27th French Film Festival in Japan

20 JUNE 2019

The 2019 edition of the French Film Festival in Japan, organized by Unifrance, will take place in Yokohama from June 20 through 23. A selection of fifteen films will be presented at the event in the presence of a delegation of around twenty French actors and directors led by Claude Lelouch, this year's festival patron.

As is the case each year, the 27th French Film Festival in Yokohama will showcase a selection of recent French films (including nine titles proposed by Japanese distributors). These films will be screened in the superbly equipped theaters of the Aeon Cinema Minato Mirai, accompanied by a delegation of around twenty French artists led by festival patron Claude Lelouch. These artists will meet with audiences and Japanese media representatives in preparation for the publicity campaigns to be launched by the films' distributors at the time of their commercial release. The festival will open with a screening of Gilles Lellouche's film Sink or Swim, held in the presence of the director.

The Japanese actress and singer Miki Nakatani, who attracted acclaim for her appearance in the fantasy thriller Ring, will be the "Japanese muse" of this year's festival.

The winner of the Air France Audience Prize will be announced on the festival's closing night. A return trip from Tokyo to Paris for two people will also be offered by Air France to the winner of a random draw from among the entries received from spectators who voted for their favorite film.

Festival Lineup

Amanda by Mikhaël Hers
The Ideal Palace by Nils Tavernier
The Swallows of Kabul by Zabou Breitman, Éléa Gobbé-Mévellec
Whatever Happened to my Revolution by Judith Davis
School's Out by Sébastien Marnier
The Sisters Brothers by Jacques Audiard
Rebels by Allan Mauduit
Dilili in Paris by Michel Ocelot
Sweetheart by Lisa Azuelos
Incident in a Ghostland by Pascal Laugier
The Wolf's Call by Antonin Baudry
Synonyms by Nadav Lapid
Invisibles by Louis-Julien Petit
Sink or Swim by Gilles Lellouche
The Best Years of a Life by Claude Lelouch

Short Film

Windshriek by Frédéric Doazan

Artistic Delegation

Thaïs Alessandrin, Lisa Azuelos, Antonin Baudry, Caroline Bonmarchand, Zabou Breitman, François Civil, Judith Davis, Éléa Gobbé-Mévellec, Pierre Guyard, Mikhaël Hers, Nadav Lapid, Claude Lelouch, Gilles Lellouche, Sébastien Marnier, Michel Ocelot, Louis-Julien Petit, Hugo Sélignac, Nils Tavernier

Talks, Q&As, Master Classes, Autograph Sessions!

In addition to the customary Q&A sessions held with audiences after the film screenings and the highly popular autograph signings, special encounters with French artists will also be organized: Michel Ocelot will talk about animated films at Geidai University (University of the Arts), followed, the same day, by a talk given by Sébastien Marnier and his producer Caroline Bonmarchand at Yokohama University on the theme of "Socially Engaged Cinema: What World Awaits Future Generations?" And, finally, a special meeting titled "Between Palme d'Or Winners" will be held at Waseda University on Saturday, June 22, bringing together Claude Lelouch (winner of the 1966 Palme d'Or) and the filmmaker Hirokazu Kore-Eda (winner of the 2018 Palme d'Or), who will discuss their movie careers.

After the festival's opening ceremony, a tribute will be paid to Michel Legrand, followed the next day by a tribute to Francis Lai scheduled prior to the screening of The Best Years of a Life, to be held in the presence of Claude Lelouch.

Furthermore, an exhibition will be held at the Red Brick Warehouse in Yokohama based on Michel Ocelot's animated film Dilili in Paris.

It is also worth noting that School's Out will be presented on June 23 in Fukuoka by the film's director Sébastien Marnier and producer Caroline Bonmarchand, with, in addition, a screening of Whatever Happened to my Revolution to be held on June 25 in Kyoto, in the presence of Judith Davis.

Film Market

With support from the French Embassy in Japan, UniFrance will be hosting its traditional film market this year on June 19 and 20 at the Institut Français in Tokyo in the Iidabashi district.
Twenty-nine sales companies that are members of UniFrance will take part in the market (compared to nineteen in 2018) to meet with Japanese buyers during the two-day event. The participating French companies will then travel to Yokohama to join the actors and directors from the films they are representing, where they will continue their discussions and negotiations with Japanese distributors who are also guests of the festival in a less formal atmosphere. This year's market participants: