Film Section

Shozo Makino Award

Founded in 1958 by the Committee To Honor Shozo Makino, a Kyoto born filmmaker often regarded as the father of Japanese cinema, the award is given to filmmakers who contributed to the development of Japanese cinema. Kyoto Citizen Film Festival has selected and awarded the recipients from the 1st to the 19th recipient. Starting in 1977, the Toei Koto Studio Park has taken over the operation of the award ceremony and selection as the voting system evolved over the years. In 1982, Shozo Makino Award Corner had been set up at Cinema Culture Hall, exhibiting all the past recipients and various memorabilia. In 1990, the voting system changed and the award was given based on a council system. In 1977, the award ceremony took place during the 1st edition of the Kyoto Film Festival. Since 1999, the 44th award was given at the Kyoto Film Festival and starting in 2014, Kyoto International Film and Art Festival will take over the operation of the award ceremony and announce the 46th recipient.

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Toshiro Mifune Award

Toshiro Mifune is one of best-known Japanese movie stars of all time. He appeared in a number of Akira Kurosawa films such as Rashomon, Seven Samurai, Yojimbo, and Red Beard, as well as movies directed by Hiroshi Inagaki such as Samurai Banners and The Rickshaw Man. He is an actor who represents the best of Japan’s post-WWII movies.
The films in which he took the leading role not only broke domestic records one after the other, but he also received the grand prizes at foreign film festivals. He is still highly regarded throughout the world even today and is a highly respected actor among film professionals both in Japan and globally. In particular, his wild-looking demeanor and tall frame were used in creating magnificent action scenes and he has had revolutionary impacts on worldwide movie expression and acting itself.
The Toshiro Mifune award has been newly created for the Kyoto International Film and Art Festival. Although he was an actor that primarily appeared in movies filmed in Tokyo, and his ties to Kyoto are relatively few. However, the award was named after him in spite of this fact, because his mark on the film industry was to aim at creating a place from which to transmit film art to impress the world on the wealth and appeal of Japanese films, and Mifune’s activities left his mark in Japanese filmmaking. This is in accordance with the main philosophy upon which this Film festival is founded.
This will be an award given to the actor who is most likely to make international impact on the film industry. The award aims to support actors who play a major roles on the world’s stage, just as Toshiro Mifune did.

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Most Respect Award

Kyoto International Movie Festival has set up this award to honor world-renowned actors and filmmakers. We are proud to announce that the first recipient for Most Respect Award is a celebrated actor / director, Mr. Clint Eastwood, who, at the age 80, continues to make films that inspire filmmakers and fans around the world. To commemorate this occasion, the festival will hold retrospective screenings of his masterpieces; Dirty Harry, The Unforgiven, Gran Torino and Flags of Our Fathers.

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Most Respect Award in Paris

Kyoto sister city initiation commenced with the city of Paris, in France in 1957. To commemorate the 1st edition of Kyoto International Movie Festival, we set up Most Respect Award in Paris, and award Ms. Irene Jacob, a winner of Best Actress at Cannes Film Festival, who worked with some of the greatest filmmakers in the world, the one who deserves recognition from Paris, the city of art.

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Opening Screening

Advanced screening of Opening Screening Movie 'at Home'

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Special Invitation

Special Invitation section of Kyoto International Movie Festival screens brand new Japanese and international films of a wide variety of genres before they hit theaters.

Films of Special Invitation

Special Screening

Special Screening is four sections "Silent film", "Toys Movie and The Sun Down Limited", "Kyoto Film", "Daimajin".

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TV DIRECTOR‘S MOVIE

Initiated for the 2nd Okinawa Movie Festival, this project brings together TV stations and Yoshimoto Kogyo to co-create ambitious movies not bound by genre conventions. Starting in 2014, AEON Cinemas (Ion Entertainment) will be involved in some movies from the planning stages, creating a seamless structure to collaborate on production, distribution, and screening. This project was started to create a new wave in the film world. This program screens all of these movies at the Kyoto International Movie Festival earlier than anywhere else except the Okinawa Festival.

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