"I am delighted to be back at the Tokyo International Film Festival. I have only the best memories of my first jury participation," said Wim Wenders when he was selected as jury president for the film festival. Wenders' Japanese film PERFECT DAYS, which is also Japan's Oscar® entry for Best International Feature Film, will open the film festival.

The Competition section will feature two German productions competing for the Tokyo Sakura Grand Prix - both films will also celebrate their world premieres. The romance GONDOLA (Veit Helmer Filmproduktion) by Veit Helmer is about daily gondola rides in a small Georgian mountain village, which become fateful encounters for the two conductors Iva and Nino.
The novel adaptation BLIND AT HEART (Lucky Bird Pictures) by Barbara Albert is also screening in competition. The drama follows young Helene as she struggles with her identity, her role as a mother and traditional role models in 1920s and 1930s Berlin.

The World Focus section features another film by Wim Wenders. The documentary ANSELM (Road Movies), a portrait of the artist Anselm Kiefer, his life, his inspiration and his creative process, will be shown.
Also screening is Angela Schanelec's MUSIC (faktura film), a drama about a young Greek man, Ion, whose life seems to be nothing but hurdles, yet he seems to gain something back for every loss he suffers.

German Films & Co-Productions in Tokyo 2023  - an overview

Competition
GONDOLA by Veit Helmer (Veit Helmer Filmproduktion)
BLIND AT HEART by Barbara Albert (Lucky Bird Pictures)

World Focus
MUSIC by Angela Schanelec (DE/FR, Faktura Film)
ANSELM by Wim Wenders (Road Movies)
SULTANA’S DREAM by Isabel Herguera (ES/DE, Fabian&Fred)

Gala Selection
KIDNAPPED by Marco Bellocchio (IT/FR/DE, Match Factory Productions)

Contact:
Sylva Häutle (Head of Festival Relations & Producers Liaison)
Angela Sonntag (Head of Press & Public Relations)