Yukinari Hanawa

Yukinari Hanawa (b. 1965, Kanagawa prefecture) worked in film while he was still studying. He participated in the series Roman Porno, made for the company Nikkatsu, and was assistant to directors Shun Nakahara and Kaizo Hayashi. His debut Tokyo Skin (1995) was awarded the Special Jury Prize at the Fukuoka IFF where he made a strong impression on director Chen Kaige. He studied film in Australia in 1999. He was also completing the documentary-style Fairy Tale of Sands, set in Egypt, while working on First Love. In making this film about the Japanese crime of the century, which resulted in a huge but unsuccessful police operation involving 160,000 police officers and approximately 12,000 suspects, director and screenwriter Yukinari Hanawa has added his contribution to a growing series of books, films and television dramas detailing this event.

MFF Karlovy Vary