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The 39th Tokyo International Film Festival opened Monday with a rain-soaked red carpet and a ceremony at Hulic Hall, where Japan’s government used the occasion to restate its goal of selling JPY20 trillion ($133 billion) worth of Japanese content overseas by 2033.
The festival received 1,892 film submissions from 112 countries and regions this year. It opened with “Sukiyaki,” which tells how the title tune was written and went on to top the U.S. Billboard chart in 1963. Director Zeze Takahisa took the stage with Okada Junichi, who plays composer Nakamura Hachidai, Matsuzaka Tori, who plays lyricist Ei Rokusuke, and Seino Nana, who plays Nakamura Junko.
Zeze said the film is set in the years after the war, as Japan entered its period of rapid economic growth, and that its founding idea is the war itself and how the characters come to think about what peace means. “Through this film, I hope this festival, too, can become a festival of peace,” he said.
Matsuzaka said the shoot began in April last year and that the film had taken a little over a year to reach audiences. “It isn’t just about enjoying the music. It’s a film where you can feel the live energy, as if you were actually in the venue,” he said.
Seino said she had watched her co-stars’ stage performances from the audience seats during filming. “Seeing everyone’s souls colliding, going beyond their roles, really moved me,” she said.
In a video message played during the ceremony, Japanese Prime Minister Takaichi Sanae said her cabinet has designated content, including film, as a strategic priority under its Japan growth strategy, with public-private domestic investment set to accelerate. To reach the 2033 target, the government plans production support for Japanese films and efforts to attract foreign location shoots.
“Film has the power to connect people’s hearts across countries and regions, and to deepen understanding of diverse cultures and values,” Takaichi said.
Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry Akazawa Ryosei said overseas sales of Japanese content have already grown to around JPY6.1 trillion ($40.7 billion), and that the government has sought roughly JPY250 billion ($1.67 billion) across ministries in its fiscal 2027 budget request to support growth investment in the content industry.
Akazawa pointed to the fifth “Kingdom” film, which made the franchise the first series in film history to see five consecutive installments pass JPY5 billion ($33 million) at the box office, with a cumulative gross above JPY30 billion ($200 million). He also noted that the festival’s Centerpiece film, “Godzilla Minus Zero,” the follow-up to Oscar visual effects winner “Godzilla Minus One,” will open worldwide next month, including in Japan, Asia and North America.
Festival director Hisamatsu Takeo, who said he is approaching 50 years in the film business, thanked guests for turning out in bad weather before declaring the festival open. “There are so many kinds of film in the world, each with its own appeal and its own way of being enjoyed,” Hisamatsu said. “Nothing would make me happier than sharing the appeal of such diverse and varied cinema with all of you and enjoying it together.”
Filmmaker Rolf de Heer, president of the competition jury, which also includes actor Watanabe Makiko, DI colorist Yov Moor and producers Oh Jungwan and Alex Lo, recalled seeing an Ozu film more than 50 years ago. “I still remember one shot, so perfect. And Oshima, and of course Kurosawa. ‘Dersu Uzala’ is in my brain,” de Heer said. “So we as the jury are very privileged to be able to work in the country of those masters.”
Actor and singer Nakajima Kento, serving as TIFF Navigator, said walking the carpet carried a special sense of occasion. “It was raining today, but I felt it was a blessing of rain that would help the future of film flourish even more,” he said.
Among those on the carpet were director Milcho Manchevski and the cast of “Sister Brother Manhole Cover,” including Sara Klimoska, on her third visit to Tokyo. Director Qiu Jiongjiong led the cast of “Fuxi: Four Tales of Feasting,” and Indonesian auteur Garin Nugroho the “Red Before Dawn” team.
Judy Ongg represented “Sunshine Women’s Choir,” a gala selection title billed by TIFF as Taiwan’s No. 1 hit. Ongg won best actress at the seventh Taiwan Film Critics Society Awards, was nominated for best supporting actress at the 28th Taipei Film Awards and is nominated in the same category at the upcoming 63rd Golden Horse Awards.
The carpet also welcomed Academy CEO Bill Kramer, Academy president Lynette Howell Taylor and chief membership, impact and industry officer Meredith Shea, who are in Tokyo for TIFF’s Academy in Tokyo program.
“This is the first time the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has participated in an international film festival. To be part of such a major platform as the Tokyo International Film Festival makes this especially meaningful, and we feel honored to be here,” Kramer said.