New York Japan CineFest 2017 |
ニューヨーク・ジャパン・シネ・フェスト Film Festival

Highlighting some of the most exciting new voices in cinema, New York Japan CineFest returns to the JICC for the third year in a row to present a night of seven animated short films to celebrate the 100th anniversary of Japanese animation.

The New York Japan CineFest (NYJCF) is now in its 7th year, is a film festival of short films from up and coming Japanese and Japanese-American filmmakers. It has been presented in New York City at the Asia Society and since 2015 has expanded by holding screenings around the U.S. and in Japan. The festival focuses on the independent filmmakers who committed to achieving their full potential and expressing their voice and vision to the world. For more information about the festival, please visit the New York Japan CineFest website.

Join us after the screenings for a special discussion and Q&A with Naoko Hara, animator for "The Shining Star of Losers Everywhere"!

• In the Clock | とけいのはなし
  Japan | 2015 | 9 min | Animation | Directed by Shizuka Abe
  He is a clock work toy. His work is performing in front of the clock every 3 hours. One day, he meets the doll who is on the music box.
  
  
• Double Eyes | ふたつめ
  Japan | 2015 | 5 min | Experimental | Directed by Mizuki Kiyama
  We are made up of two symmetrical parts: the left and the right. Not only our bodies but also our mentality, consists of twin elements, such as instinct and intellect, or the objective and subjective. These dual qualities make up a whole person. This animation humorously explores this fact, which we often take for granted.
  
  
• 01001001.
  Japan | 2016 | 3 min | Science-Fiction | Directed by Yu Sato
  A robot wakes up among heaps of trash in the deep recesses of a dark alley. With no recollection of what happened before or after he was thrown away, will this robot try to return home to the family he worked for?
  
  
• Vita Lakamaya | ウィータ・ラカーマヤ
  Japan | 2015 | 7 min | Experimental | Directed by Akihito Izuhara
  In the woods, every creature is sleeping. Listen carefully to their quiet breathing. It’s the sounds of this innocent world that called “Vita lakamaya”....
  
  
• Complex x Complex | こんぷれっくすxコンプレックス
  Japan | 2015 | 24 min | Drama | Directed by Miyuki Fukuda
  Eighth grader Yui longs to be a grown-up. She considers armpit hair the symbol of adulthood, so her classmate Takeo—who has the thickest underarm hair in the class—becomes her idol. Is it love? A coming-of-age story about puberty, love, and halting conversation.
  
  
• Pigtails | みつあみの神様
  Japan | 2014 | 28 min | Drama | Directed by Yoshimi Itazu
  The earth shook. The sea roared. And then...There is a small solitary house standing by the seaside. A pigtailbraided girl has been living alone since that fateful day. Mail is no longer delivered, yet she hangs the laundry to dry as usual. A delicate fable of hope and rebirth in a cruel and gentle world after an unnamed disaster.
  
  
• The Shining Star of Losers Everywhere | 負け組の星、ハルウララ
  USA | 2016 | 18 min | Documentary | Directed by Mickey Duzyj
  In 2003, Japan was plunged into economic darkness, and people needed a ray of hope. They found one in Haru Urara, a racehorse with a pink Hello Kitty mask and a career-long losing streak.