchiyama, J 2020, 118 min., international 
premiere
Stay by Naoya Fujita, J 2020, 37 min., Original version with German 
subtitles, international premiere
Then I Add Colors To A Panda And A Zebra by Karin Takeda, J 2019, 39 
min., international premiere
The Town Of Headcounts (Ninzu no machi) by Shinji Araki, J 2020, 111 
min., German premiere
Weather Map by Nana Kawabata, J 2021, 9 min., no dialog, German premiere
Where Bibi Went by Tadasuke Kotani, J 2020, 15 min., German premiere
yes, yes, yes by Akihiko Yano, J 2021, 75 min., international premiere

NIPPON DOCS
Ainu Neno An Ainu by Laura Liverani, Neo Sora & Valý Þórsteinsdóttir, J 
2019, 72 min., world premiere
I Quit, Being "Friends" (Tomodachi yameta.) by Ayako Imamura, J 2020, 84 
min. OmeU, international premiere
Koshien: Japan's Field Of Dreams by Ema Ryan Yamazaki, J/US 2019, 94 
min., German premiere
Me And The Cult Leader (Aganai – Chikatetsu sarinjiken to watashi) by 
Atsushi Sakahara, J 2020, 114 min., German premiere
Sayonara TV (Sayonara terebi) by Koji Hijikata, J 2019, 109 min., 
international premiere
SUMODO ~The Successors Of Samurai~ (Sumodo ~Samurai o tsugu mono tachi~) 
by Eiji Sakata, J 2020, 104 min., European premiere
Ushiku by Thomas Ash, Japan 2021, 84 min., world premiere
The Witches Of The Orient by Julien Faraut, Frankreich 2021, 100 min., 
German premiere

NIPPON ANIMATION
A Break In The Clouds by Anna Takagi, J 2021, 7 min., no dialog, German 
premiere
Boy With Child by Yoshiro Kawakami, J 2020, 10 min., German premiere
Castle by Ryotaro Miyajima, J 2019, 5 min., no dialog
Difference And Repetition And Coffee by Masa Kudo, J 2020, 5 min., no 
dialog, German premiere
Empty Hands by Emari Okayama, J 2020, 7 min., German premiere
I Am A Motif by Sijia Luo, J 2020, 8 min., German premiere
Leaking Life by Shunsaku Hayashi, J 2019, 15 min., no dialog
Locomotor by Isaku Kaneko, J 2019, 3 min., no dialog
Lupin III: The First (Lupin sansei THE FIRST) by Takashi Yamazaki, J 
2019, 93 min., Original version with German subtitles, German premiere
Mubi by Tomoe Obayashi, J 2019, 6 min.
ON-GAKU: Our Sound (Ongaku) by Kenji Iwaisawa, J 2019, 71 min.
Our House / Notre maison by Caori Murata, J 2020, 3 min., German premiere
Our Little Pond by Namiko Ishidate, J 2021, 15 min., German premiere
parallax by Hayato Nove, J 2021, 33 min., no dialog, world premiere
Seven Days War (Bokura no nanokakan senso) by Yuta Murano, J 2019, 88 
min., original version with German subtitles, German premiere
Small Life by Yueqi Wu, J 2021, 5 min., German premiere
Strawberry Candy by Nianze Li,  J 2020, 7 min., German premiere
Sumikkogurashi: Good To Be In The Corner (Eiga sumikko gurashi tobidasu 
ehon to himitsu no ko) by Mankyu, J 2019, 60 min., original version with 
English subtitles / original version with German voice-over
The Balloon Catcher by Isaku Kaneko, J 2020, 6 min., no dialog, German 
premiere
The Big Tree In Front Of The House by Yinan Liu, J 2020, 6 min., German 
premiere
The Living Wall by Keita Kurosaka, J 2020, 6 min., no dialog
Wandala! by Akimi Miyamoto, J 2021, 6 min., German premiere

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