The Japan Foundation, Manila (JFM) is pleased to announce that acclaimed and award-winning filmmaker LEE Sang-il, director of this year’s Japanese Film Festival (JFF) 2026 Opening Film, KOKUHO, will join the festival’s Opening Night Event on October 1, 2026, at SM Megamall.
Following the Opening Night, Director LEE will meet Filipino audiences on Friday, October 2, for a special Post-Screening Talkback for KOKUHO at SM Megamall Cinema 2.
The film will screen at 6:00 PM, followed by the Talkback Session at 9:00 PM, where audiences can hear directly from LEE about KOKUHO, his filmmaking process, and the film’s exploration of Kabuki, tradition, artistic legacy, and human relationships. The session will also give audiences the opportunity to ask questions and engage directly with the filmmaker.
With KOKUHO as the opening film of JFF 2026, LEE Sang-il’s participation marks a significant start to this year’s festival, which carries the theme “Shared Treasure. Shared Stories.”
Following LEE Sang-il’s Manila engagements, JFF 2026 continues its filmmaker series with Director IIZUKA Kasho and his film BLUE BOY TRIAL. Inspired by true events, the film revisits the 1960s “Blue Boy Trial,” in which a doctor performing sex reassignment procedures was arrested, sparking debate on gender reassignment, happiness, and the lives of sexual minorities in Japan.
Director IIZUKA Kasho will hold Post-Screening Talkbacks at SM Cebu on October 22 and SM Manila on October 24, giving audiences an opportunity to continue the conversation with the filmmaker following the screenings.
The filmmaker conversations continue through “Journey through Japan on Screen in Manila 2026,” a special film programming initiative presented in partnership of Agency for Cultural Affairs (ACA), Government of Japan and Japan Film Commission (JFC).
