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Exclusive: Cameras have started rolling in Tokyo on Akashi, the debut feature from Japanese and Canadian writer-director Mayumi Yoshida.

Yoshida, best known as an actor for her role in The Man in The High Castle, will also star in the film alongside veteran performers Hana Kino, Chieko Matsubara, Kunio Murai, and rising performer Ryo Tajima.

Described as a “coming-of-age love story,” Akashi follows Kana (Yoshida), an artist who is at a crossroads in her career. After finding out her Grandmother (Kino) has passed, she returns home to Tokyo for the funeral, where she rekindles a romance with childhood love Hiro (Tajima) and uncovers a family secret about her Grandpa (Murai).

Akashi is written and directed by Yoshida, who developed the script through the TIFF Writer’s Studio. The pic produced by Nach Dudsdeemaytha,...

A woman buries her anger deep under a lake of serenity only to discover that every small action or decision can set off a chain of reverberating ripples, in the latest movie from director Naoko Ogigami, aptly named “Ripples” (波紋 Hamon). Her trademark quirky comedy style and unique perspective are still here, but this time her narrative voice is a notch more dramatic.

Ripples is screening at Five Flavours

A prologue set in the aftermath of a fictional eco-disaster, introduces the Sudo family living in a tranquil suburban neighbourhood. Yoriko Sudo (Mariko Tsutsui) is a woman in her 50s, defined by her roles of wife of a salaryman, mother of a disaffected young man and reluctant carer of Osamu's bedridden – but well able to fondle her – father. Water is scarce, as probably contaminated after the earthquake, and bottled water has become a precious good. One ordinary day, Yoriko calls everybody...

A woman buries her anger deep under a lake of serenity only to discover that every small action or decision can set off a chain of reverberating ripples, in the latest movie from director Naoko Ogigami, aptly named “Ripples” (波紋 Hamon). Her trademark quirky comedy style and unique perspective are still here, but this time her narrative voice is a notch more dramatic.

Ripples is screening at Camera Japan

A prologue set in the aftermath of a fictional eco-disaster, introduces the Sudo family living in a tranquil suburban neighbourhood. Yoriko Sudo (Mariko Tsutsui) is a woman in her 50s, defined by her roles of wife of a salaryman, mother of a disaffected young man and reluctant carer of Osamu’s bedridden – but well able to fondle her – father. Water is scarce, as probably contaminated after the earthquake, and bottled water has become a precious good. One ordinary day, Yoriko calls...

The hardships of life in the remote Japanese islands has been a topic of a number of movies lately, most of which, though, present it through a happy-go-lucky prism that occasionally even looks like some sort of promotion. Masahiko Nagasawa follows the same path essentially, but also highlights the issues people living in such locations face, through a subtle approach that also combines coming-of-age elements.

Nagi’s Island is screening at Camera Japan

Following her parent’s divorce, fourth grader Nagi has moved with her mother, Mao, a nurse, to her hometown on a small island in Setouchi in Yamaguchi Prefecture, where her grandmother, a doctor, runs the only clinic. Nagi appears normal and cheerful, but also fosters deep psychological traumas resulting from memories of her alcoholic father abusing her mother, which occasionally trigger panic attacks. The locals know of her issues and always try to help, and this mentality actually goes both ways.

Queer stories are tricky business in South Korea, which more often than not do not succeed at the box-office, thanks to local attitudes towards the subject. Though these perceptions are slowly changing, there’s still a long way to go. While Park Chan-wook’s “The Handmaiden” did see a great deal of success, the slightly unrealistic portrayal of a homosexual relationship was widely criticised and when such relationships are realistically portrayed, the productions tend to be severely ill-received. This makes director Lim Dae-hyeong’s “Moonlit Winter”, his follow-up to the excellent “Merry Christmas, Mr. Mo”, a giant step in the right direction.

“Moonlit Winter” screened at Florence Korea Film Fest

Sae-bom lives with her mother Yoon-hee, who has divorced her police officer husband after years in an unhappy marriage. Though they live together, Yoon-hee is a bit of an enigma for her daughter, who doesn’t know much about her mother yet loves her unconditionally.

With the Hong Kong omnibus narrative “Ten Years” becoming a surprise hit in 2015, it might not come as a surprise that the concept – envisioning the near future of one’s country – inspired various versions in Asia. For the Japanese version, five young directors Chie Hayakawa, Yusuke Kinoshita, Megumi Tsuno, Akiyo Fujimura and Kei Ishikawa were gathered and supervised by Hirokazu Koreeda to present their vision of Japan’s future.

“Ten Years Japan” is screening at Udine Far East Film Festival

Chie Hayakama’s “Plan 75” concerns a young bureaucrat (Satoru Kawaguchi) charged with explaining Plan 75, a governmental euthanasia program, to poor and disabled seniors aged 75 and above – especially those reliant on governmental welfare and thus burdening society from an economical perspective. One day, his pregnant wife (Kinuo Yamada) tells him that her mother signed to papers to join the program.

The second narrative, Yusuke Kinoshita’s “Mischievous Alliance”, frames the story...

With the Hong Kong omnibus narrative “Ten Years” becoming a surprise hit in 2015, it might not come as a surprise that the concept – envisioning the near future of one’s country – inspired various versions in Asia. For the Japanese version, five young directors Chie Hayakawa, Yusuke Kinoshita, Megumi Tsuno, Akiyo Fujimura and Kei Ishikawa were gathered and supervised by Hirokazu Koreeda to present their vision of Japan’s future.

“Ten Years Japan” is screening at San Diego Asian Film Festival (Sdaff)

Chie Hayakama’s “Plan 75” concerns a young bureaucrat (Satoru Kawaguchi) charged with explaining Plan 75, a governmental euthanasia program, to poor and disabled seniors aged 75 and above – especially those reliant on governmental welfare and thus burdening society from an economical perspective. One day, his pregnant wife (Kinuo Yamada) tells him that her mother signed to papers to join the program.

The second narrative, Yusuke Kinoshita’s “Mischievous Alliance”, frames the...