JAPAN PITCH in TOKYO

She is a producer and actress whose producing credits include films from established Japanese directors Yukihiko Tsutsumi and Koji Shiraishi. In 2025, she graduated from the Busan Asian Film School (AFiS), further strengthening her practical experience in international co-productions. Currently, she is developing the Japan-Philippines co-production project My Missing Half with an international team that includes Filipino director Rodiell Veloso (writer/director) and producer Rajiv Idnani of This Side Up. Moving across Philippine and Japanese pop culture and film industries, the team aims to create a unique work that stands at the boundary between genre cinema and art film. Combining horror rooted in Philippine folklore with Black comedy and Identity drama, the project is attracting international attention as a work that could open new possibilities for a new generation of Asian co-productions.

Based in Japan, Yoshimi Joya is a director working across commercials, television series, and films. After gaining experience as a production manager at a commercial production company, she moved to Canada, where she gained experience in international production. Since returning to Japan in 2020, she has continued working as a director. After making a number of short films, her participation in ATMOVIE GLOBAL TRACK inspired her to pursue feature filmmaking. She is currently developing her first feature project and screenplay, with international co-production in mind, and aims to make her feature directorial debut. Her directing credits include the short films Be Happy Anyway (2021), officially selected for the Ladies of Cinema section at SSFF & ASIA; Doughnuts Mori (2022); Colors Under the Streetlights (2024), officially selected for the Short Film Competition at the Vancouver International Film Festival; and SOMEDAY (2026).

She is a Tokyo-based director and screenwriter with over 20 years of experience across development, production, and distribution. Her roles have spanned assistant director, casting, and producer, and she has been involved in international co-productions with partners in the Philippines, the United States, the Middle East, and the United Kingdom. Her screenplays have received recognition at the Filmex Screenplay Award and the Kodansha Manga Script Award. Her work spans arthouse and genre cinema, with a consistent focus on social realism and those often rendered invisible. She founded the creative team ARRDEP, addressing labor and gender issues in the industry. Her short film MILK LADY has screened and won awards at international film festivals. She is currently developing Portrait of Absence as a Japan-Europe co-production and is seeking European co-production partners. A phone call she did not answer. The regret stayed. Now in her forties, she finds herself drawn to the weight of small decisions - and to the women who carry them in silence. This film is her attempt to finally pick up.

Born in Tokyo, Yusuke Kinoshita spent his elementary school years in Australia. His independent film Bird Cage won awards at the 2003 Pia Film Festival. Through the PFF Scholarship program, he directed his first feature, Water Flower. It premiered at the 2006 Berlin International Film Festival. It was released theatrically across Japan, beginning at Eurospace. In 2012, he directed NOTHING UNUSUAL, produced by UPLINK. In 2018, he directed Mischievous Alliance, a segment of the omnibus film Ten Years Japan, executive produced by Hirokazu Kore-eda. The international project with Hong Kong, Thailand, and Taiwan. Premiered at the Busan International Film Festival, and released theatrically across Japan, beginning at Theatre Shinjuku, as well as in Hong Kong and South Korea. He has participated in international co-production workshops and markets, including Ties That Bind, Talents Tokyo, and Golden Horse Film Project Promotion. His current project, Children of the Empire, was selected for the VIPO Film Lab NY Script Workshop and ATMOVIE GLOBAL TRACK. In 2026, he founded spectra Co., Ltd.

Shiori Saito is a Japanese documentary filmmaker. She began her career in Japanese television in 2013, working as a director, cinematographer, and editor on documentary and travel programs. After spending nearly a decade in New York, she became committed to telling stories that connect people across cultures. In 2021, she co-founded the Japan-based production company Mimosa LLC, where she produces documentaries, television programs, and branded films. Her short documentary Floating in Between won the Best Award at SSFF & ASIA 2023. In 2026, she was selected as a fellow of the ATMOVIE GLOBAL TRACK, where she is developing and directing her first feature-length documentary, OMUSUBI. At BIFF, she hopes to connect with international co-production partners who share the vision of OMUSUBI and are interested in developing the project together. She also looks forward to exchanging ideas with filmmakers from diverse cultural backgrounds as the project continues to evolve.

Affiliated with a production company within the TV Asahi network, he works as a documentary director for television. Since childhood, he has been deeply connected to music and has performed in charity concerts. Through these experiences, he witnessed how music can express what words cannot. This realization took on new meaning when he encountered a unique musical program at a girls' juvenile training school in Japan. Watching the girls create and perform their own production, he was struck not by technical perfection, but by the raw honesty of their voices. This moment became the origin of his first feature film project, Her Voice. After participating in the ATMOVIE GLOBAL TRACK, his commitment to this story deepened. With this project, he aims to take his first step as an international film director, beginning with its presentation at the Cannes Film Festival.