About

SSFF & ASIA 2022 Outline

Dates

Tuesday, 7th June – Monday, 20st June

Online Screenings

Thursday, April 28th – Thursday, June 30th

Online Screenings

Yomiuri Land special event and screenings

April 29 (Friday) – May 5 (Thursday)

Yomiuri Land special event and screenings

Screening Venues

Euro Live, Omotesando Hills Space O, iTSCOM STUDIO & HALL Futakotamagawa rise, TORQUE SPICE & HERB, TABLE & COURT, Akasaka Intercity Conference, LINE CUBE SHIBUYA, online venue.
* Schedules varies by venue.

Short Films

Approximately 200 selected works from 5,720 films collected from approximately 126 countries and regions around the world will be screened.

Admission

Free (* Special events will have an admission charge)

Organizer

Committee for Short Shorts / Committee for Short Shorts Film Festival Asia * All events, films and schedules are subject to change.

Important Notice About SSFF & ASIA 2022 COVID-19 implementation of measures to prevent the spread of infection

At the SSFF & ASIA 2022, the following measures to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus will be implemented during the event. We apologize for any inconvenience. However, we ask for your understanding and cooperation to ensure safe implementation.

Requests to our festival attendees

[1] Prior to visiting

Please check your physical condition and measure body temperature prior to visiting. (Persons with a fever of 37.5℃ or higher will not be permitted entry)
* If you are within 2 weeks of recovering from the coronavirus, please contact the festival office regarding participation in the festival.

[2] Your body temperature will be measured upon reception, waiting, entry/exit, and arrival at the reception area.

Those who are confirmed to have a fever of 37.5°C or higher will not be permitted entry.
Please be sure to wear a mask. (For those who do not have a mask, one will be distributed at the reception area.)
Please cooperate in hand washing and hand disinfection. Upon reception and entry, the staff will request all visitors for hand sanitization.
Observe the cough etiquette while waiting. * When coughing or sneezing, please use a mask, tissue, handkerchief, or sleeves to hold your mouth and nose down.
Please refrain from conversations and speaking out loudly while waiting.
Please cooperate in maintaining a distance among customers while waiting. (Please follow the foot guidance display and wait accordingly)
To ease congestion when leaving the venue, we will limit customers in the back from leaving the venue. Please wait where you are until the staff guides you.

[3] Inside the venue

If you feel ill during screening, or become sick, please do not hesitate to contact a staff member near you.
Please wear a mask during screening.
Seats are spaced out to ensure social distance. It is prohibited to move the seats on your own.
As part of the Coronavirus preventative measures, eating and drinking in the venue will be prohibited.

[4] Measures by the organizer and staff

The staff will subject to checking their body temperature and physical condition in advance.
All staff shall wear masks.
Aerosol prevention sheets will be installed at the reception desk.
Regular disinfection will be conducted with in the venue, such as for doors and reception desks.
In the waiting line, a guidance display will be installed on the floor near the feet to maintain social distancing.
In the venue, we will install a coronavirus infectious disease countermeasure and information board for customers.
Seats within the venue will be separated from each other.

* Please note in advance that the above measures may be subject to change.

SSFF & ASIA 2022 Theme

In this, the first year of the “Metaverse,” we at the festival will put forward new visual expressions and means to enjoy films that transcend the cinema experience by introducing this year’s theme: “Meta Cinema: Transcending, Discovering, and Beginning. With the Corona Disaster of 2020 and 2021 and the advancement of online measures, we would like to implement new ways to create a platform where people can experience the future of visual filmmaking in a more three-dimensional way and find new styles of entertainment to create a visual culture together between the creators and the viewers. Experience the virtual movie theater and watch a short film titled “Boy Sprouted” from a script created using AI. (Online streaming will begin on April 28, 2021), a talk event to explore how the use of neuroscience, which analyzes films using human brain waves, can be applied to the future of visual expression, and the NFT initiative, currently a hot topic. We are looking forward to a new era of film festivals with you.

SSFF & ASIA 2022 for SDGs

SSFF & ASIA has digitalized distribution of printed materials such as tickets and flyers from 2020. SSFF & ASIA has started to implement SDGs step by step. In addition, we will continue to develop programs with themes like “Diversity,” “War and the Power to Live,” and “Save the Earth!” The festival will work to raise awareness of SDGs through programs like the “Ladies foe Cinema Project” and various awards for these and other SDGs themed programs.

What is Short Film?

Short film is a cinematic piece of work that ranges from lengths as short as 1 minute to as long as approximately 30 minutes. For the Official Competition of SSFF & ASIA, submitted works are restricted to less than 25 minutes. Despite its short length, there is a wide variety in these works such as drama, animation, and documentary and many of the stories are rich in wit and cinematic expression that can only be possible given the short length of the piece. There are quite a few directors who started out their careers making short films such as George Lucas, Francis Ford Coppola, and Steven Spielberg, and there are many short films that have famous actors appear in them as well. Furthermore, short films provide a format that cultivates the talent of up and coming filmmakers, and film festivals are a gateway for their success. How would you like to witness the possibilities of future filmmakers at this film festival?

Background of the SSFF & ASIA

In 1999, actor Tetsuya Bessho, member of the Screen Actors Guild of America (SAG), has worked to introduce the then new genre, “short films,” which he first encountered in the United States, to film fans in Japan as the American Short Shorts Film Festival. In 2001, the festival was renamed the Short Shorts Film Festival. In 2004, SSFF was recognized as an Academy Award® accredited film festival. In the same year, SSFF was established with the aim of promoting new visual culture from Asia and nurturing up-and-coming young filmmakers. The Short Shorts Film Festival Asia (SSFF ASIA, co-sponsored by Tokyo Metropolitan Government) was established and the festival is now known collectively as SSFF & ASIA. To commemorate the festival’s 20th anniversary in 2018, the Grand Prix film was named the “George Lucas Award” in honor of director George Lucas. In January 2019, the Short Shorts Film Festival in Hollywood was held to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the festival. In addition, beginning with the 2019 festival, in addition to the Official Competitions (International, Asia International, and Japan), the Non-Fiction Competition and this year, the Animation Competition Best Short winners have also become eligible for nomination at the Academy Awards the following year. SSFF & ASIA will continue to support young creators through the festival.

Message

Message from the Governor of Tokyo

Yuriko Koike

It gives me great pleasure as Governor of Tokyo to welcome you to the Short Shorts Film Festival & Asia 2022, an event co-sponsored by the Tokyo Metropolitan Government.

This year, the Short Shorts Film Festival & Asia event marks its 24th year. The festival has grown in popularity with each year to become one of Asia’s preeminent international short film festivals. Messages condensed into a short time frame by creators brimming with youth and talent form the short films featured. I am very pleased that this festival has served as a springboard for many talented filmmakers to go out in the world from Tokyo to pursue their filmmaking careers.

This marks the sixth year that we will hold the Cinematic Tokyo Competition. Last year, many creative films of various genres featuring Tokyo as a theme were submitted, making it a great competition.

Rather than simply restoring the economy, society, and mindset of the people exhausted by the pandemic to how they were in pre-Covid times, it is now more important to advance a recovery that is sustainable. Therefore, we launched the “Sustainable Recovery Project” in order to have the new shape of various aspects of Tokyo reflected in short film.

The international situation is unstable and constantly changing. Moreover, global issues such as the climate crisis and natural disasters are threatening our daily lives. Amid such circumstances, arts and culture, which enrich our hearts and are a source of inspiration and enjoyment in life, help us form a deeper connection with others. This, I believe, will provide us with great strength as we work to overcome these crises. I hope that this festival will contribute to enhancing people’s ability to imagine, as well as to realizing a society filled with diversity and inclusion, where individuality and different ways of thinking are respected.

It is my hope that everyone who takes part in the festival, at the venue or online, will enjoy the charms of short film and discover a new side of Tokyo.

In closing I would like to express my deep respect for the tireless efforts made by everyone involved, and extend my best wishes for the success of Short Shorts Film Festival & Asia 2022.

Koike Yuriko Governor of Tokyo

Yuriko Koike

Message from the President of Short Shorts Film Festival & Asia Tetsuya Bessho

The age of Covid, we learned and experienced so much. Humans are creatures of imagination. Imagination is what makes us human. We nurtured the forest of our creativity and gave birth to another world. That is the Metaverse. Another world and an era in which we now exist. In 2022, with the theme “Meta Cinema,” we will embark on an adventure with you, through short films, to the cinema of the past and the cinema of the future. We hope you will join us! Come aboard!

Message from Festival Ambassador LiLiCo

I’m more excited than usual for this year’s Short Shorts Film Festival & Asia. I’m burning with excitement every day! We come across new creative filmmakers with a more straightforward and direct message that has a different “taste” from feature films. Many people were immersed in filmmaking through Covid times, and we get to hear many different voices from the past year. Every year there are innovative films that surprise us and we are also able to experience different local cultures that we normally cannot which is a great extravagance. You can learn more about the world in just a few minutes than you can in by studying it in books and online. That is the great charm of short films. Alright, let’s go on a short film journey again this year.

SSFF & ASIA Social Media Navigators

Sakai / Cinema TikToker

He mainly posts videos introducing, commenting on, and discussing movies, dramas, and anime. He has about 300,000 followers and his videos have been viewed more than 86 million times. From the latest movies to hidden classics, he highlights the appeal of each film with his discerning eye and descriptive words. He is a one-of-a-kind film influencer loved by a wide range of people, regardless of their film background. Currently living in Kyoto and continues to increase the number of movie fans by sharing his fascination with movies on a daily basis. His motto is “I didn’t know, now I want to see.”

DIZ

DIZ is a freelance film “activist” who works to spread the joy of film to as many people as possible. Organizes interactive film events such as “The World of Wes Anderson” and “Welcome to Nightmare Alley,” edits SNS projects for film and drama distribution services, writes copy, and contributes reviews of various films.

Filmarks

“Let’s meet good movies.” Filmarks is one of the largest movie, drama, and animation review services in Japan. Launched in 2012 with the theme “Let’s meet good movies,” currently, the number of reviews has exceeded 100 million. Started handling TV dramas in 2017 and TV animatio in 2020. Based on the ability to check and post reviews of visual works, the service can be used as a “record of works viewed,” “memo/reminder of works to watch,” and “communication tool for sharing impressions and information of works.” We also operate “Preticket,” a project to screen masterpieces in movie theaters from 2021.

Takeru Miyazaki

Born in 1986, Nagano, Japan. Miyazaki began working as a “film advisor” in 2015. In addition to his serialization on WOWOW, Takarajima-sweet, DOKUSO Magazine, and PHILE WEB, he introduces films on various distribution programs, radio, web, and magazines. He is active in a wide range of activities, including speaking at events, serving on film festival juries, making cameo appearances in movies, and serving as one of the “30 Cinema Concierges” in BRUTUS.

YUCCO ROADSHOW

I’m YUCCO, and I run a movie introduction channel called “YUCCO ROADSHOW” on YouTube with the motto “You’ll always find the movie you want to watch”. YUCCO ROADSHOW” introduces a wide range of movies from old to new releases by genre.