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After leveraging his success in J-horror into a string of grounded social dramas that culminated with the 2008 masterpiece “Tokyo Sonata,” Japanese auteur Kurosawa Kiyoshi seemed to hit the ceiling of his talent or grow bored of himself. Possibly both. The years that followed told the story of a restless artist who was desperate for something — anything — that might live up to the prescient chill of “Pulse,” or the disquieting uncertainty of “Bright Future.”

Kurosawa’s search led him down an increasingly esoteric path that saw him zig-zag from a pair of lifeless ghost dramas (“Journey to the Shore” and the French-language “Daguerreotype”), to an interminable alien invasion throwback (“Before We Vanish”), a toothless “return-to-form” (the psychological thriller “Creepy”), and even the godforsaken wilds of television. By the time last year’s odd and comparatively entrancing “To the Ends of the Earth” found the director trawling for purpose in the arid sands of Uzbekistan,...

IFFKThe audience poll was won by the Malayalam film 'Jallikattu', which also got special mention in Competition section. Tnm Staff Asserting that dissenting voices would not be silenced, Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan gave away the awards to winners at the 24th International Film Festival of Kerala (Iffk), on December 13, the concluding day. Without mentioning the controversial Citizenship (Amendment) Act, he said that India would not remain silent before anti-democratic forces. The winner of this year's Suvarna Chakoram -- the biggest award at the fest -- went to the Japanese film They Say Nothing Stays The Same. The film tells the story of Toichi (Akira Emoto), an old boatman who has ferried people across the river for decades. One day he fishes out a girl from the river, and slowly a bond develops between them. The second biggest award, Rajatha Chakoram for Best Director, went to Allan Deberton,...

A list of the best cinematographers is bound to include high profile names like Robert Richardson and Roger Deakins, but it’s also likely to include Christopher Doyle. The Australian-born Hong Kong cinematographer made a name for himself through his collaborations with Wong Kar-Wai, which famously include “Chungking Express,” “Happy Together,” “In the Mood for Love,” and “2046.” Doyle’s work on “In the Mood for Love” is often cited as some of the most notable cinematography of the 21st century. Doyle recently spoke with The Film Stage about the past and future of his career, and he did not mince words when it came to referencing filmmakers James Cameron and Michael Mann.

At one point in the interview Doyle talks about the various directors he has been fortunate enough to work with throughout his career, from Wong Kar-Wai to Gus Van Sant, Jim Jarmusch, and Edward Yang. The Dp...

Above: JokerWas it really that big a surprise—for some even a sensation—that the main awards of the 76ª Mostra internazionale d'arte cinematografica di Venezia went to Todd Phillips' Joker (Golden Lion) and Roman Polański's An Officer and a Spy (Grand Jury Prize)? For weren't these the films most talked about before—and among the most widely discussed cum (mainly) celebrated during the festival proper? This was arguably one of the better jury decisions in years, a decision decidedly in favor of cinema as an art for and of the masses with the potential of making serious amounts of people ponder, maybe look differently at what they thought and believed (in) so far—though film did not have all the answers.Besides: This pair perfectly sums up the main themes and concerns addressed in the competition as well as some of the outstanding films to be found in the...

Joe Odagiri’s drama They Say Nothing Stays the Same wins best film in international competition.

Ali Ozel’s drama Steppe, about an elderly man who refuses to leave his home village after it is condemned to make way for a dam, broke records to sweep the awards of the national feature competition of the Antalya Golden Orange Film Festival over the weekend.

The debut feature won in nine categories clinching best film, director, first film, screenplay, cinematography, music, editing, actor and best supporting actor.

The decision to award the production both the best film and best first film prizes...

Japanese actor and musician Joe Odagiri, known at home as a gothic rebel with a reliably huge female fan base, makes the leap to the other side of the camera in his mind-teasing feature film bow, They Say Nothing Stays the Same (Aru sendo no hanashi). It’s a dreamy, unexpectedly rigorous debut that starts frustratingly slowly but ends with an emotional bang, implying more festival appreciation after its premiere in Venice's Giornate degli Autori. Its path is lit by some dazzling modern credits from cult Dp Christopher Doyle and Armenian jazz pianist Tigran Hamasyan.

Odagiri came to Venice ...

Japanese actor and musician Joe Odagiri, known at home as a gothic rebel with a reliably huge female fan base, makes the leap to the other side of the camera in his mind-teasing feature film bow, They Say Nothing Stays the Same (Aru sendo no hanashi). It’s a dreamy, unexpectedly rigorous debut that starts frustratingly slowly but ends with an emotional bang, implying more festival appreciation after its premiere in Venice's Giornate degli Autori. Its path is lit by some dazzling modern credits from cult Dp Christopher Doyle and Armenian jazz pianist Tigran Hamasyan.

Odagiri came to Venice ...

Crouching Tigers includes titles such as Cesar Diaz’ Our Mothers and Anthony Chen’s Wet Season.

Pingyao International Film Festival (Pyiff) has unveiled the bulk of its programme for this year’s edition, including the world premiere of Indian filmmaker Tushar Hiranandani’s sports drama Bull’s Eye, which will screen as a special presentation on Pingyao Night.

Hong Kong filmmaker Jacob Cheung’s The Opera House, starring Mason Lee and Ouyang Nana, will also receive its world premiere at Pyiff as the closing film.

So far the festival, founded by Chinese filmmaker Jia Zhangke with Marco Mueller as artistic director,...