TOKYO, May 27, 2025 — To commemorate its 90th anniversary in 2025, IMAGICA GROUP Inc., based in Tokyo, has initiated the IMAGICA GROUP Film Project as a new venture. The project’s outline, marking the company’s first foray into original film production, was revealed on Wednesday, May 14, at a press conference held at the Japan Pavilion during the 78th Cannes International Film Festival, where “Maria” was announced as the inaugural film.

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Shunjiro Nagase, Representative Director, President, and CEO of IMAGICA GROUP Inc., commenced the conference with opening remarks. He was followed by Hirokazu Kore-eda (Film Director), Shozo Ichiyama (Programming Director, Tokyo International Film Festival), and Yuka Sakano (Executive Director, Kawakita Memorial Film Institute), who served as judges for the selection of the winning project, each offering their greetings.

Hana Tsuchikawa (Producer at OLM, Inc.), the producer of the first winning project, “Maria,” shared her initial thoughts. Tomoka Terada, the writer and director, who was unable to attend the conference, conveyed her sentiments and introduced her project via a video message. The press conference concluded with the jury’s collective feedback on the selected film production project.

Comments from Press Conference Speakers

Shunjiro Nagase (President and CEO of IMAGICA GROUP Inc.)

“We’ve been contemplating how we can best support the future of visual culture. We concluded that introducing new talent and works to the world, and exploring the potential of Japanese visual expression on a global scale, was crucial, leading to the launch of this project.”

“IMAGICA GROUP aims to achieve entry and awards at international film festivals through this project. We enlisted Director Hirokazu Kore-eda, Tokyo International Film Festival Programming Director Shozo Ichiyama, and Executive Director Yuka Sakano of the Kawakita Memorial Film Institute to evaluate the submissions.”

Outline of the IMAGICA GROUP Film Project

For more detailed information and materials, including application requirements, photos, movie footage, and the press release, please refer to the link below:
 

IMAGICA GROUP 90th Anniversary Special Site
 

SOURCE IMAGICA GROUP Inc.

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