We Are Aliens and the New Generation of Japanese Film
Animation Masterclass
UTS Bachelor of Creative Production in Animation, The Japan Foundation Sydney, and the Japanese Film Festival 2026, present:
A Masterclass with Kōhei Kadowaki, director of the award winning Japanese animated feature, Wareware wa Uchūjin (We Are Aliens) and producer of the film, Kentaro Hayashi, who is the founder of independent Japanese animation company NOTHING NEW.
Description
Go behind the scenes of the acclaimed animated feature We Are Aliens with director Kōhei Kadowaki and producer Kentaro Hayashi. This masterclass offers a rare opportunity to learn directly from a new generation of independent Japanese filmmakers as they share the creative, artistic and practical realities of bringing original stories to the screen.
Moderated by award-winning creative director/producer, curator and animation academic Deborah Szapiro (UTS), the session will trace the journey of We Are Aliens from concept to completed feature film through discussion, production materials and case studies.
The conversation will also draw on Kentaro Hayashi's experience producing the award-winning feature AnyMart and building the independent production company NOTHING NEW, providing valuable insight into contemporary filmmaking and animation production in Japan.
The session will conclude with an audience Q&A.
Featured Filmmakers
Director Kōhei Kadowaki
Kōhei Kadowaki is a director best known for blending live action and animation in his visually striking music videos for chart-topping acts such as YOASOBI. We Are Aliens marks his feature film debut and premiered at Directors' Fortnight at Cannes this year. Since then, the film has screened in competition at the Annecy International Animation Film Festival and the Melbourne International Film Festival (MIFF), and has received major international recognition, including the Grand Prize for Animated Feature at the Ottawa International Animation Festival (OIAF) and the Best Feature Film Award in the Anima't section at the 59th Sitges - International Fantastic Film Festival of Catalonia.
Producer Kentaro Hayashi
Kentaro Hayashi began his career at TOHO before founding the film label NOTHING NEW in 2022, with a mission to give new talent room to thrive. In just a few years, the company has established itself as a significant new voice in independent Japanese filmmaking. Two of its feature films screened at major international festivals this year: AnyMart premiered in the Forum section of the Berlin International Film Festival, where it won the FIPRESCI Prize, and later screened at the Melbourne International Film Festival (MIFF). We Are Aliens premiered in the Directors' Fortnight section at the Cannes Film Festival, screened at the Melbourne International Film Festival and Annecy International Animation Film Festival, and went on to win the Grand Prize for Animated Feature at the Ottawa International Animation Festival.
Language
This event will be presented in Japanese and English with interpretation.
Credits
Presented by The Japan Foundation, Sydney as part of the Japanese Film Festival, which will be in Sydney 18 - 29th Nov. For further information:
https://jffau.jpf.go.jp/program/?city=sydney
Image artwork © Kaede WAKAYAMA.
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