The Japan Foundation Touring Film UK Programme 2017 Details

Date: 2017 January 09 16:53

Posted by Joe

The good folks from the Japan Foundation in London have sent us details of their up coming Japan Foundation Touring Film Programme. The film programme will tour 15 cities around the UK. It starts at the ICA in London on Friday 3rd February 2017.

Anime fans will want to catch A Silent Voice at the ICA on Sunday 5th February 2017. If you haven't seen it already, it's one of those films you should try to enjoy in a cinema!

The tour will be showcasing a selection of films old and new! As always with screenings like this, we advise booking early to avoid disappointment.

Full Story

Press release as follows:

PRESS RELEASE
January 9, 2017
For Immediate Release

The Japan Foundation presents:

The Japan Foundation Touring Film Programme 2017
Odd Obsessions: Desires, Hopes and Impulses in Japanese Cinema
Experience Japan through Cinema

3 February – 29 March 2017, nationwide
3 February – 9 February 2017 at ICA, London

The Japan Foundation Touring Film Programme, the largest programme focusing on Japanese cinema in the UK returns in 2017, touring to 15 cities nationwide.

Taking inspiration from Charlie Chaplin’s famous quote "Life is a desire, not a meaning", the programme features an all-encompassing introduction to Japanese cinema through the prism of "desires, hopes and impulses".

From the newly released work, The Mohican Comes Home (2016) by Shuichi Okita to classic example Flora on the Sand (1964) by Ko Nakahira, this year’s programme spans a myriad of genres to present the multiplicity of "wanting" in all its guises and explore a theme that is both prevalent and universal.

Also showcasing younger Japanese filmmakers’ talents as well as a popular anime and rare documentary, the Japan Foundation Touring Film Programme 2017 promises to not only capture trends in Japanese cinema but also provide a vivid insight into what drives human action.

Programme for screenings at ICA, London:

Pale Moon (Kami no tsuki)
Daihachi Yoshida, 2014
3 Feb 2017
6.30pm
Ordinary housewife and bank employee Rika (Rie Miyazawa) turns to a life of crime by embezzling money from clients’ accounts in order to please her young lover. A mischievous dark drama adapted from the bestselling novel by Mitsuyo Kakuta.

Destruction Babies (Destruction Babies)
Tetsuya Mariko, 2016
3 Feb 2017
8.55pm
Delinquent runaway Taira (Yuya Yagira, Nobody Knows) aimlessly roams the streets picking fights with random bystanders. Rallied on by a high schooler, Taira’s street-side scuffles soon turn into a sinister game. Tetsuya Mariko won the Prize for the Best Emerging Director, Locarno International Film Festival for this debut work.

Lady Maiko (Maiko wa redii)
Masayuki Suo, 2014
4 Feb 2017
1.00pm
A My Fair Lady-esque musical directed by Masayuki Suo (Shall We Dance?) capturing the aspirations and struggles of naïve country bumpkin Haruko who strives to become a maiko (apprentice geisha) in Kyoto.

Flying Colours (Birigyaru)
Nobuhiro Doi, 2015
4 Feb 2017
3.35pm
Bottom-of-the-class Sayaka enrols in a cram school to improve her grades but soon sets her sights on passing the entrance exam for Japan’s prestigious Keio University. Based on a nonfiction bestseller, this film depicts Japan’s highly competitive and demanding university entrance exams.

The Mohican Comes Home (Mohikan kokyo ni kaeru)
Shuichi Okita, 2016
4 Feb 2017
6.00pm
Deadbeat rocker Eikichi (Ryuhei Matsuda) returns to his home on a remote island with news that his girlfriend Yuka (Atsuko Maeda) is pregnant. Shortly after, Eikichi’s old-school father becomes bedridden and it is up to helpless Eikichi to make his father happy.

Odd Obsession (Kagi)
Kon Ichikawa, 1959
4 Feb 2017
8.45pm
Winner of the Cannes Special Jury Prize in 1960, this darkly comic drama follows an elderly man with a decreased libido who attempts to sexually satisfy his captivating, younger wife. Based on Junichiro Tanizaki’s sensual and controversial 1956 novel Kagi ("The Key").

A Sparkle of Life (San san)
Bunji Sotoyama, 2013
5 Feb 2017
1.00pm
Tae, a 77-year-old widow, signs up with a matchmaking service in pursuit of a last chance at love in this romantic comedy, following one pensioner’s attempt to inject a ‘spark’ into her life. A film exploring the hopes and dreams of Japan’s aging population.

A Silent Voice (Koe no katachi)
Naoko Yamada, 2016
5 Feb 2017
2.40pm
An emotional and beautifully animated film following young Shoya, a boy tormented by his past bullying of deaf classmate Shoko. Shoya decides he must see Shoko once more to atone for his sins, but is it already too late?

Pieta in the Toilet (Toire no Pieta)
Daishi Matsunaga, 2015
5 Feb 2017
5.10pm
Young failed painter Hiroshi falls into the depths of despair when he discovers he is incurably ill. One day he meets a teenage girl whose strong will in life gradually sheds light on his own. Inspired by the ‘God of Manga’ Osamu Tezuka’s last diary entry.

Kabukicho Love Hotel (Sayonara Kabukicho)
Ryuichi Hiroki, 2014
5 Feb 2017
7.50pm
A love hotel in Kabukicho, Tokyo’s well-known entertainment district conveniently conceals people with problems; a cleaner who lives with a criminal at large, a pimp and a girl who has run away from home. An ordinary day begins at this extraordinary hotel...

A Sparkle of Life (San san)
Bunji Sotoyama, 2013
7 Feb 2017
2.00pm
Tae, a 77-year-old widow, signs up with a matchmaking service in pursuit of a last chance at love in this romantic comedy, following one pensioner’s attempt to inject a ‘spark’ into her life. A film exploring the hopes and dreams of Japan’s aging population.

A Stitch of Life (Tsukuroi tatsu hito)
Yukiko Mishima, 2015
7 Feb 2017
6.00pm
Following in her grandmother’s footsteps, dressmaker Ichie (Miki Nakatani) tailor-makes clothes for each client using an old sewing machine. One day, a department store asks to turn her clothing into a brand – will Ichie succumb to this big offer?

The Mohican Comes Home (Mohikan kokyo ni kaeru)
Shuichi Okita, 2016
7 Feb 2017
8.00pm
Deadbeat rocker Eikichi (Ryuhei Matsuda) returns to his home on a remote island with news that his girlfriend Yuka (Atsuko Maeda) is pregnant. Shortly after, Eikichi’s old-school father becomes bedridden and it is up to helpless Eikichi to make his father happy.

Flora on the Sand (Suna no ue no shokubutsugun)
Ko Nakahira, 1964
8 Feb 2017
8.45pm
An innovative and erotically charged drama about Ichiro, a man who stumbles into an unsettling affair with a young woman, Akiko, and her sister. Based on a novel by Junnosuke Yoshiyuki, the film foreshadows Nikkatsu’s lucrative ‘Roman Porno’ genre.

Tsukiji Wonderland (Tsukiji wandarando)
Naotaro Endo, 2016
9 Feb 2017
6.30pm
Discover the wonderland of the world’s largest fish market at the heart of Japanese cuisine for over 80 years. A documentary capturing the pride and determination of the people working at Tsukiji prior to its planned closure.

Someone’s Xylophone (Dareka no mokkin)
Yoichi Higashi, 2016
9 Feb 2017
8.40pm
Seemingly happy middle-aged housewife Sayoko becomes hopelessly infatuated with her young hairdresser Kaito, an interest which quickly becomes unhealthy. This latest film by legendary director Yoichi Higashi delves deep into the mind of an ordinary woman who acts upon her hidden desires.

The Japan Foundation Touring Film Programme is produced and organised by the Japan Foundation.

Supported by the Great Britain Sasakawa Foundation, Japan Airlines, the Japan Centre, Sake Samurai and Kyoto Convention & Visitors Bureau

Listings information:

The Japan Foundation Touring Film Programme 2017
Odd Obsessions: Desires, Hopes and Impulses in Japanese Cinema

3 February – 9 February 2017 at ICA, London
3 February – 29 March 2017, nationwide

Touring programme information:

Following the programme at the ICA, the season will tour to a further 14 venues nationwide until late March 2017. This year’s participating venues are:

3 – 9 February
ICA, London
Box office: 020 7930 3647
www.ica.org.uk
The Mall, London, SW1Y 5AH

4 – 20 February*
Watershed, Bristol
Box office: 0117 927 5100
www.watershed.co.uk
1 Canon's Road, Harbourside, Bristol, BS1 5TX

5 February – 1 March*
HOME, Manchester
Box office: 0161 200 1500
homemcr.org
2 Tony Wilson Place, Manchester, M15 4FN

5 February – 26 March*
Queen’s Film Theatre, Belfast
www.queensfilmtheatre.com
20 University Square, Belfast, BT7 1PA

7 February – 27 March*
Showroom Cinema, Sheffield
Box office: 0114 275 7727
www.showroomworkstation.org.uk
Paternoster Row, Sheffield, S1 2BX

8 February – 29 March*
Exeter Phoenix, Exeter
Box office: 01392 667080
www.exeterphoenix.org.uk
Bradninch Place, Gandy Street, Exeter, EX4 3LS

10 – 12 February
QUAD, Derby
Box office: 01332 290606
www.derbyquad.co.uk
The Market Place, The Cathedral Quarter, Derby, DE1 3AS

10 February – 28 March*
mac birmingham, Birmingham
Box office: 0121 446 3232
macbirmingham.co.uk
Cannon Hill Park, Birmingham, West Midlands B12 9QH

11 February – 29 March*
Phoenix, Leicester
www.phoenix.org.uk
0116 242 2800
4 Midland Street, Leicester, LE1 1TG

15 February – 11 March*
Eden Court, Inverness
Box office: 01463 234 234
www.eden-court.co.uk
Eden Court, Bishops Road, Inverness, IV3 5SA

19 – 23 February
Macrobert Arts Centre, Stirling
Box office: 01786 466666
macrobertartscentre.org
University of Stirling, Stirling FK9 4LA

25 February – 1 March
Dundee Contemporary Arts
Box office: 01382 909900
www.dca.org.uk
152 Nethergate, Dundee, DD1 4DY

10 – 16 March
The Brewery Arts Centre Cinema, Kendal
Box office: 01539 725133
www.breweryarts.co.uk
122a Highgate, Kendal, Cumbria, LA9 4HE

17 – 23 March
Broadway, Nottingham
Box office: 0115 952 6611
www.broadway.org.uk
14-18 Broad Street, Nottingham, NG1 3AL

20 – 29 March*
Filmhouse, Edinburgh
Box office: 0131 228 2688
www.filmhousecinema.com
88 Lothian Road, Edinburgh, EH3 9BZ

* Screening dates vary; please see your local venue for specific line-up information.

About the Japan Foundation
The Japan Foundation was established in 1972 by the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and became an Independent Administrative Institution in 2003. The organisation promotes international cultural exchange between Japan and the rest of the world by organising projects as well as providing financial support through grant programmes in the fields of Arts and Culture, Japanese language and Japanese studies. The Japan Foundation currently has its Head Office in Tokyo, with offices and centres in over 20 countries outside of Japan. The Japan Foundation London is the Foundation’s only office in the UK, and one of the first overseas offices to be established, opening in 1972.
www.jpf.go.jp (Head Office), www.jpf.org.uk (London)

About the Japan Foundation Touring Film Programme
The Japan Foundation Touring Film Programme is the only Japanese film programme which tours to London and venues across the UK, presenting the best selection of Japanese cinema to regional audiences. Since 2004, the Japan Foundation has put together films under a carefully chosen theme to highlight trends in Japanese cinema, and showcased, in close partnership with distinguished film venues such as the ICA, some of the finest Japanese films in order to introduce their versatility and uniqueness. Most of films selected for the Japan Foundation Touring Programme have slipped under the radar of other film festivals or programmes despite their quality, or have previously only received one-off screenings in the UK. Now in its 14th year, the Japan Foundation Touring Film Programme has gone from strength to strength, consistently delivering a stimulating and inspiring programme. For details please visit: www.jpf-film.org.uk