Guest Article: Nippon Connection, Midnight Eye, and the Millennial Synergy

By Tom Mes Nippon Connection is twenty years old. A very symbolic age, because in Japan it’s when you’re considered to be an adult. So it’s paradoxically suitable that the festival is marking this milestone by essentially returning to its humble beginnings: in the unprecedented shape of an online film festival, where everything is new, … Continue reading Guest Article: Nippon Connection, Midnight Eye, and the Millennial Synergy

Guest in Focus: Yukiko MISHIMA

Yukiko MISHIMA, director of Shape of Red, was born in Osaka in 1969. After graduating from Kobe College, she worked at the TV broadcasting station NHK before completing her first cinema feature, SHISEI: LIKE A SMELLING MOON, in 2009. Since then, she has worked as a director and script writer for cinema as well as … Continue reading Guest in Focus: Yukiko MISHIMA

Guest Article: History of Nippon Connection

By Alex Zahlten Nippon Connection has a difficult relationship with anniversaries. During the 10-year anniversary festival in 2010, a volcanic eruption in Eyjafjallajökull, Iceland, led to a gigantic ash cloud and the closure of European airspace, stranding over two dozen Japanese filmmakers in Frankfurt for over a week after the festival had ended. This year … Continue reading Guest Article: History of Nippon Connection

Guest in Focus: Akiko OKU

Akiko OKU, director of My Sweet Grappa Remedies, born in Yokohama in 1968, studied at Meiji University and at the Film School of Tokyo. Initially working in television, she directed her debut feature IGAITO SHINANAI in 1999. After that, she completed six other feature films, including TOKYO SERENDIPITY in 2007, MONSTER in 2013, and FANTASTIC … Continue reading Guest in Focus: Akiko OKU

Guest in Focus: Nanako HIROSE

Nanako HIROSE, director of BOOK-PAPER-SCISSORS, was born in Kanagawa Prefecture in 1987 and studied at Musashino Art University. She has been working for Hirokazu KOREEDA’s production company Bunbuku since 2011, starting out as an assistant on his films, as well as an assistant director to Miwa NISHIKAWA. In 2019, she gave her debut as a … Continue reading Guest in Focus: Nanako HIROSE

Guest in Focus: Teppei ISOBE

Teppei ISOBE was born in Osaka in 1978. After graduating from Visual Arts College Osaka, he worked on music videos and commercials as a freelancer. In 2016, he began directing independent short films. For WHO KNOWS ABOUT MY LIFE (2018 / NC ’19), he won the award for best short film at SKIP CITY INTERNATIONAL … Continue reading Guest in Focus: Teppei ISOBE

Guest in Focus: Kaori SAKAGAMI

Kaori SAKAGAMI, director of PRISON CIRCLE, born in Osaka in 1965, studied at the University of Pittsburgh. After returning to Japan, she started working as a director for numerous TV documentaries. Since 2001, she has been a Visiting Associate Professor at Hitotsubashi University. Her first feature length documentary LIFERS: REACHING FOR LIFE BEYOND THE WALLS … Continue reading Guest in Focus: Kaori SAKAGAMI

Guest in Focus: Naomi MIZOGUCHI

Naomi MIZOGUCHI, born in Hyogo Prefecture, worked at a film production company in Japan before becoming a freelance filmmaker in 1995 and moving to New York in 2004 to study community media. In 2008, she co-established the non-profit-organization Cineminga, shooting a number of films with the active cooperation of indigenous people in South America and … Continue reading Guest in Focus: Naomi MIZOGUCHI

Guest in Focus: Miwa YOSHIMINE

Miwa YOSHIMINE was born in 1967. Since 1991, she has worked as a freelancer for commercial broadcasting programs and NHK documentaries. THIS PLANET IS NOT MY PLANET (2019 / NC ’20) is her first feature-length documentary. We are very glad she took the time to answer our questions for our Guest in Focus series. When and how … Continue reading Guest in Focus: Miwa YOSHIMINE

Guest in Focus: Chihiro AMANO

Chihiro AMANO, director of MRS. NOISY, was born in Aichi Prefecture in 1982. After working at an office for five years, she turned to film and directed several short films that were screened at PIA Film Festival and at Yubari International Fantastic Film Festival, among others. Her feature film debut was the manga adaptation NO … Continue reading Guest in Focus: Chihiro AMANO