Yokoso! Welcome to the 24th Nippon Connection Film Festival!

Six days of cinema, culture, and cuisine from Japan from May 28 at eight locations in Frankfurt am Main

On Tuesday, May 28, 2024, the 24th Nippon Connection Film Festival in Frankfurt am Main opens its doors! For six days, the world's largest festival for Japanese cinema will present a diverse program with over 100 current short and feature films, as well as 60 concerts, workshops, lectures, and exhibitions. Over 8,000 tickets sold in advance promise another record-breaking festival. Around 150 filmmakers and artists are expected to personally present their works at the festival. Until June 2, the festival offers visitors the opportunity to experience Japan in all its facets.

The festival's special ambiance is created by the two festival centers, Künstler*innenhaus Mousonturm and Produktionshaus NAXOS. The open-access festival grounds feature over 40 Japanese market stalls where you can enjoy ramen soups, shaved ice, Japanese crepes, and other delicacies. Additionally, a wide selection of crafts, films, books, and more invite extensive browsing. The complete program and tickets are available at NipponConnection.com.

The Nippon Connection Film Festival opens on May 28 at 7:00 PM with the touching love story 18x2 Beyond Youthful Days by Michihito Fujii, filmed with an international cast in Taiwan and Japan, and premiering in Germany at Künstler*innenhaus Mousonturm. Following this, at 10:30 PM, the festival presents the breathtaking music animation film BLUE GIANT by Yuzuru Tachikawa. At NAXOS Kino, the opening day at 7:30 PM features the documentary This Magic Moment, a tribute to Japanese art-house cinemas, with Malaysian director Kah Wai Lim in attendance. Genre film fans can look forward to the grotesque splatter film Visitors –Complete Edition– by Kenichi Ugana at 10:00 PM at NAXOS Kino.

On Wednesday, May 29, at 2:00 PM, the comedy We’re Millennials. Got A Problem?: The Movie by Nobuo Mizuta, depicting three millennials navigating the complexities of love, family, and career, celebrates its international premiere at Künstler*innenhaus Mousonturm. At NAXOS Kino on May 29, at 2:15 PM, SEPTEMBER 1923 by Tatsuya Mori will be screened, having already won the New Currents Award at the 2023 Busan International Film Festival. On Wednesday at 5:00 PM, NAXOS Kino will show the BBC documentary Predator: The Secret Scandal Of J-Pop by Megumi Inman, which is currently causing a stir in Japan. It addresses the abuse scandal involving the Japanese talent agency Johnny & Associates and will be presented in Frankfurt by journalist Mobeen Azhar. With much irony, Taiwanese director Yuchun Su depicts the not-so-easy life of a young independent filmmaker in Inch Forward, premiering internationally on Friday, May 30, at 2:30 PM at NAXOS Kino, with the director and the lead actress in attendance.

About the festival

The Japanese Film Festival Nippon Connection is organized by the 80-member, largely voluntary team of the non-profit association Nippon Connection e.V.  It is under the patronage of the Hessian State Minister for Science and Research, Arts and Culture, Timon Gremmels, the Mayor of the City of Frankfurt am Main, Mike Josef, and the Consulate General of Japan in Frankfurt am Main. Since its founding in 2000, Nippon Connection has become the world’s largest platform for Japanese cinema and the most popular film festival in Hesse with more than 18,500 visitors in 2023.