Japanese Director Yamanaka’s Film Wins Critics Award at Cannes

Jiji Press

11:47 JST, May 26, 2024

Cannes, France (Jiji Press)—Japanese director Yoko Yamanaka’s “Desert of Namibia” won an award from the International Federation of Film Critics at the Cannes Film Festival on Saturday.

“Desert of Namibia” is a story about a 21-year-old woman. “For its intrepid exploration of contemporary shades of neurodivergence, captured through images that ceaselessly probe the distance between its central characters as they navigate the spaces of 21st century Japan,” the jury said.

Yamanaka, 27, became the youngest woman to win the award. “I would like to express my gratitude to the staff and cast. I still rely on my senses when I make a movie, but I want to study and be able to make it better,” she said in a statement.

She attracted attention with “Amiko,” a 2017 film that she directed for the first time at the age of 19.

The International Federation of Film Critics gave an award to Kiyoshi Kurosawa’s “Pulse” in 2001 and Ryusuke Hamaguchi’s “Drive My Car” in 2021 among other Japanese films.