NEWSWORTHY
Embracing difference, 'Shakespeare in Tokyo' is the picture of inclusion
The scene: Tokyo. The plot: An Australian fan of Shakespeare with Down syndrome sets out on a solo adventure to escape the watchful eyes of his domineering older brother and discover the city. "Shakespeare in Tokyo" is the latest film by Australian director Genevieve Clay-Smith, ...
Four female directors extol the virtues of short films in presenting new points of view
The red carpet at any film festival is known for star power and fashion, but when 82 women walked arm in arm down the red carpet at Cannes last month, it became a place for politics, too. The march highlighted the lack of women represented ...
Short Shorts festival entries give Japan a starring role
From "You Only Live Twice" (1967) to "Black Rain" (1989) and "Lost in Translation" (2003), directors who choose Japan as a filming location are often well-rewarded with beautiful backdrops. The local flavor that works its way into a movie can sometimes be as important ...
From its debut in 1999 as the passion project of actor Tetsuya Bessho, Short Shorts Film Festival & Asia has grown into a big event on the local and regional film calendar. Size is one reason: The 19th edition, which unspools from June 1 ...
Keeping it real: Naomi Kawase on filmmaking
Naomi Kawase has always been an outlier in the Japanese film world, if a very successful one. Born and raised in Nara Prefecture, the site of Japan's ancient capital, she started making documentaries while a student at the Osaka School of Photography in the ...
Short Shorts Film Festival & Asia casts Tokyo in a special role
Now in its 18th edition, the Short Shorts Film Festival & Asia, which will unspool from June 2 to 26 at six venues in Tokyo and Yokohama, has grown into a world-class showcase for short-form cinema. In addition to competitions in seven categories, the festival ...
The must-see list is long at Short Shorts film fest
When it comes to getting a movie fix these days, more people opt for their computer screens than venturing outside to a theater. Hollywood has countered this trend with a slew of 3-D blockbusters and cinematic largesse, but how does the short film fare? Some ...
Short Shorts Film Festival & Asia searches for that 1-in-5,000 movie
Short Shorts Film Festival & Asia director Seigo Tono has been with the event since its second edition in 2000, when it was called the American Short Shorts Film Festival and showed only U.S. films. Since then it has evolved into what Tono describes ...
Short-film festival offers flicks for free
Short films are today both everywhere but nowhere, even for many who consider themselves film fans. With digital cameras and other filmmaking gear becoming ever more affordable, the number of short films in every genre is exploding. But little of this huge output plays at ...
Size doesn't matter: Short Shorts Film Festival & Asia celebrates 15 years
The short film gave birth to the cinema — the first narrative film, "The Great Train Robbery" (1903), is all of 11 minutes long, but the format is now in the shadow of the full-length feature.
Director Yukinori Makabe has high hopes for his 'Tokyo Sky Story' at film festival
A staffer of the Robot production house, where he has worked as an assistant director on entries in the hit "Always" and "Odoru Daisosasen (Bayside Shakedown)" series, 29-year-old Yukinori Makabe has also directed award-winning short films, including "The Sun and the Moon," which ...
