Films

Flower and Sword
Sept.1 Fri @ 7:00 PM 【SF Premiere】
2017 | 127 min | English Subtitles

How about a battle with flowers instead of swords? It’s 16th Century Japan’s ‘Age of Civil War,’ and one man works with flowers to bring peace to the land… Read More

Her Love Boils Bathwater
Sept.2 Sat @ 1:00 PM 【San Francisco Premiere】
2016 | 125 min | English Subtitles | Directed by Ryota Nakano
★ Special appearance by Director Ryota Nakano!
Director Nakano made a theatrical feature debut with a family drama about a single mother Futaba (Rie Miyazawa), whose husband suddenly left a year ago… Read More

Rage
Sept.9 Sat @ 1:00 PM【San Francisco Premiere】
2016 | 142 min | English Subtitles | Directed by Sang-il Lee
★ Special appearance by Director Sang-il Lee!
Acclaimed director Lee Sang-il (Hula Girls, Villain, Unforgiven) brings award-winning author Shuichi Yoshida’s mystery novel to life with an all-star cast including Ken Watanabe. The suspect in a married couple’s… Read More

Hee
Sept.10 Sun @ 2:45 PM 【CLOSING FILM : US Premiere】
2015 | 72 min | English Subtitles | Directed by Kaori Momoi
★ Q&A with director & leading actor Kaori Momoi!
Actor Momoi Kaori (Sayuri, Ghost in the Shell) writes directs and stars in this suspense thriller based on a novella by award-winning author, Fuminori… Read More

BAKUMAN。
Sept.2 Sat @ 7:00 PM【West Coast Premiere】
2015 | 120 min | English Subtitles
By the creators of world’s best seller DEATH NOTE comes a live action adaptation of a manga comic that graphically portrays two high school students’ struggles to becoming top manga creators… Read More

Black Widow Business
Sept.9 Sat @ 7:00 PM 【US Premiere】
2016 | 128 min | English Subtitles | Directed by Yasuo Tsuruhashi
A woman exploits elderly men in marriage scams in this humorous portrait of men and women overcome by greed. Aging and adorable Sayoko (Shinobu Otake) meets Kozo (Masahiko Tsugawa) at a matchmaking… Read More

Tokyo Short Shorts 2017
Sept.2 Sat @ 4:30 PM
2017 | 100 min | English Subtitles
JFFSF and Short Shorts Film Festival & Asia collaborates again to exclusively premiere a collection of short films directed by a new generation of filmmakers from Japan!
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Love and Goodbye and Hawaii
Sept.3 Sun @ 1:00 PM 【West Coast Premiere】
2017 | 94 min | English Subtitles
Up-and-coming director Shingo Matsumura’s second feature film is a surprisingly pleasant romantic comedy. Rinko (Ayu Ayano) has been living with her ex-boyfriend Isamu (Kentaro Tamura)… Read More

The Projects
Sept.3 Sun @ 3:00 PM 【West Coast Premiere】
2016 | 103 min | English Subtitles | Directed by Junji Sakamoto
Directed by Junji Sakamoto with his diverse filmmaking styles, the offbeat dialogue-driven drama unfolds when a couple, Hinako (Naomi Fujiyama) and Seiji (Ittoku Kishibe), close their Chinese medicine shop… Read More

Cinema Kabuki: Double Feature
Sept. 5 @ 7:00 PM 【US Premiere】
RENJISHI (The Father and Son Shishi Lions)
RAKUDA (The Camel)
Don’t miss the rare chance to experience the authentic and unique beauty of this contemporary kabuki performances by Japan’s greatest kabuki actor, Nakamura Kanzaburo!
… Read More

The Tokyo Night Sky Is Always The Densest Shade of Blue
Sept.6 Wed @ 7:00 PM 【West Coast Premiere】
2017 | 108 min | English Subtitles | Directed by Yuya Ishii
Written and directed by Yuya Ishii (Sawako Decides, The Great Passage, Our Family, The Vancouver Asahi), the film that premiered at Berlin Film Festival this year was inspired by poetry written by… Read More

My Dad and Mr. Ito
Sept.7 Thurs @ 7:00 PM【West Coast Premiere】
2016 | 119 min | English Subtitles | Directed by Yuki Tanada
Based on a popular novel, this film by Director Yuki Tanada depicts a carefree woman living under the same roof with her father and her boyfriend twenty years her senior. Aya (Juri Ueno) spends her days as she pleases… Read More

Close-Knit
Sept.8 Fri @ 7:00 PM 【San Francisco Premiere】
2017 | 127 min | English Subtitles | Directed by Naoko Ogigami
The first film in five years from Director Naoko Ogigami (Kamome Diner) depicts a man who became a woman, her partner and young niece. Tomo (Rinka Kakihara) is a girl who moves in with her uncle Makio… Read More

Inside Lens : Documentary Series
presented by NHK World
Sept.9 Sat @ 4:30 PM ★FREE ADMISSION★
NHK World presents Inside Lens, a special documentary series featuring works of international filmmakers in Japan and Asia, including Man’s Best Friend, Deep Flowers and Game Preservation -The Quest-. Read More

Never-Ending Man: Hayao Miyazaki
Sept.10 Sun @ 1:00 PM & 5:00 PM (Newly Added!)
【North American Premiere】
★FREE ADMISSION★
2017 | 70 min | English Subtitles | Directed by Kaku Arakawa (NHK)
3 years ago, the Academy Award-winning animated film director Hayao Miyazaki shocked the world when he announced his retirement at age 72. His creative impulse never faded, however… Read More

Napping Princess
Setp.3 Sun @ 5:15 PM【San Francisco Premiere】
2017 | 115 min | English Subtitles | Directed by Kenji Kamiyama
Masterful anime director Kenji Kamiyama’s (Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex, Jin Roh: The Wolf Brigade) genre-bending adventure is set in the not-too-distant machine-driven future… Read More

Your Name.
Sept.4 Mon @ 7:00 PM
2016 | 107 min | English Subtitles | Directed by Makoto Shinkai
From Director Makoto Shinkai, the innovative mind behind Voices of a Distant Star and 5 Centimeters Per Second, comes Japan’s biggest hit from 2016, a beautiful masterpiece about time… Read More