We present the list of winners of the 38th PIA Film Festival that took place from September 10th – 23rd in Tokyo, Japan.

Grand Prize

Out of the flying pan by Takashi Komatsu – Japan | 47 min.

Masao (65) lives on welfare, has no hobbies, and is addicted to McDonald’s and alcohol. His son Hiroshi (35) is a poet who has no regular job. They live together in a house but eat separately. Their only interaction is to take the bankcard and car key from the designated place and then return them.

Runner Up Award

Flowering by Isora Iwakiri – Japan | 76 min.

“I” entered university in the spring. At the welcoming event for new students, a senior student named Arisa who belonged to the Film Study Group took me to a screening. There, I saw student films for the first time. I’d lived my life unfamiliar with creating things, but I decided to join the club thinking that something might change inside me.

Special Jury’s Award

The Hell of Sisyphus by Shun Ito – Japan | 19 min.

Ishii works at a facility where rocks are sorted. One day, he gets a call from Watanabe at the head office. “The new guy that I told you about the other day will start working there tomorrow, so teach him the ropes.” The newcomer comes immediately after the call and greets Ishii loudly, “Good morning.” Entrusted with the task of supervising the newcomer, Ishii gives instructions though he feels uncomfortable doing so. But the newcomer lacks ambition and does not respond when spoken to, and all he does is answer in a loud voice.

Tokeru by Aya Igashi – Japan | 45 min.

A couple is flirting in the classroom. Sitting on the other’s lap, kissing… Mako sits looking disgruntled. She leaves the classroom, passes through a path between paddy fields in the countryside, and arrives at a river. She then jumps into the river from the bridge still in uniform.

Let’s Sleep Together Again by Lynn Shuto – Japan | 43 min.

Minami (Natsumi Ikeda) is an office worker who supports her unemployed boyfriend Ogino (Enzo Suetsugu). After a certain incident, Ogino began seeing visions of the ceiling covered with bats and quit his job because of it. Minami can’t bring herself to ask him to start working again and responds to him on a daily basis by pretending to see the bats too.

Entertainment Award (Horipro Prize)

Drill and Messy by Ayuta Yoshikawa – Japan | 40 min.

Yukio, a student studying filmmaking in a university of fine arts, gets pleasure from “messing up” women’s bodies with various fluids. He then films the stained naked bodies of the women with a 8mm camera, and finds the image he sees through the lens beautiful. But when he presents his completed work at a joint evaluation, the professor tells him, “It’s just an expression of sexual desire,” and he loses confidence in his own sense of beauty.

Gemstone Award (Nikkatsu Prize)

Flowering by Isora Iwakiri – Japan | 76 min.

Cinema Fan Award (PIA Eiga Seikatsu Prize)

Let’s Sleep Together Again by Lynn Shuto – Japan | 43 min.

Audience Award

Vanitas by Takuya Uchiyama – Japan | 104 min.

Shibahara, a third-year university student, is skipping class and shooting hoops alone in the gym. His friends Ito, Tachibana, and Nagai join in to play mini games and their laughter echoes in the gym. During classes in the afternoon, they each sit looking lethargic. Ito is an inspiring presence, Nagai is always cheerful, and Tachibana is the central figure of their group. This is Shibahara’s daily life and all he ever does. They each have their hang-ups but only share fun times together. Their relationship is shallow and they don’t know each other’s lives outside the university.

The Japan P.E.N Club Award

Flowering by Isora Iwakiri – Japan | 76 min.

To know more about the festival you can see the FESTIVAL PROFILE or go to the official website HERE.