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March 23, 2006
Happy Together Brings Best Japanese Breakthrough Films to Cannes

Santa Monica, Calif. -- Happy Together Film & TV, in association with Tokyo Broadcasting System (TBS), is bringing two 35mm feature-length films from the Japanese-renowned Tales of Terror to the 2006 Marche du Film in Cannes.

Pushing the boundaries of the typical Japanese horror film, Haunted Apartments (2005), directed by Akio Yoshida, and Mr. Nobu Hiro (working title, 2006), directed by Keisuke Toyoshima, are opening up a neo-Japanese horror genre by interweaving the time-honored Hitchcockian thriller with Japan's success at making horror movies that are deeply rooted in the classic Kaidan.

Thousands of these ghost tales and paranormal events from all corners of Japan were compiled by writers Hirokatsu Kihara and Ichiro Nakayama into the anthology named Kaidan Shin Mimi Bukuro (loosely translated as "tales of terror").

During the frenzy of successful horror remakes (The Ring & The Grudge), co-production committees BS-i and King Records created a unique project to produce these chilling true stories while honing the numerous talents of the gifted, up-and-coming, young Japanese filmmakers. The committee produced these horror stories into five-minute shorts marketed as the Tales of Terror to be aired on major Japanese networks and later released in theaters and on video.

Four years later, over 100 stories have been produced under the Tales of Terror banner. The experience has helped to propel the careers of the best filmmakers in Japan, most notably, the current masterminds of J-Horror -- Norio Tsurata (director, Ringu 0), Takashi Shimizu (director, Ju-on: The Grudge), and Hiroshi Takahashi (screenwriter, The Ring).

Today, Haunted Apartments has evolved from twenty-five of the scariest stories into a seamlessly produced feature-length film. This unique approach to filmmaking and story-gathering sets Tales of Terror apart from other J-Horrors in particular, and Asian horrors in general, in today's marketplace.

Since acquiring the worldwide rights, Happy Together Film & TV has been successfully distributing the still-running entire Tales of Terror saga in the US domestic and international territories, excluding Asia, which is being handled by TBS Pictures. Now Happy Together is moving forward to pursue a lucrative remake deal with the right US studio partner.

Haunted Apartments and Mr. Nobu Hiro will be screened at Cannes on May 18th at Riviera 3 at 9:30am, Palais J at 2:00pm, and May 20th at Palais J at 8:30pm.

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For more information on Happy Together Film & TV or the Tales of Terror films, contact Anthony TeJumson at Anthony@HappyTogether.us.