K. F. Watanabe

Kazuaki Francisco (Kazu) Watanabe is a writer and film programmer based in Tokyo, Japan.

As of January 2022, he is the Director of Theatrical & Home Video Distribution at Grasshopper Film where he manages the release of independent, international, and documentary films in North America. He previously served as the Deputy Director of Film at Japan Society in New York where he oversaw year-round film programming, including the annual film festival JAPAN CUTS: Festival of New Japanese Film.

His writing on film and culture has appeared in Notebook (MUBI), Film Comment, The Current (The Criterion Collection), The Baffler, The Brooklyn Rail, and Screen Slate, among others.

He received a M.A. in Cinema Studies from NYU Tisch School of the Arts in 2012 and a B.A. in English from Montclair State University in 2009.

K F W

K F W

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