"Asian Three-Fold Mirror 2016: Reflections" Official website

May 11, 2021

“Asian Three-Fold Mirror 2016: Reflections” available for free online streaming; Brillante Ma Mendoza to participate in the International Conference on the Future of Asia

Mar 8, 2019

[DVD Information] “Asian Three-Fold Mirror 2016: Reflections” is coming soon to TSUTAYA DVD rental shop near you!

Aug 14, 2018

[Screening Information] 11/3 (Sat) Asian Pop-Up-Cinema “Cross Cultural Conversation through films”

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The Asian Three-Fold Mirror project brings together three globally acclaimed directors from Asia to co-create omnibus films with a common theme. The first of the omnibus film series, Asian Three-Fold Mirror 2016: Reflections, reflects on the history and culture of the chosen countries generating new points of light. Under the theme of “Living Together in Asia”, crew and cast joined forces across national borders to depict the lives of characters who journey between Japan and Cambodia, the Philippines and Malaysia. These works aim to help bring together people in Asia.

The story begins at Banei racetrack in Obihiro, Hokkaido, in the midst of winter. Marcial （Manny） has won a race and is happily on his way home when immigration officers come to the ranch where he works as a stable hand. Manny is arrested for illegally staying in the country and is deported. From Manila airport he takes a long-distance bus, jeepney and bike taxi and finally arrives in his home village, but his family dispersed long ago and there is no place for him to stay. He sneaks into the Santa Ana racetrack in the end but...

Set in Penang, Malaysia, where Michisaburo Tanaka lives in a big two-storied house with helpers. He keeps pigeons on the roof terrace. His son Masao comes to visit him from Japan every month but he is disinterested and does not stay long. One day a new helper Yasmin comes to look after Michisaburo. Through various problems a bond starts to form between the two. With the help of Yasmin and Alif, her boyfriend, Michisaburo goes to the beach where his brothers were killed during the war and sets the pigeons free.

In 1994, the reconstruction of the "Japanese Bridge" in Phnom Penh is complete after two years. Fukuda, the president of the Japanese company that oversaw the reconstruction, stands by the bridge and remembers the time he spent in Cambodia. It was a couple of decades ago when he came here to build the bridge. He fell in love with beautiful Mealea and promised her that they would get married and live in Japan together. However, as the Khmer Rouge gained power, his father made him return for fear of safety. Twenty years later, Fukuda stands by the bridge and wonders if Mealea is still alive.

Born in 1960 in the Philippines, Brillante Ma Mendoza founded the independent film production company Center Stage Productions in 2005, and in the same year, he won the Golden Leopard Award at the Locarno International Film Festival for his debut film Masahista (The Masseur). In 2007 he won the Caligari Film Award at the Berlin International Film Festival for Tirador (Slingshot) and in 2009 the Best Director at Cannes Film Festival for Kinatay. In 2012 he won the La Navicella Venezia Cinema Award at the Venice Film Festival with Thy Womb (TIFF 2015). In 2015 his Trap (TIFF 2015) was officially entered in Un Certain Regard at the 68th Cannes Film Festival, and his latest film Ma' Rosa won the Best Actress (Jaclyn Jose) in the Competition Section at the 69th Cannes Film Festival.

Born in 1968 in Kumamoto prefecture, Japan, Isao Yukisada made his feature film debut with Sunflower (2000) which won the FIPRESCI Award at the 5th Busan International Film Festival. He also won numerous awards for Go (2001), including the Japan Academy Prize. Crying Out Love in the Center of the World (2004) made the record hit with the attendance of 6.2 million people and box-office takings of 8.5 billion yen. He then directed Snowy Love Fall in Spring (2005) and Parade (2010, the FIPRESCI Award in the Panorama section at the 60th Berlin International Film Festival). He made Kamome as a segment in Camellia (2011), an omnibus film produced for the Busan International Film Festival, Entaku (2014), Pink and Gray (2016) and other films. He also directs theater productions such as "Syumi no Heya" (2013, 2015) and "Tango, Fuyu no Owari ni "(2017). His Nikkatsu Roman-Porno Aroused by Gymnopédies (2016) and Narratage (2017) are to be released.

Born in 1973 in Cambodia, Sotho Kulikar grew up during the Khmer Rouge regime and the long-running civil war. She worked as line producer for a variety of films, including Lara Croft: Tomb Raider (2001). Through her production company Hanuman Films, she has produced many films and documentaries, including Ruin, which won the Special Orizzonti Jury Prize at the 70th Venice Film Festival in 2013. She made her directorial debut in 2014 with The Last Reel, which won the Spirit of Asia Award by the Japan Foundation Asia Center at the 27th Tokyo International Film Festival. Kulikar is Cambodia's up-and-coming director, drawing a lot of attention from film festivals around the world.

According to the latest statistics of the government, human export or manpower is the biggest export of the Philippines, with approximately 2,447,000 overseas Filipino workers all over the world remitting 180 billion pesos back to the Philippine economy in cash or in kind for 2015 alone. However, it is a sad irony that in the process of looking for greener pastures for their family, they also forbid themselves from cherishing their relationships with the people they love. SHINIUMA Dead Horse is a glimpse of what proximity has done to Filipino families in a desperate need to provide a good life to their family. Most Filipinos need to disregard the very values that we cherish as a society, which is our strong family ties and just like Marcial, some of us are compelled to resort to illegal things that in the end will be useless.
－ Brillante Ma Mendoza

My grandfather said just before he died that he wanted to visit Malaysia. His two brothers died in a naval battle off the Malaysian coast during the Pacific War, so he must have wanted to go and honor their memory. I chose Malaysia for my story in some way to fulfill my grandfather's wish. When I saw the Japanese graveyard in Penang during the location hunt, it made me keenly aware of the Japanese army that invaded this place for 3 years and 8 months in the past; although it is such a beautiful and peaceful city now. Needless to say, war is a foolish act. It hurts everyone involved. Over 70 years have passed since the end of the war, and it is about time we have a better understanding of each other. I portrayed the encounter between a woman in Malaysia and an elderly Japanese man who has emigrated to Malaysia, as my own vow to never forget the mournful history of war.
－ Isao Yukisada

When I was a very young girl, my mother used to take us to the city by crossing the river on a small fishing boat under this broken bridge, which was called the Chrouy Changvar Bridge, but it is more commonly known as the "Japanese Bridge." I used to look up at the broken bridge from a distance and pray for it to be reconnected so I didn't have to face the fear of riding in the boat. The bridge was blown up twice during the civil war of the early 1970s to separate the city from the surrounding people. In 1992, it was announced that it would be rebuilt with the assistance of the Japanese Government, and next year the first election after the civil war and genocide was established by the United Nations in Cambodia. In 1994, the bridge was reopened after 20 years, and Phnom Penh became an even bigger capital, with more traffic flowing from both sides of the river. The bridge is a great metaphor for bridging and connecting in life. Connecting between one culture to another, between one nation to another, between one human to another, between the past and present... just as the Fukuda character says in my film.
－ Sotho Kulikar