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The Tokyo International Film Festival (TIFF) today revealed the main international cast of the second installment of omnibus film co-production series, Asian Three-Fold Mirror 2018: Journey. The film is being directed by three accomplished Asian filmmakers, Degena Yun (China), Daishi Matsunaga (Japan) and Edwin (Indonesia), under the common theme “Journey,” signifying traveling beyond time and space. The Asian Three-Fold Mirror is a collaborative project jointly organized by the Japan Foundation Asia Center and TIFF.
As previously announced, one of Indonesia’s most popular actors, Nicholas Saputra, has been cast to star in all three omnibus episodes. Today it has been confirmed that acclaimed Chinese actress Jin Chen and upcoming actress Zhe Gong will be starring in Degena Yun’s episode, The Sea; while one of Japan’s most striking Japanese actors, Hiroki Hasegawa, and an actress from Myanmar who is making her feature film debut, Nandar Myat Aung, will be starring in Matsunaga’s episode, Hekishu. Popular Indonesian actress Agni Pratistha and one of her country’s most distinguished actors, Oka Antara, will be appearing in the episode by Edwin, Variable No. 3. The protagonist of each chapter is an Asian living in an Asian country, allowing the directors to express their own unique visions and to film on location in Asia, creating one omnibus film.
Production is now under way, and will be completed in time for a world premiere at the 31st edition of the Tokyo International Film Festival, to be held from October 25 to November 3, 2018. The film will then be theatrically released from November 9 to 15, 2018 at three theaters in Japan, immediately following the theatrical release of the first of the series, Asian Three-Fold Mirror 2016: Reflections from October 12 to 18, 2018.
Jin Chen (China | actress)
Jin Chen had her first starring role in Out of the Desert in 1988, playing the female protagonist. In 1999, Chen starred in Roaring Across the Horizon, winning the Huabiao Award for Outstanding Actress, the Golden Rooster Award for Best Supporting Actress and Best Supporting Actress at the Changchun Film Festival. She has appeared in works by renowned filmmakers, such as Curse of the Golden Flower (2006), directed by Zhang Yimou, and Aftershock (2010), directed by Feng Xiaogang. In 2015, Nezha earned her Best Supporting Actress at the Shanghai International Film Festival New Media Awards, and in 2016, Chen’s performance in A Noble Spirit helped it win a Huabiao Award for Prominent Films on Ethnic Minorities. This year, she earned an award from the organizing committee of the 25th Beijing Student Film Festival for Hold your Hands.
Comment:
In recent years, films from China and throughout Asia have made breakthrough progress. Many movie projects are created by international teams from various Asian countries, which will undoubtedly complement each other and enhance the quality of films in their respective countries through cooperation and communication. As an actress, I would like to have more opportunities to collaborate with outstanding directors and actors from all over Asia in the future, to present more wonderful movies to the audience. Finally, I hope Asian Three-Fold Mirror will have a successful release and shine at the Tokyo International Film Festival!
Zhe Gong (China | actress)
Zhe Gong earned a master’s degree in filmmaking at the China Central Academy of Fine Arts. She made her debut as an actress in You and Me (2005), which earned her numerous awards and nominations and was screened at the 18th TIFF. She went on to appear in a variety of films, including Good Earth, Stronger Than Earthquake and Xidan Street Girl (2011). Accolades include the Beijing Student Film Festival Best Newcomer Award, and Chinese Film Media Awards Best New Performer.
Comment:
I am so happy to have had the opportunity to participate in Asian Three-Fold Mirror. The Sea is a wonderful piece, and shooting it proved a very important experience for my growth as an actress. Not only did I encounter a director and cast mates whom I highly respect, but I’ve gained a more mature perspective towards family and the relations within, and hence a deeper grasp on the bonds within a family and how important they are. I hope that family-themed films like this one travel far and wide, evoke various emotions in people in certain moments in their daily lives, and provide an opportunity for more understanding and thoughts.
Hiroki Hasegawa (Japan | actor)
Hiroki Hasegawa joined the Bungakuza, one of the most prestigious theater companies in Japan, in 2001 and trained as a stage actor. He appeared in such stage productions as Kafka on the Shore (2012) and Henry VI (2010), both directed by Yukio Ninagawa. Hasegawa gained mainstream attention and received the 35th Japan Academy Prize Newcomer of the Year with his feature film debut. He went on to appear in numerous films, including Sion Sono’s Why Don’t You Play in Hell? (2013), Hideaki Anno’s Shin Godzilla (2016), which earned him the 40th Japan Academy Prize Actor of the Year, and Kiyoshi Kurosawa’s Before We Vanish (2017). Hasegawa will star in TV drama Manpuku from October 2018, and in NHK’s historical drama series Kirin ga Kuru, which starts airing in 2020.
Nandar Myat Aung (Myanmar | actress)
Nandar Myat Aung was born in Rakhine State, Myanmar, on the border with Bangladesh, and went to the National University of Art and Culture in Yangon to study acting. She switched to directing in her second year. She has acted in school projects and directed short films. Asian Three-Fold Mirror marks her theatrical debut.
Comment:
Participating in the Asian Three-Fold Mirror project was my first experience working in a foreign production and I learnt a lot in terms of production. I am very impressed with the punctuality of the crew and their thorough pre-production.
Agni Pratistha (Indonesia | actress)
Agni Pratistha was born in Australia and raised in Jakarta, Indonesia. She starred in Mengejar Matahari (Chasing the Sun), which was shown in the International Film Festival Rotterdam in 2005. Pratistha also starred in Cinta Tapi Beda and Pinky Promise. She is also an entrepreneur, having founded Chubby Max cookies and Ark Motion Images, as well as a 2006 winner of Puteri Indonesia (Miss Indonesia Universe), and she went on to represent Indonesia in the Miss Universe Contest in 2007.
Comment:
It was such an amazing opportunity to be a part of Variable No. 3. This movie definitely had some interesting challenges for me. But working with the perfect team who gave their 100% and supported each other… I couldn’t ask for more.
Oka Antara (Indonesia | actor)
Oka Antara was born and raised in Jakarta, Indonesia. He entered the entertainment industry through music in his teens, but soon changed to acting and moved to bigger roles at a rapid pace. His achievements include the Best Supporting Actor Award for The Crescent Moon (2015) at the Indonesian Movie Awards in 2016. Antara is best known for starring in the films Sang Penari (The Dancer) (2011), V/H/S/2 (2013), and The Raid 2:Berandal (2014). He also played the main character in the psychological thriller Killers (2013), which was the first collaboration in the genre between Japan and Indonesia, co-starring with Kazuki Kitamura.
Comment:
First off let me say that it is a blessing for me to have worked with everyone on this project. The story is so different and it put me in a new category of challenge. It is always fun to be working with people from different countries and different languages. I am proud to be a part of this film.
Nicholas Saputra (Indonesia | actor)
Saputra was born in Jakarta, Indonesia. He completed his BA in Architecture at the University of Indonesia. He made his acting debut in What’s Up with Love in 2002, which was the biggest box-office success in Indonesia at the time. The film was distributed across Asia and Europe. Saputra went on to work with prominent Indonesian directors such as Riri Riza (Gie, Indonesia’s official entry for Best Foreign Language Film at the 2006 Academy Awards) and Edwin (Postcards from the Zoo, Berlinale 2012). He was also the face of Chanel V from 2007-2008. In 2017, he co-founded a production company, Tanakhir Films, and is producing a documentary titled Semesta, currently in post-production.
Comment:
I am honored to be part of Asian Three-Fold Mirror. It was such an exciting experience to be able to work not only with various directors, but also getting to know my fellow cast members, crew members and different production styles across Asia.
Directors of Asian Three-Fold Mirror 2018
Degena Yun (China)
Born in Inner Mongolia, Degena Yun graduated from the University of London and earned an MA in Film Directing from Beijing Film Academy. She made her feature debut with Latitude 52 (2012), which was in competition at the Montreal World Film Festival. Her second feature, A Simple Goodbye (2015), won the Spirit of Asia Award from the Japan Foundation Asia Center at the 28th TIFF as well as screening Torino, Xining and Minneapolis.
Daishi Matsunaga (Japan)
Born in Tokyo, Daishi Matsunaga started his career as an actor and then directed music videos and commercials, as well as a TV series, Rescue Fire. His widely acclaimed documentary, Pyuupiru (2011), was featured in numerous international film festivals including Rotterdam, Jeonju and Paris Cinema. His first narrative film, Pieta in the Toilet (2015), was a smash hit. Ototoki, a documentary about legendary Japanese rock band The Yellow Monkey, was released in November 2017 and screened at the 22nd Busan International Film Festival and the 30th TIFF. His latest film, Hanalei Bay, is based on a Haruki Murakami short story, and will be released in Japan in October 2018.
Edwin (Indonesia)
Born in Surabaya, Indonesia, Edwin obtained a diploma in Graphic Design from Petra University and studied film at the Jakarta Institute of Arts, where he liberated his passion for filmmaking, utilizing spontaneous, flexible and fun approaches. His first feature, Blind Pig Who Wants to Fly (2008) received the FIPRESCI Prize at the International Film Festival Rotterdam 2009; and his short film Kara, The Daughter of A Tree (2005), was the first Indonesian film to be shown at the Director’s Fortnight in Cannes 2005. Postcards From The Zoo (2012) was nominated for a Golden Bear at the 2012 Berlinale. His latest film, Posesif (2017), was a smash hit in Indonesia and won the Best Director Award at the Indonesian Film Festival 2017 (Indonesia’s equivalent of the Academy Awards).
General Producer: Satoru Iseki (Japan)
Born in 1943, Iseki started his film career at Nippon Herald while an undergraduate of Waseda University. After participating in Nagisa Oshima’s Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence (1983) and Akira Kurosawa’s Ran (1985), he established Nippon Film Development and Finance in 1991 and produced Naked Lunch (1991), Howards End (1992) and others. He has produced numerous international film co-productions, including Smoke (1995), The Emperor and The Assassin (1998), The World‘s Fastest Indian (2005) and A Battle of Wits (2006). In 2001, he established HARK inc.
