Short Shorts Film Festival & Asia 2013

In the last day of the festival, we had the honor to welcome the acclaimed directorAmir Naderi for a talk show, and many people showed up to listen to the filmmaker who is one of the most important figures that helped Iranian cinema to world class fame.

The event, "An homage to cinema" featured Director Naderi whose Japanese film "CUT" was a hit here in Japan last year. His 1986 film, "The Runner" is being shown in theaters throughout Japan. He discussed the influences he received from Japanese films as well as his passionate viewpoints on cinema. DJ John who is our MC at Tokyo venues of the festival came to participate and support the event as the translator.

Director Naderi was one of the jury members of the official competition, and he discussed about the film "It was my city" which won the Best Short Award at the "International Asia" competition.Naderi said, "Make films from heart. If you feel you have to make something, do it. You borrow money from someone, your friends or your parents. There's always a way to make it happen, if you REALLY want something to happen. Even you rob a bank, make a film first, and go to jail after!"

When asked a question about what he would advise to young filmmakers, he said, "Don't watch new films, why watch them? You have grand masters of cinema here in Japan. Learn from them. If you want to know about camera momvents, watch Kurosawa. If you know more about women relationships, watch Naruse films. If you want to learn about human conditions through war films, watch Ichikawa!." Naderi added, "The most important thing is, originality. You have great films in the past, watch them. You have your own experiences in your life. Mix them, but make your own original idea or story."

When asked about his famous Iranian colleagues, Naderi also revealed his secret by saying, "Abbas Kiarostami and I were making titles of films together. The collaboration took almost 4 years, and I pushed him to make movies. Even today, we have respect to each other. Every time he makes a film, I'm the one to watch it first and vice versa."

Beyond the talks on cinema, it was truly a special moment about "passion," and how everyone should follow his/her heart to make something happen. I think it was a great lesson and a very encouraging reminder about how we should pursue our own dreams.

Biography of Amir Naderi

Since 1970s, Amir Naderi has been among the most influential figures of New Iranian Cinema, developing his knowledge of film at the theater where he worked as a boy. He entered the international spotlight with cinema classics such as "HARMONICA" (1973) "THE RUNNER" (1985) and "WATER, WIND, DUST" (1986), which won many awards in the world. Naderi’s American films have uniquely captured the vanishing texture of New York, premiering in New Directors/ New Films, Venice, Cannes, Tribeca, Sundance. "SOUND BARRIER" (2005) won the Roberto Rossellini Critics Prize at the Rome Film Festival. "VEGAS: BASED ON A TRUE STORY" (2008) premiered in competition at Venice. His last work, "CUT", shot in Japan, was the Orizzonti Opening Film at Venice in 2011 and won Best Director at 21st Japanese Professional Movie Awards, making him the first foreign director to receive this prize.

Naderi’s work has been the subject of retrospectives at museums and film festivals around the world including Lincoln Center, MoMA’s New Directors / New Films series. He has served as juror at various festivals including most recently the 2012 Venice Film Festival Orizzonti Jury, and as President at the Competition section of Tokyo FILMeX in 2011 and Shanghai International Film Festival’s Asian New Talent Award Competition in 2012. He is also a tutor at the Academic Team of the Biennale College – Cinema 2013 in Italy.