SSFF & ASIA President Tetsuya Bessho participates in “Human Rights Festa Tokyo 2015”
“Human Rights Festa Tokyo 2015,” organized by Tokyo Metropolitan Government, has started since Friday, the 9th at Tokyo International Forum in Marunouchi, The theme of the event is “realization of a multicultural symbiosis society.” For Tokyo to become a truly international city, where human rights are honored and all the people are able to feel a sense of happiness, each and every citizen must respect the various cultures and lifestyles of foreign individuals while accepting diversity.
On the 2nd of the “Festa,” on Saturday the 10th, two programs of short films selected
by SSFF & ASIA were screened. The programs contained films from all over the world in order to show the diverse cultural elements. SSFF & ASIA President Tetsuya Bessho appeared at the end of the last screening, with Seigo Tono, SSFF & ASIA festival director.
Tetsuya Bessho started to talk first about his encounters with short films almost 20 years ago. “Short films taught me that films are not about length, and I was really enchanted with messages that they carry in such short length,” Bessho explained.Bessho and Tono then talked about the films of the last screening program.
Regarding “Bawke,” a short film about two refugees coming into Norway. “Though short film such as this film, we understand more about what refugees are going through. We become more sensible to refugee problems that are happening in the world now. ” Bessho commented.
Currently, there are approximately 420,000 foreigners, or one foreigner in every 30 Japanese, are living in Tokyo. The number of foreign residents in Tokyo is rising. Bessho ended his discussion with by saying, “I hope the viewing of short films we presented today will make a chance for you think about diversity, and how we face people with different values.”
Bawke
Hisham Zaman / 15:15 / DRAMA / Norway / 2005
A father and his son leave their native country in search for a better life. When they reach their destination, the father is forced to make a choice between two evils to provide for his son’s future.