THE Garden Theatre Audio Visual Centre at the St Andrew High School for Girls will play host to the Japanese Animation Film Festival which starts today at 1:00 pm.

“By hosting the film festival, the Embassy of Japan hopes to introduce animation stories which may be less familiar to Jamaicans,” said Kaori Saito, the embassy’s cultural officer.

There will be three animated movies: Miyori in the Sacred Forest; Crayon Shinchan The Storm Called: The Adult Empire Strikes Back; and, Doraemon: Nobita’s Dinosaur. All movies will be subtitled in English and free to the public.

“We have met so many Jamaicans who are passionate about Japanese animation and received many requests for animation,” said Saito.

In an effort to spread awareness, the festival will be held at the Montego Bay Civic Centre in St James next Saturday.

“There is little opportunity for the people outside Kingston to experience Japanese culture. So, by having the film festival both in Kingston and Montego Bay, we hope to increase the awareness and interests in Japanese culture and in particular Japanese animation nationwide,” Saito added.