SHORT SHORTS FILM FESTIVAL & ASIA 2015

As I entered our theater saying “good morning” today, I was welcomed by the round replies from all of our staffs “GOOOOOD MORNING!!!!” You must feel this energy at Brillia ShortShorts Theater in the final day of the festival. They are going to serve you with mind of OMOTENASHI much more than usual.

First we had guests from “Asia International Competition & Japan Competition – C” as below:

*from “Between times” / Japan, USA, Netherland, Director Ru Kuwahata

*from “Lobster Kid” / Taiwan, Director Joseph Chen-Chieh Hsu

“Between Times” is an animation movie with matured cute taste. Dolls are made of clay, and the set was made of cloth, wood, bottles of YAKULT, caps of plastic bottles and so on. It took 3 years (!!) to complete this film using technique of stop motion, frame photographing, and CG animation.

In the original script of “Lobster Kid” the leading role was supposed to be a boy. But when the director Joseph Hsu met an actress who has good enough acting skill and energy to keep acting with a person who doesn’t speak (monk), he arranged the script and changed the role into a girl.

And he let us know about “binlang” which is a kind of chewing tobacco popular among Taiwanese people. In binlang store along the street, girls wear sexy dresses to get attention from the drivers so that they can boost sales.

And there came the guests from “Asia International Competition & Japan Competition – D” as below:

*from “Anchovies” / Singapore / Director Zulkifli Salleh, Producer Lee Chee Tian

*from “Melodyless Sonata” / Japan / Director Yusaku Okamoto, Music Makoto Tanaka

Cute looks and cute voice！And good acting!! The child actor who played little boy Lat was chosen 10~15 actors through the audition. He looks 5~6 years old boy, though he was already 10 years  old during shooting. He was a grown up boy than I thought!!!

“Melodyless Sonata” is expressing the way to marriage of a middle age couple using the location of Hachioji Nihonkaku Wedding Hall. Recently marriage and match making party are very popular among middle age people. So director Yusaku decided to make a film which theme is about it.

Then the guests from “International Competition – B” are

*from “The Golden Watch” / Sweden, Director Joachim Nakagawa Straning

*from “Father” / Tunisia, Director Lotfi Achour

“The Gold Watch” is absolutely comedy and entertainment. “The shooting was so much fun, but it was hard as well”, says the director Joachim. He called every supermarket in Stockholm to get permission for shooting film and only one shop said OK. Because the store is on operation during day time, they have to go shooting only at night.

Hedi the taxi driver happened to know that his children were born in adultery of his wife. One of the audience asked the director Lotfi, “even though he made a commitment, why was his wife’s look so dubious?” Lotfi replied, “People sometimes loose moral, but that is more human like.”

 And in the final program of this year “Asia International Competition & Japan Competition – G” the guests we had are

*from “Good Take” / Hong Kong Director Chun Wong

*from “barrier” / Japan, Director Keisuke Hakomori, actor Chabetaro Ishizaki,

*from “It cannot move” Director Yoshiaki Sajima

Director Chun Wong appeared 2 min. before the stage! He goes “Actors seek unexpected stories. And I try to give them what they want. But most unexpected things happen in our real life.”

The leading role actor Chabetaro Ishizaki couldn’t come back to real life for days with too much negative energy after shooting, because he went too far in his character of the film “barrier”. “Although this film expresses dark side of human, the message I want to show is extremely opposite”, said the director Keisuke Hakomori.

And the final screening of this year’s SSFF was “It Cannot Move” by the director Yoshiaki Sajima. This is the basic of short film!! “I have confidence that my film is with least budget, shortest shooting term. I wanted to make human comedy not with explosion of laughter but with happy giggle. ”

And at the FINALE all of us did “Cinematic Moment” frame with fingers.

Wish your life would be filled with much cinematic moment. See you next year!!

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