Call for Films — 8th Koka Edition

Main Theme:
Back to Japan’s Source:
Living in the Culture Woven by Mountains and Villages.

In Japan’s tourism, the shift is from quantity to quality. While major cities face overtourism, regional areas are beginning to search for travellers who understand local value and share culture. What is required is not simply gathering many tourists, but weaving narratives that reach the people we want to come. And tourism moves from waiting to inviting. Video stands at the forefront of this shift, going beyond promotion to become the core of regional branding and DX (digital transformation).
Here in Kōka City in Shiga Prefecture—where ninja culture still breathes—wisdom and spirituality born of mountains and villages take root. By looking at the source of Japan and listening to its climate and land, a journey becomes an experience that reconsiders one’s values.

The Japan World’s Tourism Film Festival supports delivering tourism films that convey regional charm to the world. From exploring what travel means to humanity, to digital marketing and VR images. We host a film festival where the topic is talked about passionately. The festival runs a tourism films contest which discovers, evaluates, awards films that include the charms of Japan’s regions, and delivers them to the world.

8th Japan World’s Tourism Film Festival

Dates: Wednesday, March 18 – Friday, March 20, 2026
Venue: Various locations within Kōka City, Shiga Prefecture

Submission Guidelines

Principally tourism films made on or after January 1, 2024, with a runtime of up to 15 minutes.

本映像祭では、以下のようなカテゴリーに基づき審査します。

Categories for Judging:

Tourism Destinations – Cities
Tourism Destinations – Regions
Tourism Destinations – Countries
Tourism Services
Tourism Products
Independent FIlms

How to Submit

Please apply via the submission site linked below:

Application Deadline

December 19, 2025 (in principle)

Entry Fee

Free of charge