Canadian Film Lovers "Turning Japanese" Following Inaugural Shinsedai Cinema
Festival

    
    Japanese Indie Festival Organizers Announce 2010 Festival Dates and
    Enhancements
    

TORONTO , Sept. 15 /CNW/ - The recent Shinsedai Cinema Festival was an overwhelming success and saw Canadian film buffs flocking to the Japanese Canadian Cultural Centre (JCCC) to catch Canadian premieres of 24 of the top films from Japan's hottest young independent filmmakers.

Chris MaGee and Jasper Sharp , co-programmers of the Festival, and James Heron , Executive Director of the JCCC and the Festival, were so pleased with the response that they are already planning the 2010 Festival. "Next year's Shinsedai Film Festival will run for four days beginning on Thursday evening July 22 , with a special opening night gala," said Heron. "In addition to enjoying the best Japanese indie films, next year's Festival goers will also have the chance to dig deeper into traditional and contemporary Japanese culture through a series of special onsite workshops and exhibitions running the duration of the weekend."

"Filmgoers told us that the Shinsedai Cinema Festival was a refreshing addition to the Canadian cinema scene," said MaGee. "They appreciated the chance to see films that would not normally make it to Canada and they liked meeting and mingling with the directors, producers and actors from the films.

One of the popular elements of this year's Shinsedai Cinema Festival was the roundtable discussion - Being Indie in Japan - that featured participants from many of the screened films. "The roundtable discussion allowed us to exchange ideas about the unique challenges and issues facing independent filmmakers in Japan ," said Sharp. "I was especially pleased to see the interest from Canadians in the stories behind many of the people associated with these films and the journeys that have had to take to get their films completed."

The Shinsedai Cinema Festival headquarters are located at the Japanese Canadian Cultural Centre, 6 Garamond Court, Toronto , 416-441-2345, www.jccc.on.ca. More details about the 2010 Festival, the program and additional entertainment, ticket information and updates will be available in the next few months on the Shinsedai Festival web site http://shinsedai-fest.com/.

For further information: Media contact: GoldFenix communications - Paul Tyler, [phone], [email protected] or Victoria Ollers, [phone], [email protected].