“An enthralling audiovisual experience and a powerful critique of the Japanese political system.”
Oct 9, 2021 • Subscribe
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Short Movie Time: Honeymoon (2021) review [Japan Cuts 2021]
“A pleasing narrative about the arbitrariness of language and culture.”
Short Movie Time: Born Pisces (2020) review [Japan Cuts 2021]
“Yamanaka does not only reaffirm that she has talent but also that she improved her compositional style and her storytelling.”
Short Movie Time: Nezumikozō Jirokichi (2023) review [Japan Cuts 2024]
The mix of elements supports the film’s aim well, that is to entice spectators to seek out the three films that remain from this somewhat forgotten master
Short Movie Time: Social Circles (2023) review [Japan Cuts 2024]
A highly experimental and conceptual experience that might not be for everyone
Short Movie Time: Hail Mary (2023) review [Japan Cuts 2024]
Nakamura succeeds in making the spectator care for Maria and impact him/her emotionally with her tragedy.
Short Movie Time: Bottle George (2024) [Japan Cuts 2024]
An instant stop-motion classic
Short Movie Time: Bath House of Whales (2019) review [Japan Cuts 2020]
Introduction Mizuki Kiyama’s graduation short film Bath House of Whales is a creative reworking of her memories of accompanying her mother, a person of Korean descent living in…
Short Movie time: Psychology counsellor (2021)
“A thrilling masterpiece.”
Mari and Mari (2021) review [Japan Cuts 2021]
“A beautiful narrative that seems to bear no relation to our romantic life at first, but ultimately hits close to home.”
Spaghetti Code Love (2021) review [Japan Cuts 2021]
“Maruyama’s narrative speaks powerfully to the spectator’s subjectivity – his fears and hopes – and enables his evocation of a glimmer of hope that remains present in this…
Short Movie time: Canary (2023) review
Taka Jeremy Tsubota confirms his talent as director.
Short movie time: Reason To Oblivion (2021) review [JFFH 2022]
A pleasant horror short-narrative that showcases Miyahara’s talent.
Short movie time: North Shinjuku 2055 (2021) review [OAFF 2022]
“A pleasant experimental short.”
Short Movie Time: The Fish With One Sleeve (2021) review
“Tokaibayashi Tsuyoshi delivers an important narrative that reveals how a societal system, which struggles with the newly-posed riddle of gender, problematizes the integration of the transgen…
Short Movie Time: Sad Girl (2021) [JFFH 2023]
A pleasant comical romance narrative.
Kiba: Fangs of Fiction (2021) review [Japan Cuts 2021]
“Daihachi Yoshida succeeds in turning Shiota’s interesting story and fascinating world of publishing and bookstores into an engaging and pleasant filmic narrative.”
Short movie time: Norioka Workshop (2022) review
A great short film that illustrates the necessity as well as the inherent danger of the imaginary dimension in social interactions.
Short Movie Time: Kaiju Girl (2022) review
A pleasant short about the need to find a desire to be able to give direction to one’s subject.
Talking The Pictures (2019) review [Japan Cuts 2021]
“Mayayuki’s celebration of cinematic history deeply satisfies the spectator’s desire to see cinema as an experience that can touch our being and the art of the benshi triumph.R…
Hiroku The Goblin (1991) review [Japan Cuts 2021]
‘A classic that offers an unforgettable experience that is as touchingly lighthearted as is it disturbingly horrifying.’
Town Without Sea (2020) review [Japan Cuts 2021]
“A visually engaging narrative about the nature of happiness and the importance of desire that is highly relevant for Japanese youth.”
Short Movie Time: Transmission (2019)
A short experiment that succeeds in engaging the spectator and keep him on the edge of his seat until the very end.
Short Movie Time: Yamome (2018)
A pleasant short film that highlights that deception in romance finds its ultimate support in the subject’s desire to be loved.
Short movie Time: Nowhere To Go But Everywhere (2022) [IFFR 2022]
“An incredible short that explores the subjective impact of the lack of materiality (i.e. bones) on the process of mourning in a very intimate way.”
The Great Yokai War – Guardians (2021) review [Japan Cuts 2021]
“A pleasant and truly satisfying ride for the whole family.”
Robinson’s Garden (1988) [Japan Cuts 2021]
“Yamamoto is not able to create a composition that engages the spectator with its highly relevant message.”
Short Movie Time: Outsourcing (2022) review [OAFF 2022]
“A very satisfying satirical short thta shows that, within the job-seeking process, only the image matters.”
The Goldfish Dreaming Of The Sea (2021) review [Japan Cuts 2021]
“Ogawa’s thoughtful lyricism that gives the emotionality of the performances their power to touch the spectator and enables her exploration of the difficulty to separate from one’s mother…
Short Movie Time: Two Of Us (2019) [Female Gaze – Japan Society]
Negishi proves that she is ready to tackle the daunting task of making a feature film.
Short Movie Time: Bagmati River (2022) review [OAFF 2022]
“A beautiful poetic short that elegantly plays with the contrast between life and death.”
Short Movie Time: Necessary & unnecessary (2022) review [JFFH 2023]
A quirky little narrative that explores the necessity of forming inter-subjective social bonds.
Short Movie Time: Perfect・Nervous (2024) review [OAFF 2024]
An exquisitely crafted narrative that touchingly shows that a simple encounter, a simple exchange of signifiers, can turn a wish to die into a desire to life.
Short Movie Time: Long-Term Coffee Break (2022) [Female Gaze – Japan Society]
Fuelled by great performances and a visually pleasant composition, Fujita confronts the spectator with the subjective weight of a symbolic commitment and the phantasmatic nature of marital harmony.
Short Movie Time: Kyonetsu (2017) [JFFH 2020]
An impressive narrative that, due to its short runtime, leaves the spectator wanting more.
Short Movie Time: Kanro (2023) [OAFF 2023]
A simple but effective short that explores inter-subjective distance and the desire to bridge it in a surprising and satisfying way.
Short Movie Time: Glitch (2022) [JFFH 2023]
A pleasant horror-action that beautifully shows that what can poison the subject is the Other he is subjected to.
Plastic (2023) review [Japan Cuts 2023]
Miyazaki creates a moody narrative that highlights the equivocal functionality of music for the subject as well as the destructive impact of not being able to create an…
Winny (2023) review [Japan Cuts 2023]
Matsumoto offers a serene insight in how the Other of the law curtails a subject and, indirectly, sabotages the prospects of a new industry.
Kubi (2023) review [Japan Cuts 2024]
One of best period dramas in recent years.
Amiko (2022) review [Japan Cuts 2023]
A fabulous narrative that explores the destructive effects caused by the radical misunderstanding that marks the field of speech and the refusal to speak to one’s child as…
Hand (2022) review [Japan Cuts 2023]
Matsui avoids delivering an exploitative erotic piece merely to be enjoyed by male audiences.
Single8 (2023) review [Japan Cuts 2023]
Konaka offers the spectator a heartwarming invitation to re-find, within oneself, one’s (nearly extinguished) passion for creation.
Japan Cuts Announces Lineup for 2021 Hybrid Edition
In-person & online Aug. 20 – Sept. 2
Short movie Time: The Stolen Ocean (2022) review [JFFH 2022]
Noaya Asanuma proves that he has a creative voice worth listening too.
Short Movie Time: How Beautiful Japanese Morning Is (2011) review
By relying on silence to emphasize his elegantly created visual association, Suita succeeds in delivering a quite ironic exploration of the beauty of a Japanese morning.
Short Movie Time: On a Boat (2024) review [OAFF 2024]
The exploration of the frail stability of an obsessional neurotic does not miss its impact on the spectator.
Short movie time: Laundromat on the Corner (2020)
“A very pleasant horror-romance short narrative.”
Short Movie Time: TOMA #2 (2023) [OAFF 2023]
A touching narrative that explores the difficulty for the subject to give the Othering effect of dementia on a family member a place
Short Movie Time: Detouring Blue (2023) (OAFF 2023)
A highly recommended short that touchingly shows that what dooms the subject to the de-subjectifying effect of the societal Other or to the birth of a subjective deadlock…
Short Movie Time: Ririka of the Star (2024) review [OAFF 2024]
A narrative that does not merely emphasize the beauty of moving female body, but reveals that such beauty can change subjects.