Noticias

Exit 8 has announced its American release window. The Japanese movie is an adaptation of the video game of the same name. Set in the underground world of the 2023 game, Exit 8 tells the story of a man who gets lost in a passageway and follows a guide in an attempt to escape.

The movie is directed by Genki Kawamura and features the leading cast of Kazunari Ninomiya, Yamato Kochi, Naru Asanuma, Kotone Hanase, and Nana Komatsu. Exit 8 screened out of competition at the Cannes Film Festival in May of this year, andwill also go to the Toronto International Film Festival next month.

According to Collider, Exit 8 has officially set its release window. The movie's North American distribution rights were acquired by Neon, and the company announced an early 2026 American release window. However, a more specific release date has not been revealed.

What This Release Window Means For...

As anyone will tell you, this is the perfect time to be a fan of cinema/TV and video games. Now that producers all over the world seem to have finally gotten the hang of adapting video games, every new announcement has the potential to be a great experience. Luckily for Exit 8 fans, this was exactly what happened with the Japanese adaptation of their favorite video game. After making waves in Japanese theaters and in film festivals, the movie is finally gearing up to premiere in America — but you will have to wait a little. Neon acquired distribution rights and is planning an early 2026 release window for the critically acclaimed movie.

If you are planning to be in Canada next month, however, you might get a chance to catch an early screening of Exit 8, since the movie is part of the lineup of the upcoming Toronto International Film Festival.

Kotake Create’s video game Exit 8 is getting a film adaptation from Toho and director Genki Kawamura, and we’ve learned that Neon has picked up the film for release.

“Following its World Premiere at Cannes, Exit 8 will have its North American Premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival,” Neon announced. “Coming soon to theaters.”

Exit 8 is expected in theaters from Neon sometime in 2026.

The walking simulator traps players in an infinite underground loop in a sterile subway passageway, mining psychological scares from liminal spaces.

Here’s the cryptic synopsis: “You are trapped in an endless underground passageway. Observe your surroundings carefully to reach The Exit 8. Don’t overlook any anomalies. If you find anomalies, turn back immediately. If you don’t find anomalies, do not turn back.”

Genki Kawamura (Monster, Suzume) writes, produces, and directs Exit 8. Kazunari Ninomiya, Yamato Kochi, Naru Asanuma, Kotone Hanase,...

Neon has acquired another film from Cannes, taking North American rights to Genki Kawamura’s Japanese thriller Exit 8 before it plays in TIFF Centrepiece next month.

Based on the video game by Kotake Create, the feature follows a man trapped in a subway labyrinth who must find the titular exit while obeying a simple rule that forbids him from overlooking anything out of the ordinary.

Kawamura co-wrote the film with Kentaro Hirase and the cast includes Kazunari Ninomiya, Yamato Kochi, Naru Asanuma, Kotone Hanase, and Nana Komatsu.

Kawamura’s debut feature A Hundred Flowers won best director at San...

Neon has acquired the North American rights to the Japanese thriller “Exit 8.”

The film screened as part of the Midnight section at this year’s Cannes Film Festival and will have its North American debut at the Toronto International Film Festival in the Centerpiece section.

Neon is planning a theatrical release for the film in early 2026.

The film is based on a video game and is directed and written by Genki Kawamura. Kawamura wrote the film with Kentaro Hirase, adapted from the game by Kotake Create. “Exit 8” stars Kazunari Ninomiya, Yamato Kochi, Naru Asanuma, Kotone Hanase, and Nana Komatsu.

The story follows a man trapped in an endless, sterile subway passageway, who sets out to find Exit 8. The rules of his quest are simple: do not overlook anything out of the ordinary. If you discover an anomaly, turn back immediately. If you don’t, carry on. Then...

Neon has acquired the North American rights to Japanese director Genki Kawamura’s thriller Exit 8, a video game adaptation that bowed in Cannes and is next headed to Toronto.

Neon plans an early 2026 theatrical release for the arthouse spin on the 2023 indie game from Kotake Create that has players lost in a Japanese subway labyrinth, with the movie starring Kazunari Ninomiya, Yamato Kochi, Naru Asanuma, Kotone Hanase, and Nana Komatsu.

Exit 8 premiered in the midnight section in Cannes and is booked into the Centerpiece section at the Toronto Film Festival for a North American bow. Kawamura directed Exit 8 based on a script he co-wrote with Kentaro Hirase.

A synopsis from the producers reads: “The story follows a man trapped in an endless sterile subway passageway, who sets out to find Exit 8. The rules of his quest are simple: do not overlook anything out of the ordinary.

It may be August, but Neon isn’t done picking up movies from the Cannes Film Festival. The studio announced Wednesday that it will release Genki Kawamura’s video game adaptation “Exit 8” in theaters in early 2026 after the film had its debut as part of Cannes’ midnight section in May.

Based on the game “Kotake Create,” the film follows a man trapped in an endless sterile subway passageway, who sets out to find Exit 8. The rules of his quest are simple: do not overlook anything out of the ordinary. If you discover an anomaly, turn back immediately. If you don’t, carry on. Then leave from Exit 8. But even a single oversight will send him back to the beginning. Will he ever reach his goal and escape this infinite corridor?

Kawamura wrote the film with Kentaro Hirase. “Exit 8” stars Kazunari Ninomiya, Yamato Kochi, Naru Asanuma, Kotone Hanase,...

Neon has acquired North American rights to Japanese thriller Exit 8, which world premiered at the Cannes Film Festival as part of the midnight section.

Based on the hit video game, the film will make its North American debut next month at the Toronto International Film Festival in the Centerpiece section. Neon plans a theatrical release in early 2026.

Exit 8 is directed and written by Genki Kawamura, who has produced numerous films and won the Best Director Award for his debut feature A Hundred Flowers (2022) at the 70th San Sebastián International Film Festival.

The film debuted in Cannes to strong reviews and an 8-minute standing ovation and has since already secured screenings in more than 100 countries and regions across Asia, Europe, and beyond.

Kawamura wrote the film with Kentaro Hirase, adapted from the game by Kotake Create. It stars Kazunari Ninomiya, Yamato Kochi, Naru Asanuma, Kotone Hanase, and Nana Komatsu.

The world premieres of Saudi filmmaker Haifaa Al Mansour’s crime mystery Unidentified,Erupcja starringCharli Xcx,and Canadian DJ Kid Koala’s animation Space Cadet join picks from Cannes, Venice and Berlin in the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) Centrepiece programme.

The selection of world cinema includes 19 world premieres, including Jan Komasa’s kidnap drama Good Boy starring Stephen Graham and Andrea Riseborough; Kirk Jones’s Tourette’s biopic I Swearabout trailblazer John Davidson starring Robert Aramayo and Peter Mullan, which Studiocanal will distribute in theUK and Bankside Films handles for world sales; Jitank Singh Gurjar’s Indian family drama...

The Toronto International Film Festival has selected 55 movies for its Centrepiece programme of the 50th fest, movies which are a “global showcase of compelling cinema from around the world” per this Am’s release. TIFF, presented by Rogers, runs from Sept. 4-14.

Titles from close to 50 countries including Bolivia, Brazil, Bulgaria, Chad, Colombia, Côte d’Ivoire, France, Germany, Iraq, Ireland, Kenya, Mexico, Poland, Singapore, Taiwan and Thailand are reflected in the curation.

Those filmmakers with works in this part of the lineup, and that also includes North American premieres, are Hubert Davis, Mathieu Denis, Hasan Hadi, Chie Hayakawa, Anders Thomas Jensen, Jan Komasa, Richard Linklater, Sergei Loznitsa, Pietro Marcello, Christian Petzold, Potsy Poncirol and Álvaro Olmos Torrico.

Centrepiece has 19 world premieres including:

Blood Lines, Gail Maurice’s sophomore feature, a pastoral drama of family and reconnection.

Carolina Caroline, directed by Adam Carter Rehmeier, an outlaw romance starring Samara Weaving and Kyle Gallner.

Toronto International Film Festival announced the lineup for its Centerpiece program on Tuesday, spotlighting 55 total films from nearly 50 countries. “Blue Moon” from director Richard Linklater, a collaboration between the U.S. and Ireland, will have its North American premiere in the largely international section of the festival.

Of the 55 films screening in the Centerpiece program, 51 represent countries outside of the U.S. Some are collaborations with the U.S., while most are entirely international productions. Likewise, only six films are sole productions of Canada, with one co-production between Canada and Hungary.

18 of the films present in the section will have their world premieres at TIFF. These include “Good Boy,” starring Stephen Graham and Andrea Riseborough; Samara Weaving and Kyle Gallner “Carolina Caroline,” from director Adam Carter Rehmeier, who previously made “Dinner in America” and “Snack Shack”; and “Wasteman,” the debut feature from Cal McMau starring David Jonsson from “Alien: Romulus” and “Industry.

Don’t let anybody tell you differently: the fall festival announcements aren’t even close to being over. Look no further than the second part of today’s morning double whammy, as the Toronto International Film Festival has just announced its sprawling Centrepiece program, just one hour after the New York Film Festival released its own Main Slate. On its own, this lineup would be juicy enough. Paired with NYFF? Well, there goes our morning.

TIFF’s internationally-focused section has always been a feast for fans of global cinema, and this year’s lineup is no exception. This year, there are 55 titles (and 19 world premieres) from filmmakers representing nearly fifty countries, all reflecting the festival’s enduring commitment to global cinema.

This year’s lineup includes the latest work from influential filmmakers Hubert Davis, Mathieu Denis, Hasan Hadi, Chie Hayakawa, Anders Thomas Jensen, Jan Komasa, Richard Linklater, Sergei Loznitsa, Pietro Marcello,...

The Toronto Film Festival on Tuesday unveiled 55 new film titles for its global-film focused Centerpiece program, including titles from Richard Linklater, Christian Petzold, Anders Thomas Jensen, Pietro Marcello and Álvaro Olmos Torrico.

There’s world premieres for the “Brat” singer Charli xcx-starrer Erupcja from director Peter Ohs; the Stephen Graham, Andrea Riseborough and Anson Boon starring thriller Good Boy, from director Jan Komasa and co-producer Jeremy Thomas; Adam Carter Rehmeier’s romantic crime thriller Carolina Caroline, starring Samara Weaving; and Kirk Jones’ Tourette Syndrome drama I Swear, which stars Robert Aramayo as John Davidson, the trailblazing campaigner.

The Mysterious Gaze of the Flamingo. Courtesy of Cannes Film Festival

There’s also first looks for Gail Maurice’s indigenous drama Blood Lines, where the director stars alongside Tamara Podemski, Dana Solomon and Melanie Bray; Nomad Shadow, Eimi Imanishi’s debut feature about a refugee to Europe forced to return to Western Sahara; The Cost of Heaven,...

"Enter the loop..." Can you find your way out of a Japanese train station? Umbrella Entertainment down in Australia is the first to release an official English language trailer for the Japanese film Exit 8, a time loop horror thriller from filmmaker Genki Kawamura. This premiered at the 2025 Cannes Film Festival in the Midnight section – somehow I completely missed it! A man gets lost in an underground passage. He follows the "guide" through the passage, but one after another, strange things happen to him. Is this space real? Or an illusion? Will the man be able to escape? This is based on a video game (it's on Steam), which is obvious because the trailer has a game vibe, and it reminds me of "Severance". The rules of his quest are simple: do not overlook anything out of the ordinary. If you discover an anomaly, turn back immediately. If you don't,...

La nueva edición tendrá como eje temático el cruce entre el humor y lo fantástico. © Sitges

Apuntad en vuestra agenda cinéfila: del 9 al 19 de octubre, la ciudad costera de Sitges volverá a metamorfosearse en la capital del cine fantástico. Hoy, durante la rueda de prensa celebrada en la Fàbrica Moritz Barcelona, Ángel Sala y Mònica Garcia i Massagué, Director Artístico del Festival y Directora de la Fundación, respectivamente, han ofrecido el primer gran anticipo de la programación del Festival de Sitges 2025, con el cruce entre el humor y el género fantástico como hilo conductor.

En su edición número 58, el Festival Internacional de Cinema Fantàstic de Catalunya inaugurará con Alpha, el nuevo largometraje de la cineasta francesa Julia Ducournau, que se convierte en la tercera mujer en inaugurar Sitges después de que lo hicieran Mary Harron y Ana Lily Amirpour. Esta vez, su nueva película explora un mundo distópico que funciona...

Melbourne International Film Festival (Miff) has unveiled a selection of more than 275 titles for its 73rd edition, including the 10 features vying for Australia’s biggest film prize.

The festival is set to run from August 7-24 across Melbourne, regional Victoria and online, and will open with Mary Bronstein’s If I Had Legs I’d Kick You. The US dark comedy about an overwhelmed mother pushed to her limits premiered at Sundance before going on to play the Berlinale, where Australian actress Rose Byrne won the Silver Bear for best performance.

The film will also play in Miff’s Bright Horizon’s Competition,...

Probably one of the industry’s most failed experiments, video game adaptations have repeatedly been the laughing stock of audiences and critics, particularly when it comes to Hollywood productions. Recently, however, Asian cinema has produced works like the 2019 Taiwanese “Detention”, which showed that video games can actually be adapted into stories of genuine quality. “Exit 8”, based on the homonymous 2023 indie game that challenged players to walk through a sterile subway corridor while spotting visual anomalies, retains the core of the original but expands it into something particularly cinematic. Premiering out of competition at the 2025 Cannes Film Festival, “Exit 8” received an eight-minute standing ovation (which no one cares about) and is now screening in Neuchatel.

Exit 8 is screening at Neuchatel International Fantastic Film Festival

Starting with a lengthy Pov sequence that directly connects with the gameplay, the movie introduces us to the protagonist, known only as the Lost Man,...

Hayao Miyazaki Nearly Made an R-Rated Horror Film That Could’ve Redefined Studio Ghibli (Photo Credit – Netflix)

Studio Ghibli has built its reputation on thoughtful narratives involving wonder, nature, and quiet reflection. Films including Spirited Away, Totoro, and Princess Mononoke beautifully combine fantasy aspects with real emotion to capture the curiosity of audiences from children to adults. Yet at one point, the studio almost took a far more darker approach.

Apparently hidden behind Ghibli’s gentle image was a surprising idea and that was an adaptation of Parasyte, the horror manga by Hitoshi Iwaaki. Although it sounds far removed from Ghibli’s world, the project was seriously discussed and Hayao Miyazaki himself was interested. However, the idea faded before it began, not because it didn’t fit, but because someone else already owned the rights.

Parasyte (2014) pic.twitter.com/xRWhqTynMS

— Anime Vibes (@finalformlab) May 16, 2025

Hayao Miyazaki and Toshio Suzuki Considered...

by Jean-Marc Thérouanne

The Vesoul International Film Festival of Asian Cinema salutes fraternally the great Iranian director Jafar Panahi, whose film «un simple accident» won the prestigious Palme d’or at the 78th Cannes Film Festival. This well-deserved award crowns a humanist thriller that poses the serious question of the possibility of the pardon of the oppressed towards his executioner to achieve national reconciliation, on condition of repentance of the latter.

Jafar Panahi is a giant of the world cinema, multi-award-winning author of eleven feature films and seven shorts. He was president of the jury at the 10th Fica Vesoul 2004.

“Simple accident” also wins the citizenship award.

With Shu Qi, main actress in « Résurrection » by Bi Gan (Crédit photo J-m Thérouanne)

The Vesoul Iff Asian Cinema also extends its warm congratulations to Chinese director Bi Gan for the Special Prize of the Cannes 2025 jury, awarded to his film «Résurrection». After...

The 78th edition of the Cannes Film Festival has now concluded, with Jafar Panahi’s It Was Just an Accident taking home the Palme d’Or (see all jury winners here). While our coverage will continue with a few more reviews this week––and far beyond as we provide updates on the journey of these selections––we’ve asked our contributors on the ground to share favorites.

See their picks below, and explore all of our coverage here.

Leonardo Goi (@LeonardoGoi)

1. Sirat (Oliver Laxe)

2. Sound of Falling (Mascha Schilinski)

3. The Last One For The Road (Francesco Sossai)

4. The Secret Agent (Kleber Mendonça Filho)

5. Resurrection (Bi Gan)

6. It Was Just an Accident (Jafar Panahi)

7. Heads or Tails (Alessio Rigo de Righi and Matteo Zoppis)

8. Lucky Lu (Lloyd Lee Choi)

9. Two Prosecutors (Sergei Loznitsa)

10. Mirrors No. 3 (Christian Petzold)

Read all of Leonardo’s reviews here.

Luke Hicks (@lou_hicks)

1. Sirat (Oliver Laxe...

The 2nd edition of the Prix Luciole was held during the 78th Cannes Film Festival, reaffirming its unique position as the first independent award dedicated to the art of film posters during the festival. Held on May 22, the ceremony brought together filmmakers, designers, and visual artists for a focused and thoughtful celebration of cinematic imagery and graphic design in film.

The ceremony took place at the MO11 Art Gallery, just steps from the Palais des Festivals, where the festival’s official poster Un homme et une femme hung in plain view. This visual was designed by the acclaimed French studio Hartland Villa, founded by Lionel Avignon and Stefan de Vivies, who have shaped Cannes’ visual language since 2021 with a minimalist and lyrical approach that defines the festival’s unique visual identity.

Lionel and Stefan returned this year as jury members of the Prix Luciole, joined by renowned film distributor and industry consultant Thomas Pibarot,...

A commuter’s footsteps echo beneath stark fluorescent tubes as he presses forward into a corridor that repeats itself with clockwork precision. In Exit 8, Genki Kawamura transposes a cult 2023 indie game’s “spot-the-difference” premise into a tense psychological thriller. The film’s opening long take casts us in the shoes of “The Lost Man” (Kazunari Ninomiya), whose ordinary subway commute fractures into a looping passageway where each turn holds a silent test. He must spot anomalies—minor shifts in signage, a vent cover ajar, the silent figure of the “Walking Man”—to advance or be thrust back to square one.

Ninomiya’s commuter is tethered to real-world stakes: a voicemail from an ex-girlfriend reveals her pregnancy, and his unease about fatherhood underlies every repeated step. The corridor’s white-tiled expanse, bathed in clinical light, doubles as a stage for mounting tension, its sterile uniformity amplifying each slight variation. Kawamura...

I’ve long been fascinated by what I call No Exit Horror, a term I’ve coined for a sub-genre rooted in existential dread, where characters are trapped in singular, oppressive spaces they cannot escape. Think of such liminal space thrillers as Cube, Dead End, Pontypool, or even The Shining. I took the name from French writer/philosopher Jean-Paul Sartre, of course, and like his play No Exit, these films trap their characters not just in rooms but in loops of self-denial, regret, or moral indecision.

Genki Kawamura’s masterful Exit 8, which just had its eerie and unforgettable premiere in the Cannes Midnight Screenings section, uses this trope so effectively that it might just be the most exceptional video game adaptation ever made.

Adapted from a cult Japanese video game, Exit 8 follows “The Lost Man,” played with raw and adorable restraint by Kazunari Ninomiya. On a tedious underground...

Ask anyone — it’s easy to get lost in the Tokyo subway. The city’s underground boasts ample signposting to guide commuters and tourists — but there’s so much of it, the passageways and stairways all look alike, and oh, we’re right back where we started.

Genki Kawamura’s delightful blockbuster provocation “Exit 8” understands and exploits these frustrations, transforming these claustrophobic corridors into a site of psychological exploration, personal choice, and national anxieties.

Quite possibly the first video game adaptation to premiere at the Cannes Film Festival, “Exit 8” is adapted from the virally successful 2023 independent game of the same name, which has now hit over 1.5 million downloads worldwide and has further internet cache on YouTube and Twitch (the most popular video has 6.2 million views at the time of writing). Ostensibly a first-person walking simulator, “Exit 8” the game is “Spot the Difference” by way of “The Stanley Parable,...

Buyers are finally wise to the fact that Cannes is driving the Oscar race and even the specialized box office. Everyone wants to find the next “Anora,” “The Substance,” “Emilia Perez,” or “Anatomy of a Fall.” And more buyers like Mubi, Metrograph, Sideshow, and other upstarts have emerged to take on the likes of Neon and A24, who come to Cannes armed with several titles already set to debut.

Below, we’ve identified 13 movies looking for homes that could be the next awards breakout, including new films from Lynne Ramsay and Richard Linklater and the debuts of Kristen Stewart and Harris Dickinson.

All titles presented alphabetically.

“The Chronology of Water” (Un Certain Regard)

Director: Kristen Stewart

Stars: Imogen Poots, Thora Birch, Jim Belushi, Tom Sturridge

Buzz: Even if it’s in a sidebar for a first-time director, Kristen Stewart’s debut should be a hot ticket with a lot of...

The Cannes Film Festival has released the official selection for its 78th edition, featuring a mix of returning auteurs and first-time filmmakers. Scheduled to run from May 13 to 24, this year’s lineup includes world premieres from directors such as Wes Anderson, Julia Ducournau, Ari Aster, and Richard Linklater.

Announced by festival delegate general Thierry Frémaux and president Iris Knobloch during a press conference in Paris, the lineup spans the main competition, Un Certain Regard, and various sidebars. French actor and Academy Award winner Juliette Binoche will serve as jury president. The rest of the jury remains unannounced.

Among the films selected for competition is Anderson’s The Phoenician Scheme, debuting shortly before its theatrical release. Ari Aster returns with Eddington, a Western-inflected film distributed by A24. Linklater brings Nouvelle Vague, focused on the making of Jean-Luc Godard’s Breathless. Ducournau’s Alpha is set in the 1980s and centers on...

Ahead of the 78th Cannes Film Festival, taking place May 13 to 24, the lineup has now been unveiled. Iris Knobloch, President of the Festival de Cannes, and Thierry Frémaux, General Delegate, have revealed the slate this morning.

Highlights include Ari Aster’s Eddington, Wes Anderson’s The Phoenician Scheme, Kelly Reichardt’s The Mastermind, Joachim Trier’s Sentimal Value, Kleber Mendonça Filho’s The Secret Agent, Richard Linklater’s Nouvelle Vague, Julia Ducournau’s Alpha, Jafar Panahi’s It Was Just An Accident, Carla Simon’s Romeria, and more. In other sections we have Rebecca Zlotowski’s Vie Privée, the directorial debuts of Scarlett Johansson and Harris Dickinson, Michael Angelo Covino’s Splitsville, Sebastián Lelio’s The Wave, Sylvain Chomet’s The Magnificent Life of Marcel Pagnol, and more.

See below.

In Competition

After (Oliver Laxe)

Alpha (Julia Ducournau)

The Eagles of the Republic (Tarik Saleh)

Eddington (Ari Aster)

Dossier 137 (Dominik Moll...

Horror films are increasingly popular nowadays, so there is an abundance of news to keep tabs on every week. Whether it's casting news, release dates, or updates on upcoming films, there's plenty to juggle. It's an exciting time to be a horror fan, but it can certainly be overwhelming to try to keep up with everything.

That's why we've compiled some of this week's most notable horror genre updates all in one place so you can get all the news in one convenient place.

Lily-Rose Depp stars as Ellen Hutter in Nosferatu | Focus Features Robert Eggers teases his next film Werwulf

Many of us are still riding the high of Nosferatu, but filmmaker Robert Eggers is already looking ahead to his next movie, a project about werewolves set in 13th-century England, complete with period-accurate dialogue.

During a recent press panel, the director discussed what fans can expect from Werwulf, neglecting...

Kotake Create’s 2023 walking simulator, The Exit 8, traps players in an infinite underground loop, mining psychological scares from liminal spaces. A live-action film adaptation is on the way from Toho Co., Ltd.

Watch the eerie announcement video below, which teases the endless loops and promises a 2025 release in Japan and looks almost identical to the game.

Exit 8 follows “A man trapped in an endless sterile subway passageway on a frustrating mission to get out.”

The video game’s synopsis gives only slightly more details: “You are trapped in an endless underground passageway. Observe your surroundings carefully to reach ‘The Exit 8’. Don’t overlook any anomalies. If you find anomalies, turn back immediately. If you don’t find anomalies, do not turn back. To go out from Exit 8.”

Japanese filmmaker Genki Kawamura writes, produces, and directs Exit 8.

Toho shared an official statement from Kotake Create about the upcoming adaptation: “‘Exit 8’ will...

Exclusive: Goodfellas has unveiled one of its biggest European Film Market slates ever featuring upcoming films by Cristian Mungiu, Rodrigo Sorogoyen, Saeed Roustaee, Claire Denis, Mario Martone and Raoul Peck.

The company is also handling a trio of Berlin Film Festival titles: Lucile Hadžihalilović’s Golden Bear contender The Ice Tower with Marion Cotillard; Burhan Qurbani’s No Beast. So Fierce. in Berlinale Special; and a fresh acquisition, Bálint Dániel Sós’ Growing Down.

The latter film, which premieres in the new competitive Perspectives section aimed at first films, revolves around a widowed father of two who is tested by fate when he becomes the only witness of a serious accident involving his stepdaughter caused by his youngest son.

Goodfellas will begin pre-sales on Romanian director Mungiu’s first English-language picture Fjord, with Oscar nominee Sebastian Stan (The Apprentice) and Cannes Best Actress winner Renate Reinsve (The Worst Person in the World...

Hayao Miyazaki’s movies have always managed to capture its target audience of young children despite having darker undertones. A great example is Spirited Away, Studio Ghibli’s highest-grossing film which portrays consumerism and environmentalism under the facade of a fantasy movie.

Many people consider that if Hayao Miyazaki has one competitor, it would be Makoto Shinkai. Shinkai’s movies have captured the hearts of audiences across all age groups, and their themes of romance have tugged at heartstrings.

Hayao Miyazaki’s Spirited Away Box Office Record was Beaten by One Makoto Shinkai Movie Spirited Away (2001) | Credits: Studio Ghibli

If you look at the list of highest-earning movies in Japan, it is peppered with Shinkai and Ghibli movies. Spirited Away premiered in 2001 and grossed around $395 million at the worldwide box office. It instantly became the highest-earning movie in Japanese history. It held its record till 2016 when Makoto Shinkai released Your Name,...

Japan’s Nikkatsu has secured key sales of Cloud, the upcoming suspense thriller by acclaimed auteur Kiyoshi Kurosawa, ahead of its premiere at the Venice Film Festival.

The feature has been acquired for France (Art House Films), Spain (A Contracorriente Films), Italy (Minerva Pictures) and Taiwan (Sky Digi Entertainment).

Cloud will play out of competition at Venice, which runs from August 28-September 7 and revealed its line-up today (July 23).

It will mark a return to the Lido for Kurosawa, who won the Silver Lion for best director at Venice in 2020 with Wife Of A Spy.

The story, written by Kurosawa, centres...

Film licensors Gkids, Anime Ltd. and Charades have now revealed the international release window for The Colors Within (Kiminoiro), animated by Science Saru and helmed by the acclaimed A Silent Voice anime director Naoko Yamada.

In Winter 2024, Gkids will distribute The Colors Within in North America, Latin America, Australia and New Zealand, with Anime Ltd. acquiring the film for the United Kingdom, Ireland and all of Europe. Plaion Pictures will handle Italian and German-speaking territories. Meanwhile, Gkids and Anime Ltd have engaged Charades to manage the sales for the rest of Europe, Latin America, Australia and New Zealand. The film debuts in Japan on Aug. 30, 2024, and will have its world premiere at the 2024 Annecy International Animated Film Festival from June 9-15. Readers can check out the movie trailer below.

Related Crunchyroll Drops Haikyu Movie's First Subbed Trailer Ahead of U.S. Spring Release Crunchyroll unveils the first official English teaser...

Gkids and European animation distributor Anime Ltd. have acquired global rights to Naoko Yamada’s new film “The Colors Within.” Gkids has acquired the film for North America, Latin America, Australia and New Zealand, while Anime Ltd. has acquired the film for the United Kingdom, Ireland, and all of Europe.

“We have long admired Naoko Yamada and her ability to create dazzling, emotional stories out of the everyday concerns of teenagers,” said Gkids president David Jesteadt. “’The Colors Within’ is her most beautiful film yet, and we are proud to partner with our friends at Anime Ltd. on another soon to be classic from Science Saru and Story inc., who are responsible for some of the best anime productions of this new century.”

According to an official logline, “The Colors Within” follows “a high school student with the ability to see the ‘colors’ of others. Colors of bliss, excitement and serenity,...

Gkids, the Academy Award-winning producer and distributor announced a multi-territory acquisition of The Colors Within (Japanese title: Kiminoiro) which is directed by Naoko Yamada (A Silent Voice), with production from studio Science Saru (Scott Pilgrim Takes Off).

The film will have its world premiere in competition at the 2024 Annecy International Animated Film Festival. Gkids and Anime Ltd. will theatrically release the film in both its original Japanese language and a new English-dubbed version this winter, and Gkids will qualify the film for 2024-25 awards consideration. The film will be domestically released in Japan on August 30th.

The Colors Within follows Totsuko, a high school student with the ability to see the ‘colors’ of others. Colors of bliss, excitement, and serenity, plus a color she treasures as her favorite. Kimi, a classmate at her school, gives off the most beautiful color of all. Although she doesn’t play an instrument, Totsuko...

US outfit Gkids has partnered with the UK’s Anime Ltd. to secure international rights to The Colors Within, the highly anticipated anime feature directed by Naoko Yamada.

It was revealed today that the upcoming feature will receive its world premiere in competition at the Annecy International Animation Film Festival (June 9-15).

The two companies secured the rights – which exclude Asia, the Middle East and North Africa – from Japan’s Story Inc. and have appointed Paris-based Charades to handle sales for select territories.

Gkids has rights for North America, Latin America, Australia and New Zealand. Anime Ltd. has rights for the UK,...

Critically acclaimed anime director Naoko Yamada, whose filmography includes the Sound! Euphonium series, Clannad, and K-On!, has us excited for her next work, which is set to come out this year. Kimi no Iro (Your Color) was initially set to be released in 2023, but the title has been delayed to 2024. Now, with the release of the film’s first trailer, we have also confirmed the premiere date for the movie, which is going to be August 30, 2024.

Kimi no Iro‘s fall 2023-to-summer 2024 delay upset some fans, but the movie is now on track to release in several months’ time, so fans can rejoice. The movie will follow high school student Totsuko, who has the ability to perceive the emotions of other people as colors. Because of this ability, she has to tread very lightly and tell white lies to other people to avoid darkening their colors, which is important to her.

Japanese auteur Kiyoshi Kurosawa, who won best director at Venice in 2020 with Wife Of A Spy, is working on a new suspense thriller titled Cloud, which will be introduced to buyers at the EFM by Japanese studio Nikkatsu Corporation.

The feature is in post-production with a Japanese release set for September 2024. A first look at the film can be seen above.

Written by Kurosawa, the story centres on Ryosuke Yoshii, an enigmatic young man who tries to make money by reselling shrewdly obtained goods on the internet under the pseudonym ‘Ratel’.

The film stars Masaki Suda, who won best actor...

After a short tease over a week ago , the full music video for Ado’s newest song, a collaboration with South Korean confectionery manufacturer Lotte for their 60th anniversary, “Chocolat Cadabra” was released tonight, showcasing the full might of a Yoh Yoshinari-directed, Studio Trigger-produced music video. The story takes place in a chocolate factory late at night when a girl wanders in from the real world and meets another girl who lives in a magical world and a girl who lives in a scientific world with delicious chocolates being made one after another. "Chocolat Cadabra" is a magic melody that makes chocolate delicious. Chocolat Cadabra key visual Related: Japanese Musician Ado’s First World Tour Heads to the United States and Europe Yoshinari also designed the characters of the music video with Chiho Kiyota as the sub-director and sub-character designer and Naoko Tsutsumi as the animation producer at studio Trigger.

Lotte, a a confectionery manufacturer headquartered in Tokyo, will celebrate the 60th anniversary of its chocolate business on February 1, 2024, and as part of the 60th anniversary promotion project, an anime TV commercial animated by Trigger will begin airing in Japan on January 22. The clip is planned and produced by Genki Kawamura, known for his producing works for the anime films by Makoto Shinkai, such as Your Name. and Suzume , while Yo Yoshinari ( Little Witch Academia ) served as character designer and director. Additionally, singer Ado provided a new song "Chocolat Cadabra" for the commercial. The story takes place in a chocolate factory late at night. A girl wanders into the factory from the real world and meets a girl who lives in the magical world and a girl who lives in the scientific world, and and delicious chocolates are being made one after another. "Chocolat Cadabra," a magic spell that makes chocolate delicious,...

The winners of the British Independent Film Awards (BIFA) were announced at the annual ceremony at Old Billingsgate with BIFA patron Ray Winstone kicking off the celebration of independent film.

The award for Best British Independent Film, presented by Fiona Shaw, went to Andrew Haigh’s ‘All of Us Strangers’, a beautifully unsettling tale of a writer revisiting his past, starring Andrew Scott. Haigh, who was previously BIFA nominated for 2015’s 45 Years and 2018’s Lean on Pete, also came away with the coveted awards for Best Director sponsored by Sky Cinema and Best Screenplay sponsored by Apple Original Films.

There were two winners announced for Best Supporting Performance from a field of ten nominees and Paul Mescal took one of those trophies for his role in the film. All of Us Strangers won four awards on the night.

Best Lead Performance went to Mia McKenna-Bruce in Molly Manning Walker...

Once more we celebrate another remarkable year for British talent, as the 2023 British Independent Film Awards rolled out their red carpet this evening. We were there once again on the carpet to talk with the nominees and presenters, all to champion a fierce and fulsome chorus of new cinematic voices.

A full list of winners follows the interviews. Colin Hart and Ethan Hart were on the red carpet, here are their interviews.

The 2023 BIFAs Red Carpet Interviews

The full list of winners is below.

Best British Independent Film All Of Us Strangers – Andrew Haigh, Graham Broadbent, Pete Czernin, Sarah Harvey Femme – Sam H Freeman, Ng Choon Ping, Myles Payne, Sam Ritzenberg How To Have Sex – Molly Manning Walker, Ivana MacKinnon, Emily Leo, Konstantinos Kontovrakis Rye Lane – Raine Allen-Miller, Nathan Bryon, Tom Melia, Yvonne Isimeme Ibazebo, Damian Jones Scrapper – Charlotte Regan, Theo Barrowclough Best Joint Lead Performance David Jonsson, Vivian Oparah – Rye Lane Nathan Stewart-Jarrett,...

The British Independent Film Award nominations have been unveiled, with “Rye Lane” leading the honors.

The BIFA ceremony will take place Sunday, December 3. “Rye Lane” tops the nominations with 16 nods, followed by 14 nominations for both “All of Us Strangers” and “Scrapper.” “How to Have Sex” follows with 13 nominations, plus 11 nods for “Femme.”

In total, 26 British feature films were recognized. Hosts Susan Wokoma and Morfydd Clark announced the 2023 nominations from One Hundred Shoreditch, London on November 2. Previous BIFA nominees like Tilda Swinton, Paul Mescal, Jamie Bell, and Amir El-Masry are recognized this year, with Andrew Scott being the sole male nominee for Best Lead Performance.

Raine Allen-Miller’s romantic comedy “Rye Lane” is dually nominated for Best Director and the Best Debut Director (The Douglas Hickox Award), as well as Best Screenplay, Best Debut Screenwriter, and leads Vivian Oparah and David Jonsson for Best Joint Lead Performance. Oparah is additionally recognized in the Breakthrough Performance category.

Raine Allen-Miller’s debut feature Rye Lane leads this year’s British Independent Film Award nominations with 16 nods, including Best Director and Best British Independent Film.

Allen-Miller’s Peckham-set feature also has nominations for Best Screenplay and Best Debut Screenwriter for writing duo Nathan Bryon and Tom Melia, as well as a nod for Yvonne Isimeme Ibazebo for Breakthrough Producer. The film’s leads Vivian Oparah and David Jonsson scored a Best Joint Lead Performance nomination. Oparah is also nominated in Breakthrough Performance.

Rye Lane is trailed by Scrapper and All Of Us Strangers, which both clocked 14 nominations. Scrapper received four nominations for debut feature filmmaker Charlotte Regan, including Best Director and Best Screenplay. All Of Us Strangers clocked Best Director. In the performance categories, Andrew Scott picked up a Best Lead Performance nomination, and Jamie Bell, Claire Foy, and Paul Mescal grabbed a Best Supporting Performance nod each. Seven...

The British Independent Film Awards (BIFAs) nominations were unveiled Thursday morninh by star hosts Susan Wokoma and Morfydd Clark at One Hundred Shoreditch, London.

“Casting a spotlight on the incredible talent working in the British film industry, this year’s list once again includes exceptional debuts from the U.K.’s brightest new talent alongside previous BIFA nominees, such as Tilda Swinton, Paul Mescal, Jamie Bell and Amir El-Masr,” the organization said.

Leading the nominations with 16 is Rye Lane, Raine Allen-Miller’s London-set romantic comedy following a pair of semi-reluctant lovers on an impromptu tour of Peckham. Among others, it scores nominations for Allen-Miller for best director and best debut director, best screenplay debut screenwriter for writing duo Nathan Bryon and Tom Melia, as well as a best joint lead performance nom for stars Vivian Oparah and David Jonsson. Oparah is also nominated in the breakthrough performance category. Rye Lane...

Films set in London dominate the nominations.

Raine Allen-Miller’s London-set romantic comedy Rye Lane leads the nominations for the 2023 British Independent Film Awards (Bifas), followed closely by Charlotte Regan’s Scrapper and Andrew Haigh’s All Of Us Strangers.

Rye Lane has scored 16 nominations, including best British independent film, director and debut director for Allen-Miller; plus best screenplay and debut screenwriter for Nathan Bryon and Tom Melia. Vivian Oparah is nominated for breakthrough performance, as well as for best joint lead performance alongside David Jonsson.

Scroll down for the full list of nominations

Scrapper, another London-set first film, received 14 nominations,...

Exclusive: There’s been much celebratory talk here at the Tokyo Film Festival about a new dawn of internationally-minded Japanese artists led by directors such as Hirokazu Kore-eda, Makoto Shinkai, and Ryusuke Hamaguchi.

One of the key creative voices often mentioned amongst this new Japanese set is Genki Kawamura, known internationally by audiences as the writer of If Cats Disappeared from the World, one of Japanese literature’s most successful contemporary novels, and the filmmaker who brought that book and titles such as Suzume, Weathering with You, and, most recently, Kore-eda’s Cannes prize-winning Monster to the big screen.

Born in Yokohama in 1979, Kawamura began his career at entertainment juggernaut Toho, where he was identified early as a promising talent. He cut his teeth on pics like Tetsuya Nakashima’s 2010 feature Confessions, which was shortlisted for the Best International Feature Oscar, and Mamoru Hosoda’s The Boy and the Beast.

Final five nominations to be announced on November 2.

Steve McQueen’s Occupied City, Justine Triet’s Anatomy Of A Fall and Todd Haynes’ May December are among the titles on the latest British Independent Film Awards (BIFA) longlists, for Best Feature Documentary and Best International Independent Film.

15 films are on the documentary longlist, with five of them by first-time directors; with 17 films on the international list.

Scroll down for the longlists

Alongside McQueen’s film combining analysis of Amsterdam during the Second World War with the present day, documentary titles include Kevin MacDonald’s High & Low: John Galliano about the...

Japanese filmmaker Ryusuke Hamaguchi’s latest feature, Evil Does Not Exist, leads this year’s Asia Pacific Screen Awards (Apsa) with four nods, including the gong for Best Film.

Hamaguchi’s nominations haul includes Best Director, Best Screenplay, and Best Cinematography for Yoshio Kitagawa. The film is Hamaguchi’s first film since his Oscar-winning Drive My Car and debuted at this year’s Venice Film Festival. The pic follows Takumi and his daughter Hana, who live in Mizubiki Village, close to Tokyo. Like generations before them, they live a modest life according to the cycles and order of nature. A plan to construct a glamping site near Takumi’s house, offering city residents a comfortable “escape” to nature, threatens to endanger the ecological balance of the area and the local people’s way of life.

Also nominated in the Best Film category are Wim Wenders’s Perfect Days, Snow Leopard by Pema Tseden,...

Nyaff unveils first wave of features from China, Hong Kong, Japan and beyond.

The New York Asian Film Festival (Nyaff) has unveiled the first wave of features for its 22nd edition and announced that Japanese actor Ryohei Suzuki will receive the Screen International Rising Star award.

Nyaff will run from July 14-30 at the city’s Film at Lincoln Center, with a programme of more than 60 titles, and Suzuki will be presented with the award recognising emerging talent from East Asia on July 15.

Suzuki has been acting on screen for more than 15 years, with a string of roles in Japanese...