PRESS RELEASE

October 12, 2017
No. 2017-038

Lineup Announced forCROSSCUT ASIA #04: What’s Next from Southeast Asia
Special Trailer and Short Commentary Clips from Maestros also Released

The Japan Foundation Asia Center and the 30th Tokyo International Film Festival (TIFF) is pleased toannounce the lineup for CROSSCUT ASIA #04: What’s Next from Southeast Asia which features works
from young filmmakers in Southeast Asia recommended by maestros in the same region.
The Japan Foundation Asia Center’s CROSSCUT ASIA series showcases Asian films with a focus on specificcountries, directors, or themes. Following the first three editions, which featured Thailand, the Philippines, andIndonesia, the fourth edition will encompass a larger area of Southeast Asia to mark the 50th anniversary ofthe formation of ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations). The fourth edition will introduce 13 films
from Southeast Asia, including nine feature films and four short films.
This year’s CROSSCUT ASIA focuses on the genealogy of Southeast Asian cinema, as the maestros pass thebaton to the next generation. It will introduce such works as director HF Yambao’s Kristo (2016),
recommended by Brillante Ma Mendoza; Kirsten Tan’s Pop Aye (2017), recommended by Eric Khoo;
Wichanon Somumjarn’s In April the Following Year, There Was a Fire (2012), recommended by Apichatpong
Weerasethakul; and short films by young Cambodian directors recommended by Rithy Panh. Please see
following page for the full lineup.
-During the festival, there will be stage appearances, Q&A sessions featuring directors and/or celebrated
guests from these works, and a symposium with Brillante Ma. Mendoza and HF Yambao.

-TIFF will be showing video messages from these maestros, sharing their fondmemories of TIFF. Please checkhttps://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLIgCE9eB-bqH282kjTHBM77P-KhTUaNOv

Special trailer of the CROSSCUT ASIA #04: What’s Next from Southeast
Asia will be also released on https://youtu.be/UTUBZQ_4yq8
Free booklets specially made for CROSSCUT ASIA #4 will be distributed toviewers.
-In addition, we will hold a gift campaign targeting viewers of CROSSCUT
ASIA films, giving them a chance to win a booklet with autographs bySoutheast Asian directors and special goods from the program.
*The directors who
recommended the cinemas ofthe CROSS CUT ASIA #4

 Ticket Sales
Tickets will be sold by sections below.
Saturday, October 14
12:00pm〜
CROSSCUT ASIA ・Asian Future・Co-Hosted/Allied Events and Others
16:00pm〜Competition・Japan Now・Japanese Classics
Sunday, October 15
12:00pm〜
Japanese Cinema Splash・World Focus・Youth
16:00pm〜Special Screenings・Special Program
For information on TIFF:
TIFF PR Tel: +81-(0)3-6226-3012 / E-mail: tiff-pr2017@tiff-jp.net
For information on the Japan Foundation:
The Japan Foundation Asia Center Kakeya (Ms.) Tel: +81-(0)3-5369-6140

The Japan Foundation Asia Center
www.jfac.jp
The Japan Foundation is Japan's principal independent administrative institution dedicated to carrying out cultural
exchange initiatives throughout the world. The Asia Center, established in April 2014, is a division within theFoundation that conducts and supports collaborative initiatives with its Asian—primarily ASEAN—counterparts.
Through interacting and working together in Japanese-language education, arts and culture, sports, and grassroots
and intellectual exchange, the Asia Center pursues to develop the sense of kinship and coexistence as neighboring
inhabitants of Asia.
Tokyo International Film Festival
www.tiff-jp.netThe Tokyo International Film Festival (TIFF) started in 1985 as Japan’s first major film festival and the only Japanesefilm festival accredited by the International Federation of Film Producers Associations (FIAPF). Since then, TIFF hasgrown to become one of the largest film festivals in Asia. Every year in October, filmmakers and film fans of all ages
gather in Tokyo to enjoy excellent films from around the world and TIFF’s many colorful events. These include TIFF'saffiliated media content market TIFFCOM, seminars for students, professionals, and business people, andsymposiums and workshops for networking with the world’s film industries, developing international co-productions,and promoting the global film business. The 30th Tokyo International Film Festival will be held from October 25(Wed.) to November 3 (Fri.), 2017.

Lineup for CROSSCUT ASIA #04: What’s Next from Southeast Asia
Big Father, Small Father and Other Stories (2015/102 min.)[Vietnam/France/Germany/The Netherlands]
Director: Phan Dang Di
Cast: Do Thi Hai Yen, Le Cong Hoang, Truong The Vinh

©DNY_PRODUCTIONS

Recommended by Director Tran Anh HungA group of friends discover love, lust and each other as the newmillennium begins in Vietnam, from steamy Saigon nightlife to traditionalfamily existence.

The Carousel Never Stops Turning (2017/84 min.)[Indonesia]
Director: Ismail Basbeth
Cast: Cornelio Sunny, Karina Salim, Sekar Sari

©Bosan Berisik Lab

Recommended by Director Garin Nugroho
Talking about today’s Indonesia from different perspectives – economy,politics, arts and culture, society, laws, and history – outlined in several
fragments influenced by one another.

In April the Following Year, There Was a Fire (2012/77 min.)[Thailand/The Netherlands]Director: Wichanon Somumjarn
Cast: Jinnapat Ladarat, Uhten Sririwi, Saeree Pimpa
Recommended by Director Apichatpong Weerasethakul
A poetic title, almost a film description, that demands some closereading. Just like the film, which, as a visual poem, doesn’t immediately
divulge its meaning.

Kristo (2016/92 min.)[The Philippines]
Director: HF Yambao
Cast: Kristofer King, Angela Cortez, Julio Diaz

©Eichef Media \H Films 2016

Recommended by Director Brillante Ma Mendoza
To provide for his family, Boy works as a cockfight bet taker by day,and as a market vendor by night. This is his daily routine, until one
fateful faithful day.

My Superheroes (2017/122 min.)[Malaysia]
Director: Eric Ong
Cast: Sangeetha Krishnasamy, Xavier Fong,Ahmad Adnin Zidane Muslim©SOL PICTURES SDN BHD

Recommended by Actress Sharifah Amani
Based on a true story, this film follows 35 underprivileged children andtheir journey to overcome difficulties through preparing for andcompeting in a choral competition.

Pop Aye (2017/102 min.)[Singapore/Thailand]
Director: Kirsten Tan
Cast: Bong, Thaneth Warakulnukroh, Penpak Sirikul©Giraffe Picture Pte Ltd, E&W Films, A Girl And A Gun 2017

Recommended by Director Eric Khoo
Pop Aye is about two misfits - a man past his prime and his displaced
street elephant - searching for meaning and belonging in space andtime.

Tales of the Otherwords (2016/82 min.)[Indonesia]
Director: B.W. Purba Negara
Cast: Ponco Sutiyem, Rukman Rosadi, Ledjar Subroto©Purbanegara Films

Recommended by Director Riri Riza
Mbah Sri (95 years old) is looking for the grave of her husband, who has
been missing for decades, with one simple aim: she wants to rest inpeace beside her husband’s grave.

Yasmin-san (2017/70 min.)[Malaysia]©Greenlight Pictures

Director: Edmund Yeo
Cast: Sharifah Amani, Isao Yukisada, Yasmin Ahmad
Recommended by Programming Director Kenji Ishizaka
A documentary following the production of Isao Yukisada's Pigeon whichlooks into filmmaking, unity, fate, and history through the influence of thelate Yasmin Ahmad.

Cambodian Young Cinema
Four films by young directors that focus on contemporary Cambodia,
recommended by Director Rithy Panh of The Missing Picture and thestaff at Bophana Audiovisual Resource Center in Phnom Penh, which isheaded by Panh.
©BOPHANA CENTER© Anti Archive & Apsara Films

Don’t Know Much About ABC (2015/22 min.)Director: Sok Chanrado & Norm Phanith
Cast: Ron Dara, Ra Vin, Pot Sokchan
A documentary about a father-son relationship and how education is
crucial to combat poverty and improve financial circumstances.

Red Ink (2016/21 min.）Director: Ly Polen
Cast: Pov Samay, Em Kimhouy, Ry Saut
A young girl who was allegedly raped by her boyfriend breaks hersilence to save her sister.

Three Wheels (2015/21 min.)Director: Neang Kavich
Cast: Pho Phanna, Chea Kimhut, Ly Danam
A lonely night-time tuk-tuk driver returns home to confront his wife
about their forced marriage during the Khmer Rouge regime.

Twenty Dollars (2017/13 min.)Director: Sang Chanvisal
Cast: Him Thida, Long Sokunou David, Som Soda, Buth Thida,
Chea Charya
An experimental short film that explores the life of an innocent girltrying to find happiness between love and money.

Discovering Asian Cinema
Will Your Heart Beat Faster? (1980/106 min.)[The Philippines]
Director: Mike De Leon
Cast: Christopher De Leon, Charo Santos, Sandy Andolong
Two pairs of lovers unwittingly get entangled with warring Japanese andChinese syndicates.