A brand new festival has popped up the Twitchfilm radar this weekend. The inaugural Shinsedai [New Generation] Festival has just announced the first wave of titles playing this year here in Toronto. Co-programmed by Midnight Eye's Jasper Sharp and Toronto's greatest Jfan Chris Magee from JFilm Pow Wow their purpose and goal with Shinsedai is to turn the spotlight on some of Japan's great independent filmmakers that have emerged this past decade.

Kurosawa, Ozu, Mizoguchi, Oshima, Kitano - around the world these names immediately bring to mind the best that Japanese cinema has to offer, but now that we’re at the beginning of a new century many film fans are wondering who the next generation of great filmmakers from Japan will be. Toronto’s first Shinsedai Cinema Festival tries to answer that question by bringing some of the best work by independent Japanese filmmakers to Toronto, many for the very first time.

For three days between August 21st and 23rd the Japanese Canadian Cultural Centre will be hosting a program which will have everything from insightful dramas, quirky comedies, hard-hitting documentaries, experimental shorts, and beyond. Along with the festival announcement they just announced their first wave of titles for this year's festival.

Bunny in Hovel - Mayumi Yabe (2009
Csikspost - Yumiko Beppu (2009)
Electric Button (Moon & Cherry) -Yuki Tanada (2004)
emerger - Aki Sato (2008)
Freeter's Distress - Hiroki Iwabuchi (2007)
Hottentot Apron: A Sketch - Kei Shirichi (2006)
Naked of Defenses - Masahide Ichii (2008)
Now, I... - Ysautomo Chikuma (2007)
Suzuki & Co. - Kazuo Kono (2008)
The New God - Yutaka Tsuchiya (1999)
Vortex & Others: 5 Short Films by Yoshihiro Ito (2001-2008)