Mr. Norihisa Tsukamoto, Director, The Japan Foundation KL with sponsors and partners

29 Aug – The much-anticipated Japanese Film Festival (JFF) has returned for its 19th edition at selected GSC cinemas nationwide. This year also marks a significant milestone as it is the 50th Year of ASEAN-Japan Friendship and Cooperation.

With Cinema Online returning as the official online partner, JFF 2023 is set to kick off in early September in 5 major cities, starting from Klang Valley at 3 locations: GSC Midvalley Megamall, GSC One Utama and GSC NU Sentral from 7-13 September. Next is GSC Paradigm Mall Johor Bharu from 14-17 September, and GSC Gurney Plaza Penang from 21-24 September.

The festival then heads over to East Malaysia to two locations: GSC CityOne Megamall, Kuching from 5-8 October and finally, ending at GSC Suria Sabah, Kota Kinabalu from 12-15 October.

Mr Norihisa Tsukamoto, director of The Japan Foundation Kuala Lumpur (JFKL) said that he was very excited to see the positive response from Malaysians to JFF over the past 19 years.

"This year is an important event to celebrate the 50th Year of ASEAN-Japan Friendship and Cooperation. We are honored to be part of an event that brings the best of Japanese cinema and culture to Malaysia. And we look forward to many more years of strengthening the connections between Japan and Malaysia through film. This wouldn't have been possible without our sponsors, partners, audiences, and media members," Mr Tsukamoto enthused at the JFF 2023 press conference at GSC Mid Valley, Kuala Lumpur, today.

The director announced that there will be 3 special programmes for this year's JFF 2023:

1. Film Talk and Special Screening of "Wild Tour"
Firstly, the Japan Foundation KL collaborates with the Faculty of Cinematic Arts, Multimedia University (MMU) to co-organise a Film Talk and Special Screening of "Wild Tour" with award-winning filmmaker Sho Miyake. He is also the director of this year's Opening Film, "Small, Slow but Steady".

The Film Talk will also be joined by director Lim Kah Wai, who has directed and released films in Japan for over a decade. This special event will take place on Wed, 6 September from 4-6pm at the MMU Theatre.

2. Screening of director Lim Kah Wai's "Your Lovely Smile"
Next, the festival will be screening director Lim Kah Wai's work, "Your Lovely Smile" - exclusively at GSC NU Sentral on 8 September and at GSC Mid Valley on 10 September. A post-screening Q&A Session with the director to follow.

Hailing from Malaysia, Lim Kah Wai has acted as the "bridge" between Malaysia and Japan, actively contributing to the cinematic landscape in Osaka, Japan. Thus making his reunion with JFF this year even more significant.

3. Detective Conan Marathon
Finally, a captivating "Detective Conan Marathon" is lined up for the audiences, scheduled for 9 September at GSC Mid Valley and 17 September at Penang. This marathon will showcase titles such as "The Last Wizard of the Century" (1999), "Crossroad in The Ancient Capital" (2003), and "The Private Eyes' Requiem" (2006), promising an exhilarating experience for all fans of this iconic series.

**Good news! Admission to the 3 abovementioned screenings is free with prior reservations via Eventbrite

Mr. Tsukamoto hopes that the relationship between Japan and Malaysia will continue to be strengthened

On the other hand, the JFF 2023 will be showcasing 16 films spanning various genres, from drama to animation, to present the various aspects of Japanese culture. Among them are "#Manhole", "The Lines That Define Me", "The Zen Diary", "A Man" and "And Yet, You Are So Sweet".

Tickets for the screenings will be sold at RM10.00 each (except for "#Manhole" - tickets sold at the prevailing ticket price) through GSC channels. Sale for Klang Valley tickets will start this Thursday, 1 September.

All movie screenings are in Japanese with English subtitles.

For JFF 2023 movie showtimes and information, visit our Japanese Film Festival 2023 page HERE.