About Refugee Film Festival

In celebration of World Refugee Day on 20th June 2008, UNHCR and Japan for UNHCR proudly present the 3rd Annual Tokyo Refugee Film Festival.

The Tokyo Refugee Film Festival is becoming a vital component of UNHCR's year round action plan to raise awareness of the plight and triumphs of the world's 33 million refugees and internally displaced persons.

A select array of films from across the globe gives voice to seldom-heard stories of hope, despair and resilience. In line with World Refugee Day’s theme for this year, the festival draws attention to the human side of refugees.

Building on the success of the first two festivals in Tokyo, this year’s festival will showcase a promising new lineup of award-winning features and documentary films.

Film screenings will be followed by discussions and Q&A. Come and witness stories of strife, courage and human resolve!

On Admission

Admission Guidelines: Admission to all screenings are free of charge. There is no guarantee of seats, which are allocated on a first come, first served basis. It is not possible to make seat reservations.  

All venues except NHK Fureai Hall issue admission coupons from one hour before the scheduled screening time. Admission to NHK Fureai Hall is in order of arrival.

Doors are scheduled to open 30 minutes before each screening, unless a previous screening or Q&A session still running.

Please contact the venues for the latest information.

About Refugees

A refugee is defined as "a person who owing to a well-founded fear of being persecuted for reasons of race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group, or political opinion, is outside the country of their nationality, and is unable to or, owing to such fear, is unwilling to avail him/herself of the protection of that country" according to the 1951 United Nations Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees.

The internally displaced have not crossed international frontiers and are not protected by the same international conventions as refugees. In 2005, UN and other specialized agencies agreed to a more coordinated and cohesive approach to tackle the problem of internally displaced civilians. Under this new ‘collaborative approach, UNHCR takes a lead role in overseeing the protection and emergency shelter needs of IDPs as well as in the coordination and management of camps. UNHCR has participated in more than 30 operations to help internally displaced people since the 1970s, including Timor, Sri Lanka, Uganda, DRC, Colombia, Afghanistan and more recently in the Sudanese region of Darfur. The agency currently helps an estimated 12.8 million internally displaced worldwide.

About UNHCR

UNHCR Representation in Japan　https://www.unhcr.or.jp

UNHCR Headquarters https://www.unhcr.org/

The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) provides protection and assistance to the world’s refugees. Based in Geneva, Switzerland, the agency was created by the United Nations General Assembly and began work in 1951, initially aiding more than one million European refugees in the aftermath of World War II.

People of concern to UNHCR include not only refugees, but related groups such as asylum seekers, refugees who have returned home, stateless people and some (but not all) of the estimated 26 million people who are displaced within their own countries ? usually referred to as internally displaced persons (IDPs).

During its lifetime, UNHCR has helped well over 50 million people successfully restart their lives, earning two Nobel Peace Prizes in the process ? in 1954 and 1981.
As of April 2008, UNHCR’s annual budget, including supplementary programmes, amounts $1.64 billion. In 2007, major contributors were the United States ($367 million), Japan ($89 million), Sweden ($85 million), the European Commission ($84 million) and the Netherlands ($74 million).

As of April 2008, UNHCR had a total of 6,351 staff members ? regular as well as temporary ? in 268 offices located in 117 countries. More than 86.8 percent of them work in the field, often in remote and dangerous locations.

About Japan for UNHCR

Japan for UNHCR (English)　https://www.japanforunhcr.org/en.html

Japan Association for UNHCR, in close coordination with the UNHCR (United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees) Representation in Japan (Tokyo, Japan), engages in fundraising and public relations for the world's refugees. Donations are sent to UNHCR Headquarters (Geneva, Switzerland)and are used to support refugees worldwide.

*Japan Association for UNHCR was registered as a "Nintei" NPO (a Non-Profit Organization designated by the National Tax Agency to be given special tax status) in June 2003 which means that contributions are tax deductible.

About the website

DISCLAIMER: Images, texts, copyrights and trademarks for all films mentioned herein are held by their respective owners and are solely for promotional, non-commercial and educational purposes. The views and opinions expressed in these films do not necessarily represent those of the sponsors, partners, supporters or others involved in organizing the Refugee Film Festival.