JAPANESE CINEMA - The Japanese Film Festival 2022 will open in HCM City on October 21 with the screening of animated children’s fantasy film Poupelle of Chimney Town directed by Yusuke Hirota. Photo courtesy of the Japan Foundation

HCM CITY — The Japanese Film Festival 2022, the most anticipated special film event of the year, will take place in HCM City from October 21-30.

The screening will feature eight animated, drama and sports movies which were produced and released in Japan in the last two years.

The films depict colorful lives through the unique view of Japanese filmmakers, conveying deep human values.

The festival will open with the animated children’s fantasy film Poupelle of Chimney Town directed by Yusuke Hirota.

The film is based on a picture book authored by Japanese actor and comedian Akihiro Nishino.

It tells the story of young Lubicchi living among the thick smoke from the chimneys of his isolated town, yearning to see the “stars”. One Halloween night, he meets Poupelle, a man made of garbage, and together they look to the sky as their adventure begins.

The work, produced at Tokyo's famed Studio4ºC, premiered worldwide in 2021.

The screening will include two other animated films, Blue Thermal directed by Masaki Tachibana and Inu-Oh by Masaaki Yuasa.

The festival will also feature dramas Anime Supremacy! by director Kohei Yoshino, And So The Baton Is Passed by Tetsu Maeda, In The Wake by Takahisa Zeze, Intolerance by Yoshida Keisuke, and sports movie Blue by Yoshida Keisuke.

All films will be shown with Vietnamese and English subtitles.

The festival, organised by the Japan Foundation Centre for Cultural Exchange in Việt Nam (The Japan Foundation), will be held at Cinestars, 135 Hai Bà Trưng Street in District 1. Tickets are available at the venue’s box office.

The film will later be shown in Hải Phòng City from November 4 – 6, Hà Nội from November 11 – 20, and Đà Nẵng from November 25-27.

More information on the film schedule can be seen at https://jpf.org.vn/events/lien-hoan-phim-nhat-ban-2022-tai-tp-ho-chi-minh-hai-phong-ha-noi-da-nang. — VNS