Special Guests

Mirai Moriyama – CUT ABOVE Award Winner
Shadow of Fire

Born in 1984, Moriyama splits his time between Kobe and Tokyo. A multifaceted artist, he is active both in Japan and internationally. From an early age, Moriyama immersed himself in various dance genres, making his stage debut in 1999. Recognized for his significant cultural contributions, he was appointed as a Cultural Ambassador by the Agency for Cultural Affairs in 2013. He then spent a year in Tel-Aviv collaborating with the Inbal Pinto and Avshalom Pollak Dance Company and has partnered with several performing arts groups across Europe. His focus is “physical expression cultivated from connections with people, objects, and places”. In the dance realm, he was honored with the 10th Japan Dance Forum Prize. On the 10th anniversary of the Great East Japan Earthquake, Moriyama directed Re: Incarnation, a dance performance presented at Kiyomizu-temple. That same year, he delivered a solo dance performance at the Tokyo Olympic Games Opening Ceremony. As an actor, Moriyama has received numerous film accolades and has appeared in films including Crying Out Love in the Center of the World, One Million Yen Girl, 20th Century Boys, Saint Young Men, Rage, Inu-Oh, and Shin Kamen Rider. He stars in both Shadow of Fire and Great Absence screening at JAPAN CUTS this year.

Tatsuya Fuji – Lifetime Achievement Award Winner
Great Absence

Born in 1941, Tatsuya Fuji is a renowned Japanese actor with a storied career spanning six decades. In 1962, Fuji’s cinematic journey began when he joined Nikkatsu, starting with minor roles before taking on lead roles. His extensive filmography includes notable entries such as Nagisa Oshima’s In the Realm of the Senses and Empire of Passion, and Kiyoshi Kurosawa’s Bright Future, the last of which saw him share the screen with talents including Tadanobu Asano and Joe Odagiri. Fuji has garnered significant recognition, with accolades including the Golden Goblet Award for Best Actor in 2005 for Village Photobook and the Tokyo Sports Film Award for Best Actor in 2015 for Ryuzo and the Seven Henchmen directed by Takeshi Kitano. Great Absence is Fuji’s second film with director Kei Chika-ura after Complicity. For his stirring performance in Great Absence, Fuji became the first Japanese actor to win the Silver Shell for Best Leading Performance at the San Sebastian International Film Festival.

“I never would have expected to be praised for my tentative steps as an actor at JAPAN CUTS, a film festival in New York! The last time I visited New York was nearly half a century ago. Back then, Nagisa Oshima’s film, In the Realm of the Senses, was invited to the New York Film Festival, but unfortunately, it couldn’t be screened due to censorship. And now, in 2024, the film I participated in, Great Absence, is being screened in New York, and they’ve even given me an award! I am overwhelmed with emotion!”
— Tatsuya Fuji

Masanori Tominaga – Opening Night Film
Between the White Key and the Black Key

Director Masanori Tominaga has created a number of diverse films throughout his career. His first feature film, The Pavillion Salamandre, was a comedy thriller starring Joe Odagiri and a giant salamander. His Pandora’s Box, based on a novel by Osamu Dazai, was a heartfelt period medical drama starring Shota Sometani. His Vengeance Can Wait, starring Tadanobu Asano, was a twisted romance. He’s further worked in documentary with The Echo of Astro Boy’s Footsteps, about the sound designer for Astro Boy anime. Between the White Key and the Black Key is his newest film, a lush and inventive story of jazz in 1980s Ginza starring Sosuke Ikematsu, Riisa Naka, Go Morita, and pop star Crystal Kay.

Tetsuya Chihara
ICE CREAM FEVER

Chihara was born in Kyoto in 1975. He is the CEO of LEMONLIFE & CO design studio and has been responsible for a wide range of designs and advertising including campaigns with H&M and Nissin Cup Noodle as well as album covers for Keisuke Kuwata, Kayoko Yoshizawa, and more. His longtime dream has been to work as a film director, and ICE CREAM FEVER is his first feature-length movie. Prior to ICE CREAM FEVER, he’s directed short films for Shibuya Fashion Week, Sakura Fujiwara, Kyary Pamyu Pamyu, and more.

Kei Chika-Ura
Great Absence

Kei Chika-ura embarked on his filmmaking career in 2013. His second short film, The Lasting Persimmon, received recognition at the 2016 Clermont-Ferrand International Short Film Festival. His third short film, Signature, was selected for numerous international festivals, including the Locarno Film Festival and the Toronto International Film Festival in 2017. In 2018, Chika-ura premiered his debut feature film, Complicity, at the Toronto International Film Festival. In addition, he showcased the film at the Busan Film Festival and the Berlin International Film Festival. Chika-ura’s second feature film, Great Absence, was shot on 35mm film and had its World Premiere at the 2023 Toronto International Film Festival. After premiering at Toronto, it screened at the San Sebastian International Film Festival and star Tatsuya Fuji won the Silver Shell for Best Leading Performance.

Gakuryu Ishii
The Box Man and August in the Water

Ishii was born in 1957. As a college student, he formed and led an independent film group called Kyoeisha and shot Panick High School on 8mm in 1978. Around this time, he began to use the name “Sogo Ishii”. 1980, his feature Crazy Thunder Road made him a spearhead of the Japanese New Wave movement and he went on to create punkish avant garde films such as Burst City and Crazy Family. Crazy Family was selected by the Berlin International Film Festival and won the Grand Prix at 8th Salso Film Festival in Italy. His Angel Dust then won the Grand Prix at the Birmingham Film Festival and Labyrinth of Dreams was invited to the Berlin International Film Festival and won the Grand Prix at the Oslo International International Film Festival. After shooting Gojoe and ELECTRIC DRAGON 80000V, he changed his name to “Gakuryu Ishii” in 2010 and since has directed numerous films, such as The Flower of Shanidar, Bitter Honey, and Punksamurai Slash Down.

Noriko Matsumoto
Bottle George

Matsumoto is a producer at dwarf studios, who helped create the short film Bottle George. Matsumoto started her career as a television commercial producer, with her works including the popular Domo-kun and Komaneko. She then joined dwarf studios, launched by Tsuneo Goda – Domo-kun’s creator. Matsumoto was one of the first producers in Japan to work with international streaming services, bringing the stop-motion techniques that dwarf is renowned for to an even wider audience. Highlights of her recent productions include the series Rilakkuma and Kaoru as well as Rilakkuma’s Theme Park Adventure. In 2023, she successfully crowdfunded the stop-motion pilot film HIDARI, and her next challenge is to turn it into a full-length feature.

Akihiro Nishino
Bottle George

Nishino is the Executive Producer of the short film Bottle George. Born in 1980 in Japan, he is a children’s book author whose works include Dr. Ink’s Starry Sky Cinema, Zip & Candy: A Robot Christmas, Music Box Planet, Poupelle of Chimney Town, Poncho of the Bookstore, Tick Tack: The Clock Tower of Promises, and Marco, all of which became bestsellers in Japan. In December 2020, Nishino made headlines as the screenwriter and executive producer of the animated film Poupelle of Chimney Town, based on his original story, which became a massive hit. The film received the Animation of the Year Award at the Japan Academy Prize, was nominated in the Feature Film category at the Annecy International Animation Film Festival, and garnered acclaim internationally. Poupelle of Chimney Town has since expanded beyond film to include musicals, kabuki, ballet, and many other activities. A Broadway play based on Poupelle of Chimney Town is currently in development.

Tomoko Tabata
Moving

Born in Kyoto Prefecture, Tabata won a number of awards for her debut film, Moving, followed by additional awards and acclaim for works including Blood and Bones and The Cowards Who Looked to the Sky. She currently acts in movies, on television, and on stage. Most recently, she appeared in a Japanese touring production of King Lear.

Shinya Tsukamoto – Centerpiece Film
Shadow of Fire

Born in Tokyo on January 1, 1960, Tsukamoto is an iconoclastic director heralded around the world. His Tetsuo: The Iron Man put him in the spotlight as a filmmaker with a unique vision and style, and he’s received many rave reviews and awards for works including Tetsuo II: The Body Hammer, Tokyo Fist, and Bullet Ballet. He further won the Jury Prize for A Snake of June at the 59th Venice International Film Festival and the New Visions Award for Vital at the 37th Sitges International Fantastic Film Festival. An ardent actor, Tsukamoto has also appeared in films from directors including Martin Scorsese, Takashi Miike and Hideaki Anno.

Kimi Yawata
Wife’s Power Outage

Yawata graduated from the Tama Art University with a major in oil painting. She works at Tohokushinsha creating commercials for clients including Shiseido and Toyota. As a writer and director, she’s previously won awards at the Short Shorts Film Festival and her films have screened in South Korea, Taiwan, Italy, Germany, New Zealand, and the Netherlands.

Noriko Yuasa
Performing KAORU’s Funeral

Born in 1976 in Okayama, Japan, Noriko Yuasa graduated from Tokyo Metropolitan University with BA in Architecture. She started working in Kinoshita Production in 1999 and then left thecompany in 2013 to work as a freelance director/producer in both television and film. In 2015, her feature film directorial debut, Wait in Udagawacho, was screened nationwide. Noriko Yuasa aims now to step up further and has since been working on the feature film Performing KAORU’s Funeral with staff from both Japan and Spain. The film was selected for the Tokyo Gap-Financing Market within TIFFCOM, a market held in conjunction with the Tokyo International Film Festival in 2020, and it was an international co-production between Japan, Spain, and Singapore. Image: © PLUG MAGAZINE.

Ema Ryan Yamazaki
The Making of a Japanese

Raised in Osaka, Japan by a Japanese mother and British father, Ema grew up navigating between Japanese and Western cultures, and she uses her unique perspective as both an insider and outsider in her storytelling. After graduating from New York University, she became the assistant to documentary mogul Sam Pollard and began her career as an editor. She was Editor and Co-Producer for director Marc Levin’s Class Divide, which won the Grand Jury Prize at DOC NYC in 2015. Ema’s first feature documentary, Monkey Business: The Adventures Of Curious George’s Creators premiered at the LA Film Festival. Ema’s second feature documentary, Koshien: Japan’s Field Of Dreams, explored the phenomenon of high school baseball in Japan and premiered at DOC NYC. The film aired in primetime on ESPN and was released theatrically in Japan. It later became a New York Times recommendation and was featured on the Criterion Channel.