Kyoto Filmmakers Lab 2022: Report
The Museum of Kyoto
March 10, 2023

▶︎ Toei Team▶︎ Shochiku Team

Kyoto Filmmakers Lab (KFL) is a workshop that produces short period drama films using
the open sets of Toei Kyoto Studio and Shochiku Studio, targeting young filmmakers fromJapan and overseas (English is the official language). The workshop provides anopportunity to experience authentic period drama using the same facilities and equipment
as those used in feature films, including period sets, art, lighting, and costumes. It also
supports networking between young filmmakers from Japan and abroad.
This year marks the 15th anniversary of the event, and in anticipation of the government's
relaxation of border control measures, overseas participants were recruited for both the"Hands-on Period Drama" and "Masters Session" programs. The recruitment wasconducted through a web application process from July 20th (Wed) to September 2nd (Fri),
with separate applications for each program. As a result, there were 121 applicants (20residing in Japan) from 32 countries for the "Hands-on JIDAIGEKI" program, and 45applicants (10 residing in Japan) from 18 countries for the "Masters Session" program. Afterthe selection process, 20 participants (including 10 residing in Japan) were chosen for the"Hands-on Period Drama" program, and 19 participants (including 9 residing in Japan) wereselected for the "Masters Session" program.
＜Hands-on JIDAIGEKI＞
Under the supervision of Keijiro Miyanishi (Director of Photography, Toei) and Satoshi
Nagashima (Producer, Shochiku), a hands-on JIDAIGEKI production with direct guidance
will be held from November 7th (Monday) to November 9th (Wednesday), 2022, for threedays at Toei Kyoto Studios and Shochiku Studios.
＜Masters Session＞
From November 3rd (Thu, national holiday) to November 6th (Sun), 2022, thirteen
sessions including practical sword-fighting lessons will be held at The Museum of Kyoto andthe Kyu-butokuden. Please note that accommodation will not be provided in the usual- 1 -camp-style format due to the measures taken to prevent the spread of the COVID-19, andparticipants are required to make their own arrangements.
Host:Kyoto Historica International Film Festival (KHIFF) Committee(Kyoto Prefectural Government, The Museum of Kyoto, Toei Company, Ltd., ShochikuStudio Co., Ltd., Toei Kyoto Studio Co., Ltd., Iwamoto Metal Co., Ltd., Directors’ Univ Co.,
Ltd. and Ritsumeikan University)
Co-host: Tokyo International Film Festival, Istituto Italiano di Cultura Osaka, Kyoto
Cross Media Experience
Cooperation: Kyoto Cross Media Promotion Agency
１ Application
Period: July 20th to September 2nd , 2022
How to apply: Online application from the website
Number of Applicants:166 (Total number of applications for Hands-on JIDAIGEKI + Masters Sessions)
Breakdown of nationalities: 1 from Afghanistan, 5 from the United States, 2 fromAustralia, 1 from Azerbaijan, 6 from Bangladesh, 1 from the United Kingdom, 5 fromBulgaria, 2 from Canada, 1 from Lesotho/Canada, 2 from China, 1 from Dominica,
26 from the Philippines, 3 from Germany, 1 from Guatemala, 1 from Hungary, 25from India, 5 from Indonesia, 2 from Italy, 1 from Italy/Japan, 24 from Japan, 1 from
Lithuania, 10 from Malaysia, 11 from Nepal, 1 from Norway, 2 from Pakistan, 1 fromParaguay, 1 from Poland/Canada, 1 from Poland, 1 from Puerto Rico, 3 fromSingapore, 3 from Spain, 1 from Sri Lanka, 1 from Switzerland/France, 4 fromTaiwan, 2 from Thailand, 2 from Trinidad and Tobago, and 6 from Vietnam.
２ Selection of Participants
Selection date: September 4th, 2022
Venue: Conference Room on the 7th floor of The Museum of Kyoto
Juries: Mr. Ken Takahashi (Toei Studios Kyoto) and Mr. Satoshi Nagashima (ShochikuStudios)
Selected Participants: 39 people (20 people for Hands-on JIDAIGEKI, and 19 people for
Masters session).
Breakdown:
14 Japanese, 25 foreigners（17 male, 22 female）
Actual participation: 18 for hands-on period drama, 15 for Masters Session.
３

Selection of Participants’ Role and Script Competition for Hands-On Jidaigeki

Selection of Participants’ Role:
Program team decided participants’ role according to participants’ score at the selection and theirwish list.

<Hands-on Jidaigeki Toei team>
From the participants, we received 13 submissions for the script competition with a target
length of 3 minutes. After considering the content, available sets, and actor availability, wehave selected the following two scripts:
- 2 -

•

"Plum colored father/梅色とうさん" written by Amin Hamid Okamoto (Toei Team)• "The Third Wheel/晴れて成仏" written by Hikari Onodera (Shochiku Team)For the Hands-On JIDAIGEKI, we have selected the top 20 participants based on theevaluation scores from the above-mentioned screening committee. We have assigned eachparticipant to their respective roles based on their scores and preferences.
<Hands-on JIDAIGEKI Toei team>Supervisor: Mr. Keijiro Miyanishi（DP）, Ken Takahashi（Producer）
Participants: Connor Gaston（Director from Canada）、Eunice Alexander（DPfrom Malaysia）、Jacob Holynski（Camera assistant from Poland）, Divya
Kharnare (assistant director from India), Jing Na (assistant director from China),
Cheuk Ying Chiu (sound recording from Hong Kong), Mai Nakanishi (art directorfrom Japan), Amin Hamid Okamoto (lighting from Japan), and Hong Anh
Nguyen (production manager from Germany)*. Kana Watanabe has cancelled.
<Hands-on Jidaigeki Shochiku team>Supervisor: Yuji Onishi, Tetsuya Kumashiro, Yasuyuki Ikumi, Satoshi Nagashima
Participants: Kevin Haefelin (Director from Switzerland), Arif Khan (DP fromUK), Hikari Onodera (Assistant Director from Japan), Kasumi Minami (assistant
Director from Japan), Jaye Jacinto (Lighting from Philippines), Mana Kaneko(lighting from Japan), Dimon John (Sound Recordist from Sri Lanka), JohnMichael Perez (art director from Philippines), Mitsuhiro Honda (production
manager from Japan) *Ieva Sakalyte and Kulanandini Mahanta have cancelled.
<Masters Session> Angel Radev (Bulgaria), Danielle Yen (Taiwan), Chee Yuen Chong(Malaysia), Real Randolph Joseph Florido (Philippines), Jessa Rose Espina (Philippines),
Kaizer Matsumunyane (Lesotho), Wey Yinn Teo (Malaysia), Ewa Kasp (Poland/Canada),
Noura Al Kadri (Bulgaria), Matthew Chozick (Japan), Tatsuya Shirato (Japan), Daisuke
Hirose (Japan), Natsumi Ishii (Japan), Junpei Imamichi (Japan), Hitomi Kawashima (Japan)* Angelina Marilyn Bok, Toshab Raj, Megumi Mimasu, and Ryunosuke Okubo havecancelled.
４Program Schedule■Masters Session
Venues: Toei Studios Kyoto, Shochiku Studios, The Museum of Kyoto, Kyu Butokuden<November 3rd>13:00〜13:30【MS01】Orientation and Introduction
Venues: The Museum of Kyoto Annex Hall
The participants and the studio staff introduced themselves and provided an overview ofthe entire lab, as well as explained the transportation, accommodations, and other important
points to note. (Number of participants: 34 from 14 countries)- 3 -13:40〜16:10【MS02】Lightning Talk
Venue: The Museum of Kyoto
Self-introduction by KFL participants. Their achievements, next project, dreams, etc.
(Number of participants: 34 from 14 countries)

17:00〜18:00【MS03】BLNTN Session by Peter Chou (Online presentation)

Venue: The Museum ofKyoto Annex HallPeter Chou, representative of Korean content database and matching company BLINTN,
gave a lecture on recent trends in the Korean film industry. (Number of participants: 34 from14 countries)- 4 -18:30〜19:30【MS04】Biennale College Cinema Talk by Savina Neirotti (online presentation) Venue:
The Museum of Kyoto Annex Hall
A talk by Savina Neirotti of Biennale College Cinema on Venice International Film Festival'sYoung Filmmakers Development Program. (Participants: 34 from 14 countries)<November 4th> 10:30〜12:00【MS05】Sword Action Venue: Kyu Butokuden
Lecture and demonstration on the spirit and style of Kyoto sword fighting by a fightchoreographer from Toei Kyoto Studios. (Number of participants: 34 from 14 countries.)

13:30〜16:40【MS06】Masters Talk 1 by Takashi Miike

Venue: The Museum of Kyoto Film Theatre- 5 -After watching the movie "Mugen no Junin" at the Historica International Film Festival's"Historica Focus Beyond Reality: The Path to Historical Dramas with a Fantastical Twist"
program and had a talk with director Takashi Miike about the film's content, his career pathleading up to it, advice for young filmmakers, and his own stance. (Number of participants:
105 from 14 countries)

November 5 th
11:00〜12:00【MS07】Comeback Salmon Project Venue: The Museum of Kyoto lecture room of Annex
HallA talk about the career and future of Naoki Maeda (film director and KFL 2010
participant), who is a former KFL participant. (Participants: 34 from 14 countries)

13:00〜14:00【MS08】HISTRICA × XR Venue: The Museum of Kyoto Annex Hall
NHK's Taiga drama team invited Wataru Ishihara, who is at the forefront of the station'sDX promotion, to speak about the present and future of "virtual production" in a lecture titled"The forefront of virtual production: The present and future of visual production madepossible by digital technology," given by Satoshi Nagashima, in charge of the "Maru DejiProject." (Attendance: 80 participants from 14 countries.)- 6 -15:30〜16:30【MS09】TIFF session by Shozo Ichiyama Venue: The Museum of Kyoto lecture roomof Annex Hall
A lecture on the history, role, and future of the Tokyo International Film Festival, as wellas international film festivals in the Asian region, was given by Mr. Shozo Ishiyama,
Executive Director of the Tokyo International Film Festival. (Number of participants: 34 from
14 countries).

17:00〜18:00【MS10】Pia Film Festival Session by Keiko Araki Venue: The Museum of Kyoto lectureroom of Annex Hall
A lecture by Keiko Araki, director of the Pia Film Festival (PFF). The talk covered thehistory and significance of the PFF, as well as the type of filmmakers the festival seeks toattract. (Attendance: 34 individuals from 14 countries.)- 7 -<November 6th> 10:30〜12:00【MS11】Masters Talk 2 by Yukiko Shii and Hiromi Aihara Venue: The Museum ofKyoto Annex Hall
Talk featuring two female producers, Yukiko Shii and Hiromi Aihara. (Number ofparticipants: 34 from 14 countries)

13:00〜14:30【MS12】Masters Talk 3 by Michael Singer Venue: The Museum of Kyoto Annex Hall
A talk by Michael Singer, who works as a unit publicist in collaboration with Jerry
Bruckheimer. (Number of participants: 34 from 14 countries)

15:30〜18:20【MS13】Masters Talk 4 by Takashi Koizumi
Venue: The Museum ofKyoto Film Theatre
Takashi Koizumi, director of "The Last Samurai of the Mountain Pass," will talk about hiswork and director Akira Kurosawa. (Number of participants: 119 from 14 countries)- 8 -■Hands-on JIDAIGEKI
Venues: Toei Studios Kyoto, Shochiku Studios, The Museum of Kyoto<November 7th> 10:00〜11:00【H1】Orientation

Venues: Toei Studios Kyoto

Short self-introductions by each participant and staff member of the studio, and anoverview of the lab as a whole, including transportation, lodging, and other points to note.
(Number of participants: 18 from 12 countries)

14:00〜【H2】Pre Production

Venues: Toei Studios Kyoto, Shothiku Kyoto Studios

Dividing into Toei team and Shochiku team, we confirm the studio and set to be used, andhold a meeting to discuss the shooting and directing plan. (Number of participants: 18 from12 countries)- 9 -November 8 th, 9th 9:00〜18:00【H3-H4】Shooting the short period dramas
Venues: Toei Studios Kyoto, Shothiku Kyoto Studios
Divided into Toei team and Shochiku team, the shooting of the work will be completed in two days.
(Number of participants: 18 from 12 countries)- 10 -

◾️Kyoto Filmmakers Lab Online Work Space＜KyotoFilmmakersLabhq.slack.com＞
Application：SlackPre-production meetings, Masters Session lectures, as well as question and answer sessions anddiscussions, will be conducted online.
（Total number of exchange messages 2,409）- 11 -