Japanese

International Competition Jurors


Here we introduce the five jurors who will decide the destination of awards including The Robert and Frances Flaherty Prize from the fifteen International Competition films for YIDFF 2021.


Asato Mari

Born in Okinawa. Filmmaker and script writer. After working as an assistant director for Kurosawa Kiyoshi and Shiota Akihiko, she directed her first film Girls for Independence (2004). Newest film is Under Your Bed (2019).



Higashi Takuma

Born in Hiroshima in 1964. Music critic. Served as a director of Hiroshima Peace Film Festival, he also critiques and introduces films including documentaries about nuclear issues and Hiroshima.



Saito Ayako

Professor in the Department of Art Studies at Meiji Gakuin University in Tokyo. Specializes in film studies. Coordinator of Aichi International Women’s Film Festival.



Mark Schilling

Film critic. Born in the USA. Reviews Japanese films for The Japan Times since 1989. He has also written for many other publications. Program advisor for the Udine Far East Film Festival.



Shiga Lieko

Born in 1980. Photographer. Based in Miyagi since 2008. Her solo exhibitions include RASENKAIGAN (Sendai Mediatheque, 2012) and Human Spring (Tokyo Photographic Art Museum, 2019).