Akio Fujimoto among second cohort of Japanese filmmaker support scheme

A Japanese initiative supporting young filmmakers with international ambitions is returning for a second term and has revealed the five selected talents.

After launching last year, the second cohort of the Film Frontier Global Networking Program will comprise directors Akio Fujimoto, Yurina Kaneko, Natsuka Kusano and Sota Takahasi as well as producer Hiroyuki Yoshihara.

Fujimoto is known as the director of Lost Land, the first-ever Rohingya-language feature, which won premiered in Venice Horizons and won the special jury prize. It is playing at the ongoing Tokyo International Film Festival (TIFF) ahead of a local release in spring 2026.

The group were revealed at TIFF on Sunday (November 2), where the talents assembled at an event – except for Kusano, who sent a video message.

Each will receive 18 months of tailored support to advance their careers on the international stage.

The initiative aims to foster Japan’s next generation of filmmakers by providing guidance and mentorship for international development, supporting participation in overseas film festivals, and aiding networking with international industry partners.

Speaking at the event, Fujimoto said he hoped the support would help with his next feature, a drama set on the border of Thailand and Myanmar. It centres on the family and children of a father who goes to war and does not come home.

Kaneko is known for 2023’s People Who Talk to Plushies Are Kind, which garnered multiple newcomer awards in Japan and was selected for Shanghai International Film Festival. She recently attended Busan’s ACFM with upcoming project Where All Things Drowse, which takes place in a post-apocalyptic world in which nature has taken over and through which a ghost wanders.

“It is invaluable to have support throughout the entire filmmaking process, including fundraising, which can be particularly challenging,” she said of being selected.

Writer-director Kusano made her feature directorial debut in 2014 with Spiral Galaxy and was selected for Rotterdam with The Kingdom (Or About That House) in 2018. “My next project will require extensive research and I am happy to be able to dedicate more time to preparation than to shooting itself,” she said via video message.

“Since October this year, the [Global Networking] programme has begun providing training in English-language pitching, as well as development and support initiatives aimed at participating in international markets.”

Takahasi previously independently produced Kami-iida Stories, which was released theatrically in 2023, while his graduation film Memory Devices won the audience award at Japan’s Pia Film Festival the same year. ““For about 12 years, I have wanted to make a film in Eastern Europe, specifically in Serbia,” he said, adding that his selection for the programme “represents a significant step forward”.

Yoshihara, group’s sole producer, has credits including Mishima: The Last Debate, Threads-Our Tapestry of Love, and Takashi Shimizu’s Suicide Forest Village. He founded Cloud11 Studio and is working on a series of upcoming co-production features including Atsushi Funahashi’s Good Death.

The Creator Development Program is implemented under the Japan Creator Support Fund, established in FY2023 within the Japan Arts Council through a subsidy from Japan’s Agency for Cultural Affairs.

The first year’s cohort comprised Mai Nakanishi, Emma Kawawada, Shingo Ota and Kohki Hasei.

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