Singapore festival to honour Kore-eda Hirokazu with top award
Japanese director Kore-eda Hirokazu will receive the Cinema Honorary Award at the 37th Singapore International Film Festival, the festival's top tribute for filmmakers with a lasting mark on Asian cinema, Variety.
The 37th edition runs Oct. 21 to Nov. 1 in Singapore. Kore-eda will attend in person. He will collect the award during an In Conversation With dialogue session on Oct. 24.
That same day brings a special presentation of his new film "Look Back" on Oct. 24. The screening will be the film's Southeast Asia premiere, ahead of its Oct. 29 theatrical release.
Kore-eda is best known internationally for "Shoplifters." The 2018 family drama won the Palme d'Or, the top prize at the Cannes Film Festival. It was the first Japanese film to take that prize in more than two decades.
"Look Back" opens a new chapter. It is the first live-action feature adapted from any manga by Fujimoto Tatsuki. The film competed for the Golden Lion, the top prize at the Venice Film Festival.
For fans, this means a rare chance to see a major premiere and hear the filmmaker discuss his work in the same day.
The festival has also named Korean director Yim Soon-rye to head the jury of its Asian Feature Film Competition, Variety. She studied filmmaking at the University of Paris 8 and debuted with "Three Friends" in 1996. Her later credits include "Waikiki Brothers," "Forever the Moment," "The Whistleblower," "Little Forest" and "The Point Men."
Away from the set, Yim spent 12 years as president of an animal rights association. She now co-leads the Korean Center for Gender Equality in Film. She will also speak at SGIFF Industry Days on Oct. 27.
The industry arm, SGIFF Pro, is getting bigger. Its Industry Days conference grows from three days to four. It now comprises five programmes: the Industry Days conference, the Asian Producers Network, the Pitching Forum, Off Campus and Parallax.
The guest list extends beyond the two headliners. Cinematographer Ashizawa Akiko, laureate of the 2026 Pierre Angenieux Tribute at Cannes, will give a talk. Filmmaker Fukada Koji will also give a talk, and his Singapore co-production "Nagi Notes" will screen in the festival's Horizon section.
Three new strands join the line-up. Off Campus is a four-day field trip pairing film school students with working professionals. The Pitching Forum connects international projects with decision-makers and local co-production partners. Parallax is a free sidebar on filmmaking, AI and immersive technology, with participants from Amazon MGM Studios, SM Entertainment, Adobe, Largo.ai and Ubac Studio, Variety.
Founded in 1987, the Singapore International Film Festival is organised by Singapore International Film Festival Ltd., a nonprofit body supported by the Infocomm Media Development Authority. The 2026 dates confirm its shift to an October slot.
