V-Cinema - Focus Programme at IFFR 2026

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 filmmaking since.

Originating with Toei’s action film Crime Hunter: City of Bullets (1989), which was met with great success, the company capitalised on this newfound popularity in the VHS rental market to produce a stream of low-budget features at a much faster rate than cinematic releases–feeding this market further. This new freedom allowed directors to work quickly and with largely unbound creative freedom, to produce a large body of work for release. Additionally, the method offered an invaluable opportunity for up-and-coming filmmakers to begin honing their craft. The likes of Nakata Hideo, Takashi Miike, Kiyoshi Kurosawa, and many more notable names in film were all given their first opportunities to direct inside V-Cinema–kick-starting their careers.

FFR’s V-Cinema Focus Programme will feature multiple titles from Toei – including the previously mentioned Crime Hunter: Bullets of Rage (1989) and its follow-ups Crime Hunter 2: Bullets of Betrayal (1989), and Crime Hunter 3: Killing the Bullet (1990). Furthermore, screenings of Betrayal of Tomorrow (1990), as well as the feature-length debut work of Nakata Hideo, Female Teacher: Forbidden Sex (1995), and XX Beautiful Weapon (1993).

Additionally, screenings of Takashi Miike’s Fudoh: The New Generation (1996), Tuff: Part I (1990), Suit Yourself or Shoot Yourself!! VI: The Hero (1996), and The King of Minami (1992) will also be held during the festival. Not ignoring V-cinema’s long relationship with horror, the festival will the supernatural anthology Scary True Stories: Second Night (1992), the found footage horror Psychic Vision: Jaganrei (1988).