Refugee Film Festival Tokyo - July 18-26 2007

UNHCR Representation in Japan and Japan for UNHCR announce the launch of the second annual Refugee Film Festival, to be held in Tokyo this month.

Following the success of the first festival last year, Refugee Film Festival 2007 showcases an expanded line-up of thirty award-winning feature films and documentaries portraying stories of resilience and inspiration of people forced to leave their homes due to war and persecution. The festival opens 18 July with the Japan premiere of Iraq in Fragments, winner of the Sundance award for Best Director and Academy Award-nominee, illuminating war-torn Iraq through the eyes of ordinary Sunnis, Shiites, and Kurds. The closing film on 26 July is Shooting Dogs, a portrait of humanity in the most inhumane circumstances in Rwanda.

Exclusive to this year’s festival is a retrospective tribute to Cambodian filmmaker and former refugee Rithy Panh, featuring eight of his films and a discussion with the director himself. The festival also includes a documentary highlighting the remarkable life of Chiune Sugihara, Japan’s consul to Lithuania who helped save the lives of thousands of Jewish refugees during the Holocaust.

The films will be screened free of charge at four venues: L’Institut Franco-Japonais de Tokyo, Goethe-Institut Japan, Istituto Italiano di Cultura di Tokyo, and Embassy of Sweden. All film screenings will be followed by a Q&A session.

The Refugee Film Festival is part of UNHCR’s year-round commitment to raising awareness of the plight of the world’s ever-increasing 33 million refugees. It is the festival’s aim to give a voice to seldom-heard stories of hope, despair, and courage, and to inspire involvement of the public in making a difference. Angelina Jolie, UNHCR Goodwill Ambassador, has expressed her support stating, "Film is an important medium to introduce the many aspects of the lives and circumstances of refugees across the world, and through this entertainment vehicle, create better awareness and understanding."

For a complete list of films, screening times, and special events, please visit the official Refugee Film Festival website, www.refugeefilm.org

Source:refugeefilm.org