JAPAN CUTS Returns for Hybrid 15th Edition from August 20 – September 2

North America’s largest festival of contemporary Japanese cinema returns for its 15th edition as an online and in-person hybrid event! Following last year’s entirely online edition, this summer’s festival offers 14 days of unique access to 38 dynamic new films from Japan for audiences across the United States—including studio films, independent gems, documentaries, shorts, avant-garde works and more—through Japan Society’s virtual cinema.

Additionally, JAPAN CUTS is thrilled to welcome back New York City festival goers to Japan Society’s historic auditorium, for an exciting and diverse selection of Japanese cinema, perfectly suited for a return to the big screen!

Kiyoshi Kurosawa’s first historical drama Wife of a Spy will be the Centerpiece Presentation. It is a dizzying tale of suspicion, betrayal, and love during WWII, featuring surprising metafilmic turns and condemnation of colonialism, with a brave performance by Yu Aoi. Co-written with former students Ryusuke Hamaguchi (recent winner for the 2021 Cannes Film Festival Award for Best Screenplay) and Tadashi Nohara (Happy Hour) and shot in 8K digital video for public broadcaster NHK, Wife of a Spy eerily evokes horrors of the past in the visual register of our own terrifying times. Featuring a video greeting from Yu Aoi, recipient of the CUT ABOVE Award for Outstanding Performance in Film.

Screenings also include Yukiko Sode’s relationship drama Aristocrats, Takashi Miike’s fantasy extravaganza The Great Yokai War: Guardians, Sara Ogawa’s coming-of-age tale The Goldfish: Dreaming of the Sea, Atsushi Funahashi’s topical true story Company Retreat, Daihachi Yoshida’s ensemble comedy Kiba: The Fangs of Fiction, and Soushi Matsumoto’s teen movie It’s a Summer Film!

Explore the full festival line-up here.

All in-person screenings will take place in Japan Society’s auditorium, located at 333 E. 47^th Street in New York, NY.

Ticket On-Sale Dates (In-Person):
Members: Tuesday, August 10 at 11 AM EST
General Public: Monday, August 16 at 11 AM EST

All online film are available to purchase and stream from August 20-September 2 at film.japansociety.org.

Ticket On-Sale Dates (Online):
All-Access Pass: Tuesday, August 10 at 11 AM EST, limited availability
Individual Films: Friday, August 20 at 11 AM EST.
Members receive a 20% discount on all online rentals.

Not a Japan Society member? Click here to join and receive first access to in-person tickets and discounts on all film screenings.