As filmmakers, our imagination is key to our success. Through the medium of visual filmmaking that imagination can in many ways be endless, fueled by our creativity to adapt the stories swirling in our minds to the screen. The only true limitation? Funding.
There are endless ways you can tell your story, and Short Shorts Film Festival & Asia wants to celebrate your creativity. Asia’s largest international short film festival, Short Shorts Film Festival & Asia, is teaming up with Kodansha to celebrate talented new filmmakers and visual creators.
Kodansha Cinema Creators’ Lab, the Kodansha project, was launched at the SSFF & ASIA 2022 and began accepting pitch submissions. This ambitious project’s goal is to fully support the art of filmmaking, from discussions on a film’s production to funding and publicity.
They announced the winners for this second edition in 2024 festival; out of a total 1,126 submissions, (885 Japan / 241 overseas), 3 projects (2 from Japan and 1 from overseas) were selected after document screening and multiple interviews.
The first Cinema Creators Lab’s selected pitches became five short films and screened at the SSFF & ASIA 2024 each competition. They were:
- “Warmth in a Puddle” (Director: Sorao Sakimura)
- “what YOU eat” (Directer: Ryo Sena)
- “Draw me.” (Director: Kohei Kiyasu)
- “SAGE” (Director: Max Blustin)
- “A Dream for My Daughter” (Director: Mauricio Osaki)
“A Dream for My Daughter” by Mauricio Osaki, one of the short films produced from the selected pitch(SSFF & ASIA)
What Is Kodansha Cinema Creators’ Lab?
SSFF & ASIA has been supporting filmmakers worldwide since 1999. SSFF & ASIA aims to introduce a new film culture from Asia while supporting young filmmakers from every corner of the world. Winners in the festival’s Live Action/Animation/Non-Fiction Competitions are even eligible to be nominated for an Oscar at next year’s Academy Awards.
Kodansha, which was founded in 1909, is a publishing company aimed at finding interesting and informative entertainment. The company truly believes that everything they do is in service of the creator, and wants to expand its collaborative spirit to all filmmakers and creatives. The Creators’ Lab is a department in Kodansha that was established in 2021 to discover and support new creators in a wider range of genres.
Together for the first time, SSFF & ASIA and Kodansha Cinema Creators’ Lab want to award the best three pitches ¥10,000,000 (about $72,745) to fund the complete cost of the short film’s production.
Selected pitches will also work closely with an experienced editor from Kodansha who will oversee the project until the short film’s completion.
“Our editors will support the production of not only games but also films through a ‘one-on-one dialogue’ with the creators,” Kodansha’s President and CEO Yoshinobu Noma said in a statement. “Kodansha, which has always supported creators, is delighted to meet new talented creators to discover new possibilities in the field of visual images.”
“Warmth in a Puddle” by Sorao Sakimura, one of the short films produced from the selected pitch(SSFF & ASIA)
How to Pitch to Cinema Creators’ Lab
This competition is open to all filmmakers across all formats and genres.
Directors, producers, animators, CG creators, and production companies are welcome to apply by sending pitches to the official SSFF & ASIA website. These pitches must include a storyboard, completed script, and resume.
To apply to the Kodansha Cinema Creators’ Lab, submit a completed member application form. While it is possible to apply for multiple projects, SSFF & ASIA and Kodansha Cinema Creators’ Lab strongly recommend only applying for one project.
The application process will ask you to enter the basic information about the unpublished project you are proposing, as well as a resume and a proposal. Your proposal should describe the plot as well as the intentions of the project within 1,000 characters in Japanese or 500 words in English. Selected pitches will be announced by the end of January 2025 on the Kodansha Cinema Creators’ Lab page on SSFF & ASIA’s website.Submissions open on August 1, 2024, and will close on Nov. 30, 2024, at 11:59 p.m. JST (7:59 a.m. PST).
What are you waiting for? Pitch your idea today for the chance to win ¥10,000,000 and to work with a renowned editor from Kodansha to make your short film idea a reality! We can’t wait to see your work.
Creators whose short films were screened appeared at the SSFF & ASIA 2024 Opening Ceremony
Announcing the Kodansha Branded Film Contest
In addition to the Cinema Creators lab, Kodansha is also hosting a separate contest that will give filmmakers the opportunity to win funding through their branded film contest.
Via their Branded Film Contest, Kodansha is seeking pitches for branded films that embody Kodansha’s “Inspire Impossible Stories” concept. The production budget for the film is a maximum of ¥30,000,000 with additional prize money clocking at ¥3,000,000. Kodansha will announce the best pitch in early 2025 and aim to complete and release it by 2026.
Essentially, contestants who are eligible will have th opportunity to take anything from Kodansha’s branded publication library and adapt it to film using the prize money to fund it. While it may seem limiting to not get to write your own idea, adaptation is a ton of fun and there’s something to be said about making a name for yourself with preexisting IP—especially with a brand with a wealth and regard to creativity and storytelling.
You can apply here through September 30.
Source: SSFF & ASIA and Kodansha
