The Japan Foundation, Toronto is excited to present a series of Japanese sports films that celebrate the spirit of competition and the power of the human heart.
These films explore the deep emotional and cultural resonance of sports in Japan and showcase the artistry and diverse range of Japanese sports cinema — from the visionaries of the classic era to bold contemporary voices. From the dojo to the baseball diamond, the boxing ring to the basketball court, this series traces how athletic pursuits become a path for growth, resilience, and personal reflection.
Join us for a journey across genres and generations, from lyrical documentary to raw drama to electrifying animation. These films offer intimate and powerful portraits of athletes in motion—capturing not just physical feats, but the inner lives that drive them. Whether at the highest level of competition at the Olympics or in high school tournaments, each story speaks to the passion and vulnerability behind the pursuit of excellence.
Aug 13 – Oct 20, 2025
The Japan Foundation, Toronto Event Hall
Presented in Japanese with English subtitles • Free Admission • In-Person Screenings • Registration Required
Tokyo Olympiad
東京オリンピック
Wednesday Aug 13, 6:00PM (ET)
Directed by ICHIKAWA Kon • 1965 • 169 minutes + intermission • Presented in Japanese with English subtitles • A clip
60th anniversary screening!
Considered by many as one of the greatest sporting movies of all time, ICHIKAWA Kon’s Tokyo Olympiad documents the 1964 Summer Olympics in Tokyo. The film pays as much attention to the crowds and workers as it does to the actual competitive events. It is also a celebration of the poetry of the human body, as the athletes attempted to achieve the Olympics motto of “Citius, Altius, Fortius” (Faster, Higher, Stronger).
There will be an intermission during the film.
Sanshiro Sugata
姿三四郎
Wednesday Aug 20, 6:00PM (ET)
Directed by KUROSAWA Akira • 1943 • 79 minutes • Presented in Japanese with English subtitles • Trailer
The directorial debut of KUROSAWA Akira, Sanshiro Sugata is based on the novel of the same name written by TOMITA Tsuneo, the son of TOMITA Tsunejirō, one of the earliest disciple of judo. It follows the story of Sanshiro, a talented though willful youth, who travels to the city in order to learn Jujutsu. However, upon his arrival he discovers a new form of self-defense: Judo.
Koshien: Japan’s Field of Dreams
Tuesday Sep 2, 6:00PM (ET)
Directed by Ema Ryan Yamazaki • 2019 • 94 minutes • Presented in Japanese with English subtitles • Trailer
Baseball is life for the die-hard competitors in the 100th annual Koshien, Japan’s wildly popular national high school baseball championship, whose alumni include U.S. baseball star OHTANI Shohei and former Yankee MATSUI Hideki. But for Coach Mizutani and his players, cleaning the grounds and greeting their guests are equally important as honing their baseball skills. In director Ema Ryan Yamazaki’s dramatic and intimate journey to the heart of the Japanese national character, will those acts add up to victory or prove a relic of the past?
100 Yen Love
百円の恋
Tuesday Sep 16, 6:00PM (ET)
Directed by TAKE Masaharu • 2014 • 113 minutes • Presented in Japanese with English subtitles • Trailer
32-year-old Ichiko (a powerful performance by ANDO Sakura) lives at home in self-indulgent grunginess with her parents and recently divorced younger sister. After leaving home, Ichiko finds a job at a 100 yen shop (dollar store). Ichiko falls in love with a boxer and suddenly life starts to change for her. Japan’s official entry for the Best Foreign Language Film Oscar, 100 Yen Love had its world premiere at the Tokyo International Film Festival where it won the Japanese Cinema Splash Best Picture Award.
The First Slam Dunk
Monday Oct 20, 6:00PM (ET)
Directed by INOUE Takehiko • 2022 • 124 minutes • Presented in Japanese with English subtitles • Trailer
Based on the wildly popular Slam Dunk manga series by INOUE Takehiko, The First Slam Dunk adapts the final match depicted in the manga and features original flashbacks and a new epilogue, all centered on MIYAGI Ryota, the point guard of the Shohoku High School’s basketball team. The film won the Japan Academy Prize for Animation of the Year and was a huge box office success, becoming the sixth highest-grossing Japanese film and the highest grossing basketball film of all time.
