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

Nippon Connection 2020- The Daily Highlights (June 14th)

On the final day of this year's festival, a hearty thank-you to all who stuck with us and helped make our digital Nippon Connection a success! Here are the final offerings from this year's online culture program. The following events can be livestreamed without pre-registration: Origami (11:30 am) Join us for our final origami stream … Continue reading Nippon Connection 2020- The Daily Highlights (June 14th)

Nippon Connection 2020- The Daily Highlights (June 13th)

It's our next-to-last day, so make the most of it by joining us for the following events! These streams can be accessed free and without registration: Origami (11:30 am) Today's origami stream starts in the morning. Japanese Radio Gymnastics (12 pm) Radio Gymnastics returns today with a 20-minute program right at noon. Perfect for between-film … Continue reading Nippon Connection 2020- The Daily Highlights (June 13th)

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

Nippon Connection and Female Filmmakers: A 2020 Look-Back

For as long as movies have existed, women have been every bit as central to the development and expansion of the medium as the many male figures that are typically regarded as the "original" (read, "only") masters of the art form. Despite this importance, gender disparity remains a massive problem in the industry to this … Continue reading Nippon Connection and Female Filmmakers: A 2020 Look-Back

Nippon Connection 2020 – The Daily Highlights (June 9th)

It is has been- pardon the understatement- a rather rough year for all of us. The global pandemic has thrown into sharp relief just how fragile so much of our world is. So many things we take for granted, that we simply assume will always be there, year after year, are not so solid after … Continue reading Nippon Connection 2020 – The Daily Highlights (June 9th)

Guest Article: Japanese Films Since 2000

By Mark Schilling The Japanese film industry never seems to change. “Production committees” – consortiums of film studios, TV networks and other media companies – make films based on hit manga, novels and TV series now, just they did in 2000 or 1980. And anime continues to regularly top the local box office, including series … Continue reading Guest Article: Japanese Films Since 2000