Masaaki Yuasa To Be Honored With Retrospective At Tokyo International Film Festival

Masaaki Yuasa has often received more recognition and accolades abroad than in his home country of Japan, but that is changing now. The Tokyo International Film Festival (TIFF) has announced that the trendsetting animation director will be honored this year with a retrospective of his works.

“The World of Masaaki Yuasa,” a five-part series dedicated to his animation, will take place at TIFF starting in late-October. Attendees will also receive a special four-page leaflet about his work, with text by Ryusuke Hikawa, the programming adviser of the festival’s Animation Focus section, as well as comments from Yuasa for each of the films being screened at TIFF.

Yuasa, 53, offered this statement about being honored by the festival:

I’m so honored that my work will be featured in such a prestigious film festival. I hope a lot of people will have a chance to see films they haven’t yet seen. Keiichi Hara was featured in this section last year, and there was an internet rumor that I might be next. But still, when I was selected, I thought it was a mistake. I really want to show my work to wider audiences, so I’m really grateful for this opportunity. I worked really hard on the flyer for the TIFF retrospective, and I passionately hope many people will come. Maybe my earlier films were edgier, but I think my most recent work depicts deeper emotions that I want to share with the audience. I was asked not to talk about this until the official announcement on October 28, but I will also be discussing my brand-new film during TIFF.

The screenings will include three of Yuasa’s features (Lu Over the Wall, Mind Game, and The Night is Short, Walk on Girl), a screening of his entire 10-episode Devilman Crybaby series (240 minutes), and a special program of other works selected by Yuasa. The latter program includes:

Adventure Time: Food Chain (2014)
Director: Masaaki Yuasa
11min.

Space Dandy Episode 16: “Slow and Steady Wins the Race, Baby” (2014)
Director: Masaaki Yuasa
24min.

Kick-Heart (2012)
Director: Masaaki Yuasa
12min.

Genius Party: Happy Machine (2007)
Director: Masaaki Yuasa
15min.

The Adventures of Buriburizaemon: The Storm Chapter (1994)
Director: Mitsuru Hongo
5min.

The Adventures of Buriburizaemon: The Soaring Chapter (1995)
Director: Mitsuru Hongo
7min.

The Adventures of Buriburizaemon: The Lightning Chapter (1995)
Director: Mitsuru Hongo
8min.

Chibi Maruko Chan: My Favorite Song: “Drag Race 1969” & “Shopping Boogie” (1992)
5min.

Ticket sales to the screenings will start in October. The 31st TIFF will take place from October 25 – November 3, 2018 in Tokyo. For more details, visit the festival website.