The annual international film festival opened in Tokyo this week with a record 45 debut features in its main competition, drawing emerging directors from Europe, Asia, Africa, and the Americas.
Organizers said the selection reflects a wave of independent filmmaking energized by lower production costs and new streaming platforms. Topics range from family dramas to climate fiction.
Alongside the screenings, the festival is hosting workshops on multilingual subtitling and AI-assisted editing, which organizers say are becoming essential skills for a global audience.