[KineJapan] 1 von 4.443 24th Japanese Film Festival Nippon Connection, May 25 – June 2 2024, Frankfurt am Main, Germany

[Florian Höhr]

Dear members of the list,

in just over one month, the *24th edition of the Japanese Film Festival
Nippon Connectio*n will begin in Frankfurt am Main, Germany. The festival
will take place from May 28 till June 2 2024
Some of the first highlights have already been announced.

Nippon Connection will showcase around* 100 short and feature films *at
eight venues. The country's culture will also be explored through the
extensive *culture program*, reflecting Japan's musical, culinary, and
artistic diversity.

The Nippon Connection Film Festival presents works by both established
filmmakers and emerging directors. From Takeshi Kitano's action-packed
samurai film *KUBI* to the captivating comedy *Fly Me To The Saitama **-FROM
BIWA LAKE WITH LOVE-* by Hideki Takeuchi, and Yoshimi Itazu's imaginative
animation *The Concierge*, the film program offers highlights of various
genres. Most films will celebrate their German, European, or international
premieres at the festival. The festival's focus on *Crossing Borders*,
supported by the Kulturfonds Frankfurt RheinMain, explores the relationship
and mutual influence between Japanese and other film cultures. For this
occasion, the retrospective will showcase seven classics of *Japanese film
noir*, influenced by American crime dramas and German film expressionism.

Nippon Connection is also a place to meet and exchange, especially at the
two festival centers, *Künstler*innenhaus Mousonturm and Produktionshaus
NAXOS*. Resembling a Japanese market, *food and crafts stalls* at the
freely accessible festival grounds provide the opportunity to escape from
the summer heat and immerse oneself in the country's cuisine. Additionally,
the diverse cultural program featuring concerts by *Japanese bands, DIY
workshops, lectures on Japanese culture, open-air events, tastings, and
cooking classes* invite visitors to enjoy the festival's ambiance until
late into the evening.

Around *50 filmmakers from Japan* will attend the festival to present their
works and engage with the audience, including actress *Kotone Furukawa*,
who will receive the *Nippon Rising Star Award*. This year also marks the
inaugural presentation of the *Nippon Storytelling Award* for the best
screenplay. The €1,000 prize is sponsored by the Storymaker Agency for
Public Relations.
The *complete program* and tickets will be available on the festival
website as of *May 4th, 2024*.
You can find our *accreditation form* here
<https://nipponconnection.com/en/press/accreditation/>.
We also have several partner hotels
<https://nipponconnection.com/en/service/hotels/> with special conditions
during the time of the festival.

*First Program Highlights In Detail*

*Films With Guest Of Honor Kotone Furukawa*

The guest of honor of the 24th Nippon Connection Film Festival is
actress *Kotone
Furukawa*, who will receive the *Nippon Rising Star Award* for exceptional
emerging talent at the festival on June 2, 2024. Kotone Furukawa gained
international recognition through the award-winning drama *Wheel Of Fortune
And Fantasy* by Ryusuke Hamaguchi. Nippon Connection presents a selection
of her films, including the new horror film *Best Wishes To All *by Yuta
Shimotsu, which will celebrate its German premiere in the presence of the
director and Kotone Furukawa. Another highlight will be the *world premiere*
of the romantic-mysterious drama *Secret: A Hidden Score* by Hayato Kawai,
starring Kotone Furukawa as a lovestruck music student.

*Films By Renowned Directors*

As a special treat for genre fans, the festival presents the German
premiere of Takeshi Kitano's samurai film *KUBI*, which delves into Japan's
past full of political intrigue and action-packed battles while also
addressing queer aspects of samurai culture. Nobuhiro Yamashita's musical
comedy *Let’s Go Karaoke! *revolves around the unexpected friendship
between a sentimental yakuza and a pubescent choir singer. Another
highlight is *Fly Me To The Saitama -FROM BIWA LAKE WITH LOVE-* by Hideki
Takeuchi. The colorful comedy aptly satirizes regional peculiarities of
Japan. Many of the showcased films reference pivotal events in Japan's
history, such as Shunji Iwai's drama *Kyrie*, where an orphaned girl makes
her way as a singer in the aftermath of the Tohoku natural disasters.
Keisuke Yoshida portrays a family grappling with the media attention
surrounding the unsolved disappearance of their daughter in his film
*missing*.

*Films By Emerging Directors*

The Nippon Connection Japanese Film Festival serves as one of the first
platforms for many emerging filmmakers to showcase their works to a wide
audience. Actor and director Ren Sudo will present his film *Abyss *as an
international premiere, depicting the complicated love story of two
fate-stricken young individuals in Tokyo. Ryoma Kosasa's
multi-award-winning debut film *PushPause *tells stories of comfort
surrounding the Coco Guesthouse. With bite and irony, Ryo Ushimaru's *Qualia
*takes aim at the traditional Japanese family image. The unconventional
comedy will celebrate its international premiere in the presence of the
director at the festival.

*Animation Films*

Fans of Japanese animation films can look forward to the adventures of the
animal visitors of a special department store in *The Concierge* by Yoshimi
Itazu. The festival also presents the energetic anime *BLUE GIANT* by
Yuzuru Tachikawa, narrating the success story of a jazz trio. Shojiro
Nishimi's melancholic sci-fi drama *PHOENIX: Reminiscence Of Flower *takes
viewers on a breathtaking journey through space.

*Crossing Borders*

At the heart of this year's thematic focus, *Crossing Borders*, are films
and talks dedicated to the mutual influence and collaboration between
Japanese and international filmmakers. The festival showcases Arnold
Fanck's drama *Die Tochter des Samurai* (1937) as one of the first
German-Japanese co-productions at the cinema of the DFF – Deutsches
Filminstitut & Filmmuseum. Dr. Iris Haukamp will give a lecture on the
interesting history of this controversial film. Representing a current
German-Japanese co-production is the documentary *Johatsu – Into Thin Air*
by Andreas Hartmann and Arata Mori, focusing on the organized and
self-determined disappearance of people in Japan. The feature film *18x2
Beyond Youthful Days* tells a deeply touching love story, directed by
Michihito Fujii with an international cast and shot in Taiwan and Japan.

*Concerts, Workshops, Lectures & Children's Program*

Among the musical highlights of the program are *concerts *featuring singer
Ai Higuchi, the band Samurai Apartment, taiko player TAKUYA, and a vinyl
listening evening with Japanese audio brand Audio-Technica.
Additionally, *workshops
*on manga drawing and Japanese handicrafts, multiple* cooking classes*,
whisky tastings by Beam Suntory, as well as sake and matcha *tastings *are
offered. Young visitors of the festival are also catered to with the Nippon
Kids program, including an aikido workshop and performances of the Japanese
paper theater kamishibai.

*Tickets*

The complete *program and tickets* will be available on the festival website as
of *May 4th, 2024: **NipponConnection.com* <http://nipponconnection.com>

*Event Locations*

Festival Centers: Künstler*innenhaus Mousonturm and Produktionshaus NAXOS
Additional venues in Frankfurt am Main: Eldorado Arthouse Kino, cinema of
the DFF – Deutsches Filminstitut & Filmmuseum, Mal Seh’n Kino,
Internationales Theater Frankfurt, Saalbau Bornheim, NaxosAtelier

*About the festival*

The *Japanese Film Festival Nippon Connection *is organized by the
80-member, largely voluntary team of the *non-profit association Nippon
Connection e.V.*  It is under the *patronage *of the Hessian State Minister
for Science and Research, Arts and Culture, Timon Gremmels, the Mayor of
the City of Frankfurt am Main, Mike Josef, and the Consulate General of
Japan in Frankfurt am Main. Since its founding in 2000, Nippon Connection
has become the world’s largest platform for Japanese cinema and the most
popular film festival in Hesse with more than 18,500 visitors in 2023.
I would be happy to see some of you at the festival!

Best regards,
Florian Höhr

-- 
Program Director

Nippon Connection
** * *
24th Japanese Film Festival
May 28 – June 2, 2024
Frankfurt am Main, Germany

Office: Nippon Connection e.V., c/o Atelierfrankfurt, Room 5.08
Schwedlerstraße 1-5, 60314 Frankfurt am Main, Germany
Mobile: +49 (0)176 630 821 77
Phone: +49 69 847 765 65, Fax: +49 69 847 765 66
Florian at NipponConnection.com
www.NipponConnection.com
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://mailman.yale.edu/pipermail/kinejapan/attachments/20240418/89969f73/attachment-0001.html>