Tokyo Film Festival Adds Nippon Cinema Now Competition, Crosscut Asia+ Section, New Award Honoring Women in Film
Developed over time first seen 2 months ago
The Tokyo International Film Festival (TIFF) has unveiled three new initiatives for its 2026 edition: a Nippon Cinema Now competition, a Southeast Asia-focused Crosscut Asia+ section, and the Kawakita Kashiko Award honouring women in film. The changes give Japanese filmmakers greater international exposure, revive cross-regional ties with Southeast Asian cinema, and recognise women's contributions to film culture, as the festival broadens its scope ahead of its 39th edition, running from 26 October to 4 November in Tokyo.
Nippon Cinema Now will present a Best Film prize and a Special Jury Prize, decided by a mixed Japanese and international jury, with festival director Hisamatsu Takeo saying it aims to spotlight new talent for global audiences. Crosscut Asia+, developed with the Japan Foundation as a successor to the 2014-2019 Crosscut Asia strand, launches with a six-film Indonesian and Filipino lineup themed "Side by Side", curated by programmers from Jakarta and Tokyo. The inaugural Kawakita Kashiko Award, named after pioneering distributor "Madame Kawakita" and selected by an all-women committee, goes to critic Hata Sahoko, who introduced films including "Mon Oncle" and "Breathless" to Japanese audiences and reflected on the barriers women faced in the industry.
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In short
- TIFF adds three new strands: a competition, an Asia section, a women's award
- Crosscut Asia+ debuts with six films from Indonesia, the Philippines and beyond
- Critic Hata Sahoko wins the inaugural Kawakita Kashiko Award for women in film
How this story developed
- 2 months ago The Tokyo International Film Festival (TIFF) has announced three new initiatives for its 2026 edition: a Nippon Cinema Now competition, a Southeast Asia-focused Crosscut Asia+ section, and the Kawakita Kashiko Award recognising women in film.
- 2 months ago The Tokyo International Film Festival (TIFF) is launching three new initiatives for its 2026 edition: a Nippon Cinema Now competition, a Southeast Asia-focused Crosscut Asia+ section, and the Kawakita Kashiko Award honouring women in film.
- 2 months ago The Tokyo International Film Festival (TIFF) has unveiled three new initiatives for its 2026 edition: a Nippon Cinema Now competition, a Southeast Asia-focused Crosscut Asia+ section, and the Kawakita Kashiko Award honouring women in film.
Explained simply
Tokyo hosts one of Asia's biggest film festivals every autumn, and the Tokyo International Film Festival (TIFF) has just outlined how its 2026 edition, running from 26 October to 4 November, will differ from previous years. The organisers are introducing three new elements aimed at expanding the festival's reach: a competition dedicated to Japanese cinema, a section spotlighting films from Southeast Asia, and a new award recognising women's work in the film industry.
The Japanese-cinema strand, called Nippon Cinema Now, will hand out a Best Film prize and a Special Jury Prize, judged by a panel of Japanese and international jurors, with the aim of giving homegrown filmmakers more visibility abroad. The Southeast Asia strand, Crosscut Asia+, revives a partnership with the Japan Foundation that previously ran between 2014 and 2019, and returns with six films chosen by programmers based in Jakarta and Tokyo. The new Kawakita Kashiko Award is named after a historically influential Japanese film distributor and honours contributions by women to film culture.
These additions come as TIFF works to broaden its scope and strengthen ties with the wider Asian film industry ahead of its 39th edition. The changes matter to those following the festival because they signal a shift in how TIFF positions itself internationally, both in terms of the films it showcases and the people and achievements it chooses to celebrate.