39th TIFF Announces Full Lineup, Including First-Ever Animated Film In Competition

The 39th edition of the Tokyo International Film Festival is fast approaching, with its opening set for October 26 (running through November 4), and earlier today, the festival announced its full lineup.

Some announcements, such as the VFX marvel Godzilla Minus Zero, were more or less expected (after all, there’s a Godzilla statue in the very plaza where the festival is based).

Others are a pleasant surprise, such as the animated film Magic Atlas playing in competition, a first for the festival. The film, by Chinese artist Sun Xun, was meticulously handcrafted over 10 years using a mix of traditional art techniques, including ink-wash painting and medieval engraving.

The animation program itself brings together favorites from across the year, including the crowdfunded anime feature Cherry & Virgin, Annecy players Iron Boy and We Are Aliens, as well as the well-loved Forgotten Island. Sonny Boy director Shingo Natsume’s hotly anticipated feature debut, Ghost – End of Night, will have its Japanese premiere. There’s also a documentary, Walking with Animators, which offers insight into the process and philosophy behind the medium, with input from various animators.

Outside of the programmed film screenings, an Animation Symposium will take place during the latter half of the festival, with sessions on November 1 and November 3. That includes a talk titled “The Thrill of Being an Animator,” featuring directors Shingo Natsume and Atsushi Nishigori (whose film Grotesqqque is also in the Animation Selection) in conversation with Alexandre Poncet, director of Walking with Animators. Directors Masanao Kawajiri (Cherry & Virgin) and Kohei Kadowaki (We Are Aliens) will discuss their inspirations in the “Creating a Cruel yet Kind World” session.

Most interesting is the “Women Directors: Diverse Visions” talk, which invites directors Chika Nagaoka (Detective Conan: The Fist of Blue Sapphire), Kotono Watanabe (Gold Kingdom and Water Kingdom), and Ai Yoshimura (The Rose of Versailles) to speak about their career paths. The festival frames the discussion around the growing number of women working as directors in the animation industry since the 2000s. Each director also has a film playing in the Animation Selection as part of special screenings accompanying the talk.

Competition

Magic Atlas, Sun Xun (China)

Animation Selection

Amadeo and the Hypothetical New World, Brenda Lígia, Edu Felistoque (Brazil)

Cherry & Virgin, Masanao Kawajiri (Japan)

Forgotten Island, Joel Crawford, Januel Mercado (USA)

Ghost – End of Night, Shingo Natsume (Japan)

Grotesqqque, Nishigori Atsushi (Japan)

Iron Boy, Louis Clichy (France, Belgium)

Son of a Bitch, Érica Maradona, Otto Guerra, Tania Anaya, Sávio Leite (Brazil)

Walking with Animators, Alexandre Poncet, Gilles Penso (France)

We Are Aliens, Kohei Kadowaki (Japan)

Women Directors: Diverse Visions

Detective Conan: The Fist of Blue Sapphire, Chika Nagaoka (Japan)

The Rose of Versailles, Ai Yoshimura (Japan)

Gold Kingdom and Water Kingdom, Kotono Watanabe (Japan)