The Tokyo International Film Festival, whose 36th edition was held from Oct. 23 to Nov. 1, is a rare chance to see new Japanese films with English subtitles on theater screens, often with the director and main cast members present.
But for this writer, who is also a program adviser to the Udine Far East Film Festival, TIFF is also a time for interviews, seminars and meetings with sellers. So I often find myself squeezing in screenings wherever I can.
This year, I was able to see the opening and closing films — “Perfect Days” and “Godzilla Minus One,” respectively — as well as the only Japanese winner in the competition section: Yoshiyuki Kishi’s “(Ab)normal Desire,” which took both the Audience Award and the best director prize for Kishi.