TOKYO, Nov. 7, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- During a closing ceremony at the 29th Tokyo International Film Festival (TIFF) on November 3, "Lipstick Under My Burkha," directed by Alankrita Shrivastava of India, won the "Spirit of Asia Award by the Japan Foundation Asia Center." The award is bestowed on a promising director in the TIFF Asian Future section, chosen by three jury members for its chances of international success beyond cultural and national borders. Accepting her award from Hiroyasu Ando, President of the Japan Foundation, the young Indian director expressed her gratitude to both TIFF and the producer of her film, and commented, "I really believe that the spirit of Asia is the spirit of world peace across all countries. And I really feel that the women of Asia, particularly, should come together to build a more peaceful Asia and peaceful world."

(Photo1: Director Alankrita Shrivastava, the winner of the "Spirit of Asia Award by the Japan Foundation Asia Center" (C) 2016 TIFF
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(Photo2: From left: Hiroyasu Ando, President of the Japan Foundation, Director Alankrita Shrivastava and Producer Plabita Borthakur (C) 2016 TIFF
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(Photo3: All winners of 29th TIFF (C) 2016 TIFF
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(Photo4: "Asian Three-Fold Mirror 2016: Reflections" press conference (directors and cast) (C) 2016 TIFF
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(Photo5: CROSSCUT ASIA #03: Colorful Indonesia Symposium (C) 2016 TIFF
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The "Best Asian Future Film Award" went to "Birdshot," directed by Mikhail Red of the Philippines, who commented: "I share this award with all the other struggling young filmmakers out there who wanted to fly but were shot down, who wanted to speak out but were silenced." The festival's most prestigious award, the "Tokyo Grand Prix," was given to Chris Kraus of Germany for "The Bloom of Yesterday."

The Japan Foundation Asia Center and TIFF are now in their third year of collaboration. In 2014, they jointly launched an Asia-focused film culture exchange initiative, which will run until 2020, when the Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics are to be held. This endeavor aims to deepen mutual understanding within Asia by showcasing Asian films in Japan and Japanese films in Asia, and by bringing Asian talent to the world through TIFF. With the festival as a communication hub for the Asian film industry, the partners are building a future-oriented network in the region and furthering cultural exchanges.

World Premiere of Asian Omnibus Film Series: "Asian Three-Fold Mirror"

The world premiere of "Asian Three-Fold Mirror 2016: Reflections," the first of a series of Asian omnibus films, was held on October 26 during the festival. The ongoing co-production project aims to deepen interactions between neighboring countries within Asia, as well as to enrich cultural understanding and explore Asian identities and ways of life. The protagonist of each chapter is an Asian living in a different Asian country, allowing the directors to express their own unique visions, and to film on location in their own or other Asian countries, including Japan, the Philippines, Cambodia and Malaysia.

At the world premiere screening, three accomplished directors, Brillante Ma Mendoza (Philippines), Isao Yukisada (Japan) and Sotho Kulikar (Cambodia), showed up to present their films along with their cast members: acclaimed Filipino actor Lou Veloso, one of the most respected Japanese actors Masahiko Tsugawa, Malaysian actress Sharifah Amani, popular Japanese actor Masaya Kato and Cambodian actress Chumvan Sodhachivy.

Japan Foundation Asia Center presents CROSSCUT ASIA #03: "Colorful Indonesia"

The Japan Foundation Asia Center's CROSSCUT ASIA series showcases Asian films with a focus on particular countries, directors, actors or themes. Following the first and second editions, which featured Thailand and the Philippines respectively, this year's third edition focused on Indonesia, a country whose cultural diversity is unparalleled. The section featured works from young filmmakers who richly portray themes relevant to modern society, such as religion, ethnicity, gender and various forms of love. Among the region's promising new generation of directors, TIFF guests included Teddy Soeriaatmadja, who presented his "Trilogy about Intimacy," Riri Riza, Nia Dinata, Mouly Surya, Ifa Isfansyah, Edwin, Kamila Andini and Angga Dwimas Sasongko.

The 29th Tokyo International Film Festival unspooled from October 25 to November 3, 2016.

Official website:
Japan Foundation Asia Center http://jfac.jp/en/
Tokyo International Film Festival http://2016.tiff-jp.net/en/
"Asian Three-Fold Mirror 2016: Reflections" http://asian3mirror.jfac.jp

Related Links

http://2016.tiff-jp.net/en/

SOURCE Tokyo International Film Festival (TIFF)