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Frankly speaking, for someone born in the 1930s, it was a daunting task to see if this year's film and art festival could be held in the midst of the coronavirus outbreak. However, in any case, we are glad that we were able to hold the film and art festival online adapting to the current situation.
Greetings from Director
I'm sure there are still roads that have not been fully explored, but I hope that the wisdom and effort of the young people will be fully demonstrated and that the festival will be even more enjoyable. To give an example of how this can happen, Kyoto is an important cradle of Japanese cinema, and it would be great if we can convey the fact that a large number of high quality films have been created here.
Either way, it's a blessing in disguise. Maybe a new kind of film festival will emerge from this COVID-19 outbreak.
Sadao Nakajima
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The coronavirus has had a major impact all over the globe.
Greetings from the 2020 Kyoto International Film and Art Festival
The Yamahoko Junko Procession in the Gion Festival, which began 1151 years ago in the hopes of eradicating the plague, has now been cancelled in order to prevent COVID-19 clusters.
However, the religious services were carried out.
In the Gozan no Okuribi fire ceremony, only 6 torches were used to create the 大 (dai meaning large) character and only 1 torch was used for the 妙 and 法 (myoho meaning great ritual) characters and others.
However, there was still a significance in carrying out this ceremony.
I viewed it from Demachiyanagi.
“Film, Art and All the Other Things.”
The Kyoto International Film and Art Festival will follow this example and do the best we can.
A city with a thousand years of culture, which continues to give birth to movies, games, anime, and pop culture.
Kyoto continues to compete for the top spot in the world in terms of tourism popularity and is home to the Agency for Cultural Affairs.
Everyone who loves Kyoto is connected while enjoying and creating "all things".
This is an attempt at an online film festival, or rather, an attempt to take advantage of the online presence and send our message out to the world.
Let’s create a road map for the Reiwa Era after this coronavirus outbreak!
Kind regards.Ichiya Nakamura
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This year, a major star of the film industry has left us. Director Nobuhiko Obayashi passed away on April 10th, the day his film “Labyrinth of Cinema” was originally scheduled for release. His shining light still lives on in this film.
A message from
The last conversation I had with the director was at the end of last year.
I told him that I would be doing a special feature on him at next year's Kyoto International Film and Art Festival, to which he replied, "Thank you, I'll be fine by then."
The New Year began, and the world was soon impacted all over by the novel coronavirus.
I was deprived of the opportunity to meet up with him. I was only able to see him again on April 11, when he was resting peacefully.
His wife, Kyoko, told me. "For the past week, it's like he was on set every day in his dreams. He kept repeating the same words... thank you for your hard work."
Director Obayashi, as promised, this year's Kyoto International Film and Art Festival will feature you. We asked his daughter, Chigumi to produce this to get a closer look into Nobuhiko Obayashi's human side.
And now to quote the great director.
“Thank you for your hard work.”Kazuyoshi Okuyama
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During the coronavirus outbreak, I started to declutter my home and get rid of unnecessary things which led me to see what I actually needed. You can get by with the bare minimum of food, clothing and shelter, but if you don't have something that interests you, you can't make the most of your life. I wanted to go out and these impulses accelerated with daily viewing of movies on TV and internet surfing of art-related topics. I often found myself staying up all night. And when the self-restraint was lifted and I went downtown and to the galleries, the feeling of freedom was tremendous.
Comments from
We have become so accustomed to the glamour of the city as well as the power of the people who support it and never give up that we have never actually experienced it. The theme of this year's art is "City of Flowers", which has both the flamboyance and the courage of a single flower. We want to bring you art and more online amidst the coronavirus outbreak, based on the idea of the "Source of Energy" of the people who have provided support for this lifestyle.Kenta Oka
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A lot of events have been cancelled due to the coronavirus outbreak.
Comments from
However, we are pleased to announce that we will be holding the 7th Kyoto International Film and Art Festival online. But can the festival really be held online?
It is hard to know what is right and what is wrong, but I believe that we can make new discoveries because we have encountered unprecedented events in our long history. Once again, we have received a lot of help from people in Kyoto.
This year's Kyoto International Film and Art Festival will be presented online all over the world from Kyoto, where tradition and innovation come together.
We hope you enjoy the first online Kyoto International Film and Art Festival.Koji Ueno
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The Kyoto International Film and Art Festival is not confined to the concept of a "film festival", but is a festival that transmits its message from Kyoto to the world under the theme of "Film, Art and All the Other Things". It is a great pleasure to see that this year's festival will be held under the new title of "Online Film Festival" based on the idea preventing the spread of a novel coronavirus.
A message from the Mayor of Kyoto
I would like to express my deepest respect and gratitude to Honorary Chairman Sadao Nakajima, Chairman of the Executive Committee, Ichiya Nakamura, and all those who have worked so hard to make this event possible.
This year's event will take advantage of the unique characteristics of the Internet, allowing people from all over the world to enjoy it wherever they want.
The novel coronavirus has had a major impact on society and the economy, and many cultural and artistic projects have had to be cancelled, postponed or put under review. Amidst these conditions, we are committed to supporting the important culture and arts of Kyoto, including films, and the activities of the people who support them.
We hope you will enjoy this film and art festival that takes on the development of culture and art as well as new possibilities.Daisaku Kadokawa