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‘You know there’s got to be something better,” sang the iconic Marianne Faithfull. Similarly Göteborg market’s head of TV Drama Vision Cia Edström and Josef Kullengård, head of industry and Nordic Film Market, were determined to bring “good energy and hope” to their 2,000-plus guests – and not only as DJs of the closing Nordic Film Market gig.

Below are takeaways from the 2025 Nordic Film Market and TV Drama Vision, that took place under the motto “Collaborate, Create and Captivate.”

Farewell – Until Next Year

A new record attendance was set this year, according to preliminary figures released by Kullengård. A total 2,368 on-site delegates from 54 countries were accredited, including 780 for TV Drama Vision and 586 for the Nordic Film Market.

In terms of projects, Nordic Film Market showcased 68 feature-length projects and TV Drama Vision 61 series at various stages of production.

Edström said she is very happy with the numbers for the...

Voice actror/singer Nanaka Suwa , best known as Kanan Matsuura in Love Live! Sunshine!! , released her new digital single song "Tsuranatte" (translated to "in a row") from Nippon Columbia today on September 18. This is her fourth digital single following "My Step" in December 2013, "World of Words" in March 2024, and "Hana Kotoba" in June 2024. While working as a member of Aqours, the voice actor unit for the Love Live! Sunshine!! franchise, Suwa made her solo singer debut in May 2020, releasing two CD singles, one full album, two mini albums, and one concept album. "Tsuranatte" will also be included in her second concept album "Ashiato ga Tsumugu Sekai" ("The World Spun by Footprints") to release on October 30, 2024. To commemorate the release, she plans a live-streaming on her official music staff Instagram from 20:00 (Jst) / 04:00 (Pt) on September 18. According to the press release, new information will be presented in the streaming. "Tsuranatte...

Flower and Ashura , a seinen manga written by Ayano Takeda ( Sound! Euphonium ) and illustrated by Musshu, is being adapted in a TV anime that is scheduled to broadcast in Japan in 2025. An official website and social media feed have been published for the series. The original Flower and Ashura manga has been serialized since June 2021 in Shueisha's Ultra Jump seinen manga magazine, and six collected volumes have also been published in Japan. Ayumu Uwano directs the TV anime at Studio Bind. Kazuyuki Fudeyasu provides the series composition, and Kou Aine provides the character designs. Voice actors Minori Fujidera and Miyuri Shimabukuro play the leading roles of Hana Haruyama and Mizuki Usurai , respectively. Flower and Ashura teaser visual Commemorative illustration by Musshu Related: Sound! Euphonium Season 3 Shows Conflixt Brewing in “Mismatched Youth” Visual The story of Flower and Ashura is a coming-of-age tale set on Tonaru Island, a small island with a population of 600 people.

Image via Hana-Kimi Twitter account The official website and Twitter account for the new Hana-Kimi anime adaptation launched today, announcing that an anime for Hisaya Nakajo's manga of the same name is now in production. A release date, staff nor cast was announced at the time of reporting. Additionally, Crunchyroll is announcing today that the anime will stream on the service when it premieres in the future. The series will stream in North America, Central America, South America, Europe, Africa, Oceania, the Middle East, Cis and India. The Hana to Yume editorial department also released a congratulatory comment following the announcement: “‘Hana-Kimi’ is becoming an anime! This is a project that's been discussed for a while with Hisaya Nakajo-sensei as we moved things forward. Nakajo-sensei had been watching over the rough drafts of the characters and the scenario, and she was looking forward to seeing the world of "Hana-Kimi...

Soon after the broadcast of the latest sixth episode of the spring 2024 TV anime Spice and Wolf: Merchant Meets The Wise Wolf in Japan last night, a special collaboration music video featuring the anime's opening theme "Tabi no Yukue" ( Destination of the Journey ) sung by Hana Hope was posed on Toho animation's official YouTube channel . The clip consists of the song edited specifically for this collaboration and highlight scenes from the anime up to its sixth episode, which raises expectations for the development of the story and the journey of the main characters. Hana Hope “Tabi no Yukue” x “ Spice and Wolf ” special music video Following the digital release on April 2, the CD single of "Tabi no Yukue" is set to release in Japan on May 29, 2024. The single's two edition CD jackets have been revealed. Artist edition (First press limited edition) Anime edition (Time-limited production edition) Hana Hope "Tabi...

Studio Pierrot's unique catalog hosts adaptations of some of the most iconic manga of all time, including two members of the well-renowned shonen "Big Three". Despite mostly adapting shonen manga, Pierrot has shown that the studio is capable of producing incredible anime from other demographics as well, notably tackling the fantasy shojo series Yona of the Dawn. Yu Yu Hakusho, renowned for its engaging story and tournament arcs, is Pierrot's top anime – and perhaps, one of the best anime ever made.

The best anime by Studio Pierrot are often classified as being some of the best anime of all time, as the massive scale of Pierrot's network has allowed them to adapt some of the most popular manga from magazines like Weekly Shonen Jump and Hana to Yume.

While a majority of their catalog is shonen due to its value and marketability, within Pierrot's selection, there is still ample room for variation.

Considering the ignorant comments we read throughout the web (to say the least) after the release of “Monster”, we decided to take a vote regarding the ranking of the movies of the Japanese, in order to come up with an informed ‘top 16'. The only condition was for the people who vote to have watched at least 10 films by the director, which resulted in the following Amp members voting: Panos Kotzathanasis, Rouven Linnarz, Andrew Thayne, Tobiasz Dunin, Sean Barry, Adriana Rosati and Lukasz Mankowski. The result, which includes his 16 fiction features but not his documentaries, is as follows.

16. Distance (2001)

Koreeda directs a film filled with subtle melancholy, as he tries to present the reasons people join cults and commit horrendous attacks. Through flashbacks and dialogue, he depicts the alienation and emotional isolation the perpetrators had from their families as they succumbed to the cult's dogma. However, his efforts do not prove very fruitful,...

Sacrificial Princess and the King of Beasts , a fantasy romance manga by Yu Tomofuji, is being adapted into an upcoming stage musical, and now the main staff, a key cast member, and a teaser visual have been revealed for the production. At the time of this writing, the production schedule and venues for the musical have not yet been revealed. Sacrificial Princess and the King of Beasts stage musical teaser visual Related: Sacrificial Princess and the King of Beasts Manga to Get Stage Play Adaptation Actor Daigo Kato (pictured above) stars in the leading role as Leonhart , the titular “King of Beasts”. Professional dancer Yukio Ueyama writes, directs, and provides choreography for the production, while Sayaka Asai of musical company One on One writes the lyrics for the songs and professional dancer Shigeru Yahata provides the music. The original Sacrificial Princess and the King of Beasts manga was serialized from...

Being self taught in animating, script-work and directing, director Wan Dinnie founded D-Mulsion Production in 2008, through which he has gone on to create many short film projects, some of which were recently covered on our site.. Wan Dinnie is a true film fanatic, who loves to share his interest in film. Dinnie’s varied interest in films sees him constantly experimenting with various techniques, both in visuals and narrative. The mix of Diy, and noticeable influences creates a contrasting mix of familiarity and uniqueness within each production. Currently working as a teacher, his work often features his students playing an active role as cast and crew, which adds an undeniable charm to his work.

On the occasion of our coverage of his short films we got a chance to speak to the director about his creative process.

Being a self taught director what were some of the difficulties you faced getting into film making?...

“Jejakmu” follows a student who has fallen into bad influences. Befriending delinquents, the student begins to misbehave in classes as well as try unsavory things such as smoking. The original version of the film is told through a silent, and experimental narrative, while the remake in 2014, while keeping the same themes, is presented as a drama, reminiscent of a PSA.

The two short films exist as important notes within the film career of Wan Dinnie, with both production coming in the way of important life moments, with the original Jejakmu showing his first attempt at the short film format, and the remake marking his beginning career as a teacher and focusing projects towards the classroom setting. Both of these productions show aspects that bring a lot of charm and enjoyment to his films. The first one showcases an eye for experimentation and lo-fi production to create something slightly unsettling. The...

A young student with a passion for drawing finds herself the target of school bullies. As the young artist vents her frustrations, one of her drawings comes to life to teach the kids a lesson in bullying

“Merah A.K.A. Red” acts as an amalgamation of the various means of visual storytelling that director Wan Dinnie utilizes. The production contains Rotoscope animation as in the short films “Hana” and “Cikgu Hana“. Meanwhile, it also contains some of the experimental camera work and colour pallets of “No Smoking” and “Alice“. The end result becomes a fun mashup of Dinnie’s various talents. As a result, “Merah” comes across as the most fully realized of the directors’ short films. In particular, the use of Rotoscope to make a the bullied student creation come to life leaves a strong visual impression when combined with the various visual elements.

The script acts as a simple anti-bullying message,...

A student is accused by his peers of smoking, the short film retraces the steps of leading up to the accusation to determine who the real culprit is, as well as reiterating the important choice for student’s abstain from smoking.

The premise of the short film, being pretty simplistic, does manage to tell the story in an interesting way by shooting the scene in reverse. At just over two minute run-time, the script does not really need to be strong, as it is more of a visual showcase. However, the intent to make an anti smoking message kind of gets muddy, and feels more like a dream one would have during cigarette withdrawal. it puts the production at an interesting point, where I can’t really tell where the message begins, and what is an excuse to create an experimental scene.

The visual and audio presentation is the real focus of the short film.

“Hana” chronicles a young student’s struggle within the school system as she attempts to complete exams in order to build a better future for her impoverished family. In “Cikgu Hana”, two students are transported into the past in order to learn about their country’s history. Through this journey, they learn about events that helped shape their current lives.

Each of the short films boasts captivating visuals, utilizing “Rotoscope”, which layers animation on top of live action footage. The result is that each short gives the characters lifelike and fluid movement. This also allows for more freedom with the background designs and both films contain a bright color palette that compliments the animation style. There is some variation between the two short films. However, each film establishes a strong visual presence that ties the two well together. Each production also contains some great transitional work, regarding color scheme, or artificially aging the characters.

Revered Singaporean production outfit Zhao Wei Films is presenting a raft of diverse projects at Locarno Film Festival’s Match Me! forum.

Boo Junfeng, whose “Sandcastle” and “Apprentice” were Cannes selections in 2010 and 2016 respectively, returns with the suspense drama “Trinity.” Formerly known as “Dominion,” the multi-territory co-production will follow an anti-gay pastor who becomes infatuated with a male disciple. The project, currently in development, won the Cnc cash award at the Taipei Golden Horse Film Festival in 2018 and participated at the Berlin coproduction market earlier this year.

Adding to the ever-popular J and K horror genre is Mai Nakanishi’s Singapore/Japan/Korea coproduction “Hana.” Based on her acclaimed 2018 short of the same name, the film will see a high school student taking up a well-paid babysitting job only to discover that it can be terrifying.

In addition, Zhao Wei is planning six 45-minute episodes of €3.5 million ($3.9 million) budgeted drama...

Hugo Keiser’s “The Occupant” from the Netherlands, won the Bucheon prize, worth $12,800 (Krw 15 million) at Naff, the Bucheon International Fantastic Film Festival’s genre film project market.

Naff is part of BiFan’s B.I.G. industry support program. Prizes were awarded on Wednesday night.

Phan Linh’s sci fi comedy “Dogcow” won the Bound Entertainment award, which equally comes with a cash prize of $12,800. Boaz Armoni’s “Fingernail,” an Israeli horror project, took the Naff Award with a cash prize of $8,550. The Naff Korean Award was presented to Yu Eun-jeong’s “Lady the Ghost” and by Nakanish Mai’s “Hana” with cash prizes of $4,270 (Krw 5 million) given to each. Also worth $4,270, the Dhl award went to David Chang’s action fantasy “The Medium: The Flaming Exorcist Sinner” from Taiwan. Taiwan was the focus territory of the Naff’s Project Spotlight 2019.

Prizewinners were selected by a jury of veteran...

Sci-fi will be center stage at South Korea’s Bucheon International Fantastic Film Festival, Asia’s largest genre film event. The ten-day film festival will run from Jun. 27 through Jul. 7.

Ridley Scott’s “Blade Runner” inspired the festival’s official artwork this year. The film will also play in special program ‘Robots: Future Beyond the Human Race’ along with Steven Spielberg’s “A.I. Artificial Intelligence” and Fred M. Wilcox’s “Forbidden Planet.”

The festival opens, a few weeks earlier than its traditional mid-July slot, with the Asian premiere of Edgar Nito’s “The Gasoline Thieves.” Korean period mystery drama “The 12th Suspect” by Ko Myoung-sung will close the festival, which packs in 288 films from 49 countries.

“BiFan has decided to gear itself for the coming 100 years of Korean cinema, instead of looking back on the past 100 years. We will take the head in nurturing the next NaWoon-gyu, Kim Ki-young, Yu Hyun-mok,...

After the “Thermae Romae” (2014) & “Thermae Romae II” (2016) extravaganza, director Takeuchi Hideki is back on his familiar ground of live action manga adaptation with “Fly Me To The Saitama”. If you thought the Thermae Romae saga or his 2018’s fairy tale “Tonight, At The Movies” was crazy, well … watch this one and think again!

“Fly Me To The Saitama” screened at Udine Far East Film Festival

It is more than 40C in Kumagaya, capital city of Saitama, the Prefecture that is the northern neighbour of Tokyo, and you can literally fry an egg on the concrete. For the Sugawara family, it is a big day as proud Saitanese Dad is driving with Mum and Daughter to the latter’s engagement party. The young woman is looking forward to getting married, especially because the couple has plans to go to live in Tokyo and escape the provincial stigma that hangs on Saitama...

Grimes has announced her follow-up album to 2015’s Art Angels. Entitled Miss_Anthropocene, the singer took to social media on Tuesday to unveil details about the forthcoming LP.

“It’s a concept album about the anthropomorphic Goddess of climate change: A psychedelic, space dwelling demon/ beauty-Queen, who relishes the end of the world,” she explained in a Twitter post. “She’s composed of Ivory and Oil” she added and said that she has crafted illustrations of the goddess and shared them on Instagram.

“Each song will be a different embodiment...

Indie Forum of the 14th Osaka Asian Film Festival presents seven features and three shorts. “Hana” by Mai Nakanishi tells a piercing story of four-year-old Hana (Kim Do-eun), the only daughter of a Korean single working mother (Lee Jeong-bi). The mother is in dire search for a nanny for her little girl. She doesn’t ask much, only that Hana is taken care of and kept safe. Those who are familiar with Constantine immediately started to look for the catch. And you are not wrong, as Hana is not your usual child.

Sujin (Jeone Hee-jin), rushing to her first ever nanny interview, is welcomed by Hana`s mom, who is already in her coat, one leg in the door. Not only is Sujin hired, she is asked to immediately start on her new job. Take a good care of Hana, keep her safe. It is weekend, but mom is expected...

The greatest of Japanese filmmakers have a chameleonic quality. Although these directors—Akira Kurosawa, for example—build their reputation around one genre, they export their thematic preoccupations to projects that couldn’t be more disparate in terms of subject matter. Hirokazu Kore-eda is one such modern master, whose soft-spoken family dramas are broken up by more unorthodox projects, like magical-realist efforts “After Life” and “Air Doll,” or “Hana,” a jidai-geki in the tradition of Kurosawa, albeit with an identifiable Kore-eda touch.

Continue reading ‘The Third Murder’ Isn’t Hirokazu Kore-eda’s Finest Work But Is A Damn Good Thriller Nonetheless [Review] at The Playlist.

Like Father, Like Son

Since the film’s premiere at the 2013 Cannes Film Festival, where it won the Jury Award, Like Father, Like Son (Soshite chichi ni naru) has been featured in the 2013 New York, Toronto and Chicago Film Festivals and won Audience Awards at the 2013 San Sebastian and Vancouver Film Festivals. The film has also shown at the 2013 AFI Fest. On seeing it you will surely know why. Its universal appeal to families, sons, fathers, wives touches the hearts of everyone who sees it. Its sensitivity in treating human emotions those of parents to each other and to their own children and those of the children to their parents and other siblings is so tender and delicately handled by director Hirokazu Kore-eda, that the film stays within the viewer and grows stronger if seen again.

Written and directed by Hirokazu Kore-eda (After Life, Nobody Knows, Still Walking), Like Father, Like Son has been picked up by Sundance Selects for U.S. distribution. International Sales Agent Wild Bunch has sold the film worldwide. It was produced and distributed by Fuji Television Network, Inc., Amuse Inc. and Gaga Corporation in Japan.

Like Father, Like Son centers on Ryota (Japanese star Masaharu Fukuyama), a successful Tokyo architect who willingly and consciously works long hours to provide for his wife, Midori (Machiko Ono), and six-year-old son, Keita. When a blood test reveals Keita and another baby were switched at birth, two very different families are thrown together and forced to make a difficult decision while Ryota confronts his own issues of responsibility and what it means to be a father.

After seeing the film a second time at the Crescent Screening Room in Beverly Hills (I had already seen it in Cannes) and being feted at a special dinner at Spago among the Hollywood Foreign Press, I felt very privileged to interview Kore-Eda the next day.

Sl: Having been a fan of Nobody Knows about two siblings whose mother has left them with no sign of returning (there is no father), can you tell me what is your common thread between the two films?

Kore-eda: Until recently becoming a father, I had not been very conscious of fatherhood. The children in Nobody Knows had a resonance with me. The children are projections of myself.

I grew up without a father. Hana yori mo naho was also about a Samurai without a father and Still Walking also had a troubled father. Like Father, Like Son gave me the opportunity to show when it is not good with a father.

I have a 5 year old child, just like the protagonist in the story, and through making this film I wanted to think about what blood connections really mean, an idea very close to me. In order to make the film interesting and compelling to the audience, I placed the protagonist in the situation of being a victim of switched babies.

Your films often touch on paternity. What do being a father – and fatherhood itself – mean to you?

Kore-eda: I really don’t have an answer right now. As my position in the family tree has changed, I believe my idea of fatherhood has changed as well. I will probably continue to look at fatherhood in my coming films until I figure it out.

Sl: How was it working with the children?

Kore-eda: I wanted there to be a contrast of character between the two children. The goal was to bring out their individual personalities in the film. Because the children are six, I wanted them to express confusion rather than sadness, towards their situation.

It’s difficult to elicit puzzlement from children. Most often I just let them act and did not have to explain to them. But when the boy runs away to go home to his family and when Keita thinks that his father is coming for him and he runs away, I had to explain.

On the other hand, when the boy is in the architect’s house and he keeps asking “why”, I didn’t explain anything. The actor told the story and the boy’s acting was totally natural.

Sl: How about working with Fukuyama Masuharu. How was it with him? I know he was a famous pop singer. Here he played such a cold man.

Kore-Eda: He was a pop singer and songwriter for 20 years but he is also known as an actor too. In person he is down-to-earth, straightforward, friendly and is always entertaining everyone, but his public image is cool. I was surprised on meeting him to see how friendly he was.

He has not played many roles as an ordinary, everyday type of guy, like a father.

I took advantage of his coolness and broke it down. He seemed to enjoy badmouthing people, talking about money. Together we pushed his unlikeablity, but just enough so that the audience stayed on his side. I coached him to raise his head and look down, to curl his lips in disdain, to turn his back on someone.

His fans might not like seeing him act this way, but they are only part of the audience for this film. His fans range from 20 to 40 years and are predominately female. The audience was a broad range including people in their 60s and 70s in groups, seeing it multiple times. 2.5 million have seen the film in Japan making it the most successful of all my films.

Sl: What about the idea of bloodlines (nature vs. nurture)?

Kore-eda: The actor is very conservative, a trait he got from his own father and he has to grapple with it. The man on the street today would probably choose the child they raised. On the other hand, adoption has not caught on in Japan and the importance of bloodlines is not an anomaly. Many still hold to the emphasis on bloodline and heritage. Interestingly, the Koreans who see the film would choose bloodlines even more than the Japanese.

Sl: Tell me about the music. The piano which the little boy plays and the piano music which played during the transitions?

Kore-eda: When I am working on a script I usually choose one instrument with a particular emphasis. The image I had while wring this was when the children were in the car switching families. I wanted music which was not melodic but rather percussive. I had been listening to the CDs of Glenn Gould and his music seemed to fit the image. I was afraid it would not be easily obtainable, but with Amuse and Gaga on the case, they were were able to obtain the rights.

Sl: At the end, the family became inclusive and the necessity to choose one over the other was less important. I liked that very much. Can you talk about that?

Kore-eda: The script’s last scene description was explicit. It said that the two families merged as they all entered the house so that you could not tell who was the child and who were the parents.

N.B. The publicist joined in our conversation to say how “blended” families are so prevalent today in the United States, with divorce, children from two families merging…Kore-eda liked that and said that perhaps one of his next films will deal with such a concept of blended families.

SYDNEY -- Acclaimed Japanese director Koreeda Hirokazu, best known for his 2004 hit Nobody Knows, will direct his first historical samurai film for entertainment major Shochiku, the company announced Wednesday. Slated for a spring release, Hana Yori mo Naho is a major departure for Koreeda, who is better known for contemporary documentary-style features. Based on an original story by Koreeda and set in the 17th century, the film stars Junichi Okada, (Tokyo Tower, Fly, Daddy Fly), Rie Miyazawa (The Twilight Samurai), and Tadanobu Asano (Zatoichi, Cafe Lumiere). Producers are Sato Shiho and Enoki Nozomu.

SYDNEY -- Acclaimed Japanese director Kore-eda Hirokazu, best known for his 2004 hit Nobody Knows, will direct his first historical samurai film for entertainment major Shochiku, the company announced Wednesday. Slated for release next spring, Hana Yori mo Naho is a major departure for Kore-eda, who is better known for contemporary documentary-style features. Based on an original story by Kore-eda and set in the 17th century, the film stars Junichi Okada, (Tokyo Tower, Fly, Daddy Fly), Rie Miyazawa (The Twilight Samurai), and Tadanobu Asano (Zatoichi, Cafe Lumiere). Producers are Sato Shiho and Enoki Nozomu. It's Kore-eda's fifth film. Twentieth Century Fox snapped up remake rights to his second offering, After Life, while his third film, Distance, was In Competition at the Festival de Cannes in 2001.