This just in - The 5th Annual Japanese Film Festival will launch in Dublin's Light House Cinema on 11 April, bringing the best of new Japanese cinema to audiences. Highlights from the programme will screen in Cork, Galway, Limerick and Waterford.
The Festival will this year feature 15 films, almost all of which are Irish premieres. The most acclaimed filmmakers from contemporary Japanese cinema are included in the packed programme, with a variety of themes, genres and topics to appeal to all audiences.
This year the ever-popular anime strand of the Japanese Film Festival has been expanded to meet the clear demand from audiences. Highlights include From Up On Poppy Hill, the latest from Gor? Miyazaki, son of the legendary Hayao Miyazaki. The film's gorgeous, photo-realistic approach to architecture and nature is instantly recognisable as the work of Studio Ghibli.
Wolf Children, the hugely anticipated, beautifully animated adventure from JFF favourite Mamoru Hosoda and 009 Re: Cyborg, the big screen adaptation of the much-loved, long running Japanese TV series, are presented in partnership with our friends at Scotland Loves Animation.
Venue and ticket sales information will be available at www.accesscinema.ie from Thursday 28 March
The Embassy of Japan, access>CINEMA and the Ireland Japan Association are the co-organisers of the festival, with the support of The Japan foundation.
Previous Festivals have boasted sell-out screenings in all locations, and the organisers expect this year to be no different, with a carefully selected programme designed to intrigue, educate and entertain.
The Festival includes some thought-provoking and challenging titles, aiming to foster a deeper understanding of Japanese culture and society amongst Irish citizens and to strengthen the cultural ties between the two countries. My Back Page tells the dramatic and compelling story of a young reporter caught up in the student protests in Tokyo University in the 60s. Just Pretended To Hear is the sensitive, moving story of an unlikely bond that forms between two young girls, one recently bereaved and the other a special needs student.
The Festival also caters for viewers in search of pure escapism and entertainment. Box office sensation Thermae Romae is a mad-cap time-travel comedy with a twist, whilst Ace Attorney is the latest from the dazzlingly inventive director Takashi Miike. This comic mystery caper, an adaptation of the best-selling Nintendo DS game, finds hilarity in the most unlikely of places - the courtroom.
