Organising Japanese Film Festivals: Institutional Goals, Structures and Actors

This chapter explores the roles of the Japan Foundation as a cultural diplomacy agent tasked with organising Japanese Film Festivals (JFFs) abroad. The Foundation has become an important institution for exercising Japan’s cultural diplomacy initiatives and increasing the nation’s cultural presence through its broad network of public and private partners. This chapter discusses the development and structures of the Foundation in terms of its considerable capacity for implementing and coordinating film festival projects. It highlights the features of film festival labour within the institution and the conditions under which cultural diplomacy actors work to coordinate JFFs. The chapter also examines the aims of JFFs and considers how they respond to Japan’s cultural policies and the goals of the Japan Foundation. It argues that although the festival format allows for broader objectives and orientation, the sustainability of these events hinges on the prioritisation of Japan’s national interests, principally in maintaining relevance in policy implementation, securing the interests of the public and private sectors, and adapting to diverse operational conditions.