"Aichi International Women's Film Festival" Thorough ventilation and disinfection to start the opening September 3: 4:35
With the spread of the new coronavirus, many film festivals in Japan have been forced to make major changes to their plans, such as postponement and reduction in scale.
Under such circumstances, the Aichi International Women's Film Festival, an international film festival that introduces works focusing on women, will start on the 3rd in Nagoya City after overcoming the difficulties of Corona.
The 25th Aichi International Women's Film Festival is the only international film festival in Japan that introduces works that highlight female directors and women, and is held in Nagoya for 3 to 4 days. I will.
At one point, it was dangerous to hold the event, but after reducing the number of seats to less than half of the usual seats, thoroughly ventilating and disinfecting, we screened 30 films including the ones that were unveiled in Japan as usual, and directed domestic directors. It means that we will also hold talk events that we invite.
According to the Japan Art and Culture Promotion Association, which supports domestic film festivals, most of the 27 film festivals, including the Aichi International Women's Film Festival, which decided to subsidize this March, are new models. This means that the plan is being forced to undergo major changes, such as postponement and reduction in scale due to the coronavirus.
Also, about the second half of the subsidy that decides the payment this month, about 30 applications are applied every year, but only about half of that is applied, and the promotion society said, ``Many film festivals are even planned in the first place. It may not be there."
Among the domestic film festivals, the "Ehime International Film Festival" held in Matsuyama City, etc. was postponed this year, and the "Yubari International Fantastic Film Festival 2020" held this month has been decided to be held online.
Yoshio Kakeo, a professor of Josai International University who is familiar with the movie industry, said, “Film festivals are important places where directors get the opportunity to be evaluated and lose their chances. ”
Thoughts on holding a film festival director
Junji Kizen (71), director of the Aichi International Women's Film Festival, has played a central role in selecting films to be screened since the film festival was established 24 years ago.
At that time, movie directors were still mostly men, and Kizen-san said, “I always thought that making films from the eyes of women would make the film richer. We wanted to make it a film festival that we provide and support.”
In addition to being the director of the film festival, Kizen-san has been running the long-established mini theater "Cinemascole" in Nagoya for 37 years.
This mini theater was created by director Koji Wakamatsu, who is known for his work on social themes such as violence and politics.
Mr. Kizen, who was an ardent movie fan and who also worked at the masterpiece, was asked by Director Wakamatsu to "be a manager", and since then the new coronavirus infection spread and until April The movie was shown without closing for a day.
Many of the films were self-produced films that the directors appealed to the society with their own budget despite their low budget.
Early works by directors such as Hirokazu Koreeda and Yoichi Choi, who are now active on the front lines, have been actively screened.
Kizen-san said, "I want you to bring something back after enjoying it. I think it would be better if you could see the movie and see what position you are in now." ..
I had been preparing for the festival for about a year, but I was in a difficult situation due to the spread of the new coronavirus.
Movie theaters were closed in various places, and movie festivals were forced to undergo major changes, such as postponement, reduction in scale, and online events.
However, Kizen-san decided to take sufficient measures to prevent the infection and to hold it without changing the plan drastically.
Kizen-san said, "Film festivals in various places have been canceled or switched to online. Doesn't that mean you lose the chance to go there and see them? I think the stimulus to see is quite different in the degree of stimulus it receives,” he said.
Kizen decided to reduce the number of seats to less than half of the usual one, and thoroughly ventilate and disinfect.
After that, as usual, we will screen 30 films, including the ones that have been unveiled in Japan, and invite a director to talk about their thoughts.
Kizen said, “If we don't have such a place, the cultural diversity and the chances of creating various things will be greatly reduced. Where there is no diversity, it will be very uniform. It lacks one of the pleasures of living. I think it's a great place to maintain diversity, so I think it's really necessary. As entertainment, we have a great amount of fun works, so take the first step. I hope we can step out of this film festival."
The creator who was saved by the decision to hold
Some creators were saved by the decision to hold the Aichi International Women's Film Festival.
Director Mayako Sadasue who produced a documentary "Dying Normally-Independence of Life-" in which people with severe disabilities and their families pursued the difficulty of aging in the community.
The film was first released at the film festival, and it was decided that it would be shown in Tokyo and Osaka, so director Sadasue said, ``The reason why the film festival was triggered by such a film with a very narrow screen door. I'm really grateful for it. Probably if I hadn't had the chance to do this festival, I'd bet I couldn't see the movie at all yet."