Tokyo International Film Festival announces guests and animation list

The 39th Tokyo International Film Festival announced the Gala Selection and Animation section list.The film festival will be held from October 26 to November 4, with a total of 15 works in the Gala Selection and a total of 12 works in the animation section.The new round of announcements will include recent film festival hits, international star works, and new Japanese animation works in the same batch of programs.

The Gala Selection includes a dark comedy directed by Martin McDonagh and starring John Malkovich, Sam Rockwell and Steve Buscemi, as well as a new film by Tony Gilroy with Pedro Pascal and Olivia Wilde.New works by Christian Mungiu, Michael Showalter and Jan Schoenbrun are also on the list.

The Asian film section also occupies a prominent place.Japanese director Sabu's Taiwanese-set work stars Ethan Ruan, while Wang Ying's Tokyo feature film stars Lily Franky and Fan Bingbing.The slate also includes a new film by a Japanese director that attracted attention at Cannes, a detective film, and a Japanese animation project adapted into a feature film.

The animation unit extends from works by large Japanese studios to new overseas works.CloverWorks, Madhouse and DreamWorks Animation have projects selected.Nishigori Atsushi's original animation adopts a unit drama format, Natsume Shingo's first original feature film is produced by Madhouse, and DreamWorks Animation's new film is co-directed by Joel Crawford and Januel Mercado.

The film festival also set up a mini section of %Female Directors and Diverse Visions, which screened three works by female directors.These include Detective Conan: The Fist of Blue Sapphire, Gold Kingdom and Water Kingdom and The Rose of Versailles.

Cate Blanchett will visit Tokyo as co-founder of the Immigrant Film Fund.The festival will screen five short films supported by the fund, followed by conversations with Mohammad Rasoulof and Shahrbanu Sadat.The fund focuses on the creations and stories of displaced filmmakers, and Blanchett will introduce this work during a segment of the program.

In the same week as Blanchett's visit to Tokyo, she will also receive the Takamatsu Memorial World Cultural Award.The Japan International Arts Award annually recognizes lifetime achievement in the fields of painting, sculpture, architecture, music, and theater and film.When announcing her itinerary, she mentioned that video storytelling can allow audiences to connect with other people’s experiences.

This film festival has previously announced the opening film, center screening and closing film.With the addition of Gala Selection and animation units, the main program framework has basically taken shape.The TIFFCOM Content Market, held concurrently with the festival, will be held from October 28th to 30th.

The highlights announced by the Tokyo International Film Festival this time include 15 Gala films, 12 animation works, three works directed by women, as well as screenings of Immigration Film Fund short films and guest talks.Cate Blanchett's appearance has also been confirmed for the duration of the festival.