39th Jury

Rolf de Heer

Screenwriter, Film Director, Producer

After graduating from AFTRS (the Australian Film, Television and Radio School) decades ago, Tasmania-based Rolf de Heer wrote/co-wrote 14 original and adapted screenplays that have been made into feature films, and probably more than 14 that haven’t. He has directed (or in one case, co-directed) 15 and a half feature films of various budgets and genres, mostly from his own scripts. De Heer has also produced/co-produced 16 fiction features and five feature documentaries.
Early career highlights include Dingo (1991) with Colin Friels and jazz legend Miles Davis; Bad Boy Bubby (1993), multiprize winner at Venice and still an active cult film more than 30 years later; The Quiet Room (1996) and Dance Me to My Song (1998), both selected for Competition at Cannes.
Mid-career highlights include The Tracker (2002), another Venice Competition film and de Heer’s first collaboration with esteemed Australian Aboriginal actor David Gulpilil; Alexandra’s Project (2003), with Helen Buday’s incendiary performance winning the film a Competition slot at Berlin and Best Actress award at San Sebastian; Ten Canoes (2006), prize winner at Cannes; The King Is Dead! (2012), voted most popular film at an obscure French film festival, brought back the following year by public demand and again voted most popular film (it doesn’t happen very often); and Charlie’s Country (2013), winning David Gulpilil a Best Actor award at Cannes.
Late-career highlights include The Survival of Kindness (2022), awarded the FIPRESCI Prize at the Berlin International Film Festival; and being Jury President at the 39th Tokyo International Film Festival.

Message

For any of us attending the Tokyo International Film Festival, it is a privilege. For me, as a filmmaker, it is even more so. The more films I manage to make, the fewer films I manage to see, especially on the big screen. But as a part of this jury, I have the duty, the obligation, to see at least 15 films and talk about them with other filmmakers! And not just any old 15 films, but the 15 films in Competition, drawn from films made all over the world by all sorts of extraordinary filmmakers! And to do this in a city that plays host to one of the most formidable film cultures in the world! Can life ever get much better than this?

Alex Lo

Producer

Alex Lo is a producer and the founder of Cinema Inutile, a New York and Tokyo-based production company that focuses on artist-driven films from underrepresented perspectives and international co-productions. Alex most recently produced Manuela Martelli's The Meltdown (2026 Cannes Un Certain Regard), Jim Jarmusch’s Golden Lion winner Father, Mother, Sister, Brother (2025 Venice Competition), the Sean Baker-penned, Oscar-shortlisted Left-handed Girl (2025 Cannes Critics’ Week) by Shih-Ching Tsou, and Heads or Tails (2025 Cannes Un Certain Regard and TIFF Best Director Award) by Alessio Rigo de Righi and Matteo Zoppis. Alex’s films have screened at Cannes, Venice, Berlin, Toronto, Sundance, and Locarno, among others. Alex is a voting member of BAFTA (British Academy of Film and Television Arts), a Film Fellow at Film at Lincoln Center, and a founding partner of North American distributor 1-2 Special.

Oh Jungwan

Producer

Oh Jungwan is the founder and producer of Bom Film Productions, a prominent film production company in South Korea. Throughout her career, she has focused on producing distinctive and ambitious feature films that challenge conventional ideas of cinema while combining artistic originality with broad popular appeal.Her filmography with Bom Film Productions includes award-winning and commercially successful films such as The Foul King (2000), A Tale of Two Sisters (2003), Untold Scandal (2003), A Bittersweet Life (2005), You Are My Sunshine (2005), Woman on the Beach (2006), Night and Day (2008), A Man and a Woman (2016), and Wonderland (2024). Oh Jungwan has also played a pioneering role in cross-border filmmaking, developing collaborations with filmmakers and industry partners in Hong Kong, Japan, Thailand, and other parts of Asia. Beyond her work as a producer, she has actively contributed to the international film community as a board member and jury member for numerous prestigious film festivals and organizations. Drawing on her extensive experience in film production, international collaboration, and film education, Oh Jungwan continues to contribute to the development and global exchange of Korean and Asian cinema.

Watanabe Makiko

Actor

Watanabe Makiko debuted as a model in 1986 and as an actor in 1988 in Bakayaro! I'm Plenty Mad. Since then, she has subsequently worked in films both in Japan and overseas, including M/OTHER (1999), The Mourning Forest (2007), Love Exposure (2009), Himizu (2012), Capturing Dad (2013), and The Asadas! (2020). She has received widespread acclaim for her performances, winning the Best Actor Award at the Takasaki Film Festival, the Best Supporting Actress Award at the 55th Asia Pacific Film Festival, and the Best Supporting Actress Award at the 7th Asian Film Awards. In 2026, she received the Best Actress Award for Bridge of Avidya (2025) at the 4th Yokohama International Film Festival. Recently, she has been actively involved in TV series and international co-productions such as TOKYO MER (2021, 2023, 2025), TOKYO VICE (2022), and Drops of God (2023, 2026). Watanabe has also served on the jury of film festivals in Japan and overseas, including the Japanese Cinema Splash section at the 28th Tokyo International Film Festival in 2015, and as jury president for the International Competition at the SKIP CITY INTERNATIONAL D-Cinema FESTIVAL in 2018. Beyond her acting work, she is engaged in developing film culture. In 2021, she launched “Mini Theater Park,” a platform that supports independent cinemas, and she currently serves as a board member of TOKYO FILMeX.

Yov Moor

DI Colorist

Yov Moor is a colorist dedicated to translating a filmmaker’s vision into a distinct visual language. Focusing on the unique atmosphere of each film, he has worked on over 200 projects worldwide, spanning from independent cinema to studio features. His credits include Richard Linklater’s Nouvelle Vague (2025), Miguel Gomes’s Grand Tour (2024), Tran Anh Hung’s The Taste of Things (2023), Audrey Diwan’s Happening (2021), and Deniz Gamze Ergüven’s Mustang (2015). Currently based in Tokyo, he has built trusted collaborations with directors such as Wong Kar-wai, Kurosawa Kiyoshi, Sung Kang, Lee Ping-bin, João Pedro Rodrigues, Pema Tseden, Phuttiphong Aroonpheng, Midi Z, and Cai Shangjun. Projects he has colored have been selected for festivals including Cannes, Venice, Tokyo, Berlin, Sundance, Toronto, Rotterdam, Busan, Hong Kong, and Golden Horse, alongside recognition at the Oscars and Golden Globes.

Eiko Mizuno-Gray

CEO / Producer, Loaded Films Ltd.

CEO and producer at Loaded Films, Tokyo. With a focus on international co-productions, her credits include Kurosawa Kiyoshi’s To the Ends of the Earth (2019) and Hayakawa Chie’s Plan 75 (Cannes Caméra d'Or Special Mention 2022, Japan’s official Oscar entry 2023). Her latest production, Hayakawa’s Renoir, screened in the official competition at Cannes 2025.

Fujimoto Akio

Film Director

His debut feature Passage of Life (2017) won two awards in the Asian Future section at Tokyo International Film Festival. His second film Along the Sea (2020) premiered at San Sebastián International Film Festival, and received the Oshima Prize and the Shindo Kaneto Gold Prize. His latest film, Lost Land, a drama centered on Rohingya refugees, won the Special Jury Prize in the Orizzonti section at the 82nd Venice International Film Festival.

Yulia Evina Bhara

CEO / Producer, KawanKawan Media

Producer and founder of KawanKawan Media, a production company based in Jakarta. Bhara has produced among others: Solo, Solitude, The Science of Fictions, 24 Hours with Gaspar, You and I, Whether The Weather Is Fine, Stone Turtle, Autobiography, Tiger Stripes, Dreaming & Dying, Last Shadow at the First Light, Don’t Cry, Butterfly, Tale of the Land, Renoir, The Fox King, Hearing and House of the Moon. She was chosen as one of Variety International’s Impactful Women in 2023.

Mathieu Macheret

Corporate Executive, MYRIAGON STUDIO

Mathieu Macheret, a graduate of ENS Louis-Lumière, is a film critic at Le Monde, lecturer and film-club host. Writing on cinema since 2008, he has contributed to Cahiers du Cinéma, Trafic, Études and other publications. He is the author of "Josef von Sternberg: Les jungles hallucinées" (2021) and editor of "Raoul Walsh - En jeux" (2023), and regularly contributes to France Culture, the French public radio network.

Murata Chieko

Corporate Executive, MYRIAGON STUDIO

Moved to the U.S. after graduating from Doshisha University and worked at the Sundance Institute, supporting emerging filmmakers; following roles at NHK Enterprises, CJ Entertainment, and 20th Century Fox, producing films at Sony Pictures including 50 First Kisses (2018) and Kingdom (2019). Now Executive Officer at MYRIAGON STUDIO; won the 50th Élan d'or Producer Award and 45th Fujimoto Award for Kokuho (2025).

Sabrina Baracetti

President, Udine Far East Film Festival

Born in Udine in 1967, Sabrina Baracetti has been President of C.E.C., an arthouse exhibition company, since 1995, and is a founding member and President of the Udine Far East Film Festival. She is also an acquisitions consultant for distribution company Tucker Film, co-founder and consultant for Ties That Bind, and a Board member of Friuli Cinematheque. She has served on numerous festival juries and as a nomination advisor for the Asian Film Awards.

Isomura Hayato

Actor

Isomura Hayato launched his acting career in 2014. He gained widespread recognition after winning the Newcomer of the Year award at the 45th Japan Academy Film Prizes for A Family and What Did You Eat Yesterday? (2021), as well as the Best Supporting Actor award at the 47th Japan Academy Film Prizes for The Moon (2023), alongside numerous other supporting actor awards. His notable film credits include Plan 75 and The Fish Tale (2022), Ripples, The Dry Spell, and (Ab)normal Desire (2023), and The Young Strangers and Hakkenden: Fiction and Reality (2024). On Netflix, he has appeared in “Alice in Borderland” (Seasons 2 and 3) and “Soulmate,” with his latest project, “Did Someone Happen to Mention Me?,” slated for global release on October 22. His latest film Mentor (directed by Yoshida Keisuke), has received acritical acclaim at international film festivals. In recent years, he has also hosted the Shizuoka Film Festival (Festival de Shizuoka) in his hometown.

Message

Today, we absorb vast amounts of information in seconds through a small screen. I often feel we fall into the trap of believing we understand something instantly, constantly searching for quick answers. Yet, when it comes to deepening our awareness and understanding of social issues, the process of reaching those answers is what truly matters.
Cinema possesses the unique power to pause our hurried pace, allowing us to experience that very process through the lives and emotions of others. I am committed to taking the thoughts, hopes, and wishes woven into these films by each filmmaker deeply to heart, and to reflecting on them together with everyone.

Student PR Team

Kanenori Kurumi (Musashino Art Univ.)

Goujima Seitaro (Chuo Univ.)

Takahashi Shiori (Hosei Univ.)