The Yurei
After stepping away from filmmaking since 2019’s charming musical comedy Dance with Me, director Shinobu Yaguchi makes his return with Dollhouse (2025), a horror tale centered on a cursed doll, of all things. Those who are only mildly familiar with Yaguchi-san’s filmography may find this genre jump to be rather jarring, but I assure you
The International Film Festival Rotterdam has revealed the second focus program for its upcoming festival, taking place from 29 January to 8 February 2026, marking the 55th year of IFFR. This dedicated showcase will centre on V-Cinema, the Japanese direct-to-video cinema boom that transpired in the late 80s, and has had a memorable impact on
The manner in which mainstream Bengali cinema sidesteps serious horror, almost as though it were a contagious disease, is a phenomenon deserving scrutiny. Bengali culture, from its expansive literary canon and oral storytelling to its everyday chatter in the 21st century, has never lacked horror elements. It overflows with supernatural entities, some benevolent and absent-minded,
Meiruko-chan is a 2025 Japanese supernatural horror/slice of life film written and directed by Yoshihiro Nakamura. Beginning his career with the horror film series Honto ni Atta! Noroi no Video, Yoshihiro Nakamura would proceed to write and direct the first seven films in the series–later returning to the series to narrate films eleven through to
Director Kenichi Ugana is profoundly interested in exploring societal outcasts and obsessives in his work, whilst maintaining a distinct punk and transgressive style. With titles such as Visitors: Complete Edition (2023), Extraneous Matter: Complete Edition (2021), and The Curse (2025), to name a few, the young director’s vast number of films feature elements from all
Extraneous Matter: Complete Edition (Ibutsu – Kanzenhan) is a 2021 Japanese horror drama film written and directed by Kenichi Ugana. Renowned for directing bloody horror, Kenichi is recognised as the creator behind films such as Visitors: Complete Edition (2023), the Japanese-Taiwanese collaborative horror The Curse (2025), and the upcoming Incomplete Chairs (2025). The film compiles
Taiwanese developer Softstar Entertainment has announced a first-person horror game, Junji Ito Maniac: An Infinite Gaol. The adaptation is based on the horror master’s anime series Junji Ito Maniac: Japanese Tales of the Macabre. While details are limited at this time, it has been confirmed that the game will release on PC. In the game,
Born in Tokyo, Japan, in 1984, Kenichi Ugana is a Japanese film director and screenwriter who graduated from the Department of Business Administration at Aoyama Gakuin University. Beginning his career in film with his short films, Access (2010) and Smell (2011), Kenichi would break into feature-length titles with Gangro Gal’s Riot (2016), a film based on the Ganguro
Angel’s Egg (Tenshi no Tamago), a 1985 sci-fi fantasy anime film directed by Mamoru Oshii and illustrated by Yoshitaka Amano. Oshii is best known for directing the cult classic adaptation of Masamune Shirow’s manga, Ghost in the Shell (1995), while Amano is notable for his character design work on the Final Fantasy video game series
The Curse is a 2025 Japanese/Taiwanese supernatural horror film written and directed by Japanese filmmaker Kenichi Ugana. A prolific up-and-coming horror director, Kenichi has written and directed a slew of films in recent years, such as the blood-soaked demon horror Visitors: Complete Edition (2023), the tentacle horror Extraneous Matter: Complete Edition (2021), and the upcoming