Tokyo Filmex (November 19-27) unveiled the lineup of its 12th edition today, announcing Kim Ki-duk’s Un Certain Regard winner Arirang as opening film and Johnnie To’s Venice competition title Life Without Principle as closing film.

The 10-film competition section, which focuses on work from emerging Asian filmmakers has strong showings from China and South Korea as well as the festival’s first Tibetan-Chinese title.

Entries include Mohammad Rasoulof’s Goodbye (for which he was named best director in this year’s Cannes Un Certain Regard section), Shanghai film festival winner Mr. Tree, Kim Ki-duk protege Juhn Jai-hong’s Poongsan (with screenplay by Kim himself), popular Sri Lankan festival title Flying Fish, Tibetan filmmaker Pema Tseden’s third film Old Dog, Korean director Park Jung-bum’s Rotterdam winner The Journals Of Musan and Toshifumi Fujiwara’s documentary on the Fukushima nuclear disaster No Man’s Zone.

The competition jury will be headed by film director Amir Naderi, whose Japanese-language Cut recently screened in Venice and Toronto and will show as a special screening at Filmex. He is joined by French film critic Philippe Azoury, Korean film industry figure Jung Soowan, Japanese film director Makoto Shinozaki and Nicholas Ray Foundation president Susan Ray.

The 7-film special screening selection includes Jafar Panahi’s This Is Not A Film, Ryuichi Hiroki’s River, Bela Tarr’s The Turin Horse and Toshiaki Toyoda’s Monsters Club.

There are also retrospectives on Nicholas Ray and revered Japanese directors Yuzo Kawashima and Shinji Somai, both of whom had their careers cut short when they died suddenly.

Tokyo Filmex also launches the first edition of its Talent Campus Tokyo initiative, revising and expanding on last year’s Next Masters program under an official partnership with Berlin’s talent campus event. With the aim of fostering future Asian directors and producers, 12-15 participants from across the continent will join master classes and workshops under experienced mentors. Details are set to be announced next week.

Tokyo Filmex Competition Lineup:

Good Bye, Mohammad Rasoulof (Iran)

Flying Fish (Igillena Maluwo), Sanjeewa Pushpakumara (Sri Lanka)

Old Dog (Khyi Rgan), Pema Tseden (China)

Mr.Tree (Hello! Shu Xian Sheng), Han Jie (China)

Bachelor Mountain, Yu Guangyi, (China)

The Journals of Musan (Musanilgi), Park Jung-bum (South Korea)

Poongsan, Juhn Jai-hong (South Korea)

Countdown, Huh Jong-ho (South Korea)

Tokyo Playboy Club,  Okuda Yosuke (Japan)

No Man’s Zone (Mujinchitai) , Fujiwara Toshifumi (Japan-France)

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