‘THE POWER OF JAPAN’S FILMS AND CULTURE IN THE MIDST OF THIS CRISIS MAKES US PROUD’ TOKYO INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL, p5
delayed: Sony Pictures’ Battle: Los Angeles was rescheduled for October, Universal’s Sanctum was pushed to the end of August and Paramount’s nuclear weapons-themed documentary Count- down To Zero will now open in October. Chinese earthquake drama Aftershock has been delayed indefinitely by dis- tributor Shochiku. Meanwhile, other titles have caught
the public mood. The King’s Speech, dis- tributed by Gaga Corporation, was in its second week of release since winning the best picture Academy Award when the earthquake struck, and saw a 72% drop. However, it has since become a crowd favourite, earning more than $16m. “I believe the motivation to go and see fi lms is getting stronger,” says Yuka Hoshino, board member and head of marketing at Gaga, and a Cannes fi x- ture. “Especially a fi lm like The King’s Speech, which can give people courage to overcome diffi culties.” Distributor-producer Asmik Ace, in
Cannes this year for acquisitions, is another company which believes strongly in the need for entertainment in diffi cult times. CEO Masao Teshima says the company will be strengthening its focus on entertainment for the
‘We are reconsidering some darker- themed projects in development in favour of
lighter subjects’ Masao Teshima, Asmik Ace
remainder of 2011. “All of our releases this year will go ahead as scheduled. But we’re reconsidering some of the darker-themed projects in development in favour of lighter subjects,” Teshima explains. “As a provider of entertain- ment, we sincerely hope our movies can bring some joy to people.” As well as its effects on distribution
and exhibition, the disaster has affected production. Takeshi Kitano’s sequel to Cannes 2010 competition title Outrage was postponed in the wake of the earthquake at the director’s request. Shochiku studios’ Tokyo Family (Tokyo Kazoku), an homage to Yasujiro Ozu’s Tokyo Story, was to go before cameras on April 1. Director Yoji Yamada will rewrite the screen- play to refl ect the disas- ter, with the shoot rescheduled for next spring. Meanwhile, 20th Century Fox’s The Wolverine cancelled plans to shoot in Japan. As the country comes to terms
Nobushige Toshima, secretary general of Japan’s leading fi lm festival, talks to Jason Gray about plans for the event, scheduled to run October 22-30
LOOK AHEAD: TOKYO INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL Q Will the Tokyo International Film Festival
(TIFF) go ahead as planned in the wake of
the disaster? The disaster recovery effort should be quite far along by the arrival of the 24th edition of TIFF in late October. Additionally, there’s much less demand for electricity at that time of year. It’s diffi cult to predict the Fukushima nuclear reactor situation right now but we believe it’ll take a turn for the better. For these reasons we are confi dent we’ll be
able to run the festival as usual. Nonetheless, it will be necessary to conduct TIFF in a way that’s acceptable to everyone, so we’re considering the situation now. It’s unlikely to be exactly the same as past years.
Q There is a good deal of restraint in the Japanese entertainment industry now.
Where does TIFF stand as Japan’s largest fi lm festival? Cinema is a fantastic form of art and culture that by its nature can inspire dreams, hope and courage. Festivals play the role of enriching the lives of
audiences by introducing these incredible fi lms gathered from around the world. By presenting TIFF to the best of our ability
and following its original schedule, we believe we can contribute to Japan’s recovery. Make no mistake, Tokyo and Japan will be the vibrant place it’s always been by the time TIFF arrives in October. Full recovery of devastated areas will take several years but the people of Japan will never give up.
Q With many foreigners having left Japan and far fewer travelling to the country, is
TIFF concerned about securing overseas guests and journalists? The survivors of the earthquake and tsunami are beginning to recover but the situation is ongoing. Nonetheless, the TIFF staff are working away as usual to launch TIFF this October, which is something we’re planning to formally announce. Invitations will be carried out in the next phase. We’d love to invite guests while keeping a close eye on circumstances. At that time, we’ll offer guests accurate information and make formal invitations.
Nobushige Toshima Q What areas of TIFF can we expect to change this year?
We aim to continue securing the same level of high-quality fi lms that we did last year. We’re also mounting a Japanese classics programme for the fi rst time in three years (see p9). And we’re considering how to make our 3D screenings even more effective.
May 2011 Screen International 3 n
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with the disaster, self-restraint in the entertainment world is also prevalent — particularly in television. Nikkatsu studios celebrates its 100th anniversary in 2012. Publicity for such watersheds usually ramps up in the year prior but Nikkatsu, like many companies, needs to be considerate of overly celebratory displays. However, the studio may announce its plans during Cannes. Japan’s major industry associations
The King’s Speech: has caught the public mood in Japan
were scheduled to meet in late April to take stock of all of these areas. The Motion Picture Association, made up of Hollywood majors, the Motion Picture Producers Association of Japan, the Foreign Film Importer-Distrib- utors Association of Japan and the Japan Association of Theatre Own- ers will discuss what needs to be done to ensure the health of the movie busi- ness as Japan bravely recov- ers.
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