What keeps fans and directors of independent film coming back to the Tokyo International Film Festival after twenty years? The TIFF which is set to kick off on October 20 has always favored and promoted the endeavors of indie filmmakers over that of established ones since its inception in 1985.

The opening film screened that year was heavyweight film director Akira Kurosawa’s King Lear-based epic Ran. However, in a surprise turn of events the coveted Tokyo Sakura Grand Prix award for best picture that year did not go to Kurosawa himself, but to lesser-known director Shinji Somai who shot a small film, Typhoon Club, following the story of five teenagers trapped in a gymnasium during a large typhoon.

Once again, Tokyo will bustle with countless fans of independent movies clamoring for the latest indie films from Asia, Europe, the Middle East, and America. They are sure not to be let down with over 200 features being screened over nine days.

This year will see a total of sixteen films that have been carefully selected from more than 600, all vying for the grand prize, the Sakura Grand Prix Award. The main section of competition, the Winds of Asia-Middle East, will be screened with the other four main sections: Special Screenings, Japanese Eyes, World Cinema, and Tokyo in Focus. In addition, with four extra events and eleven collaboration programs, there’s a niche to be found for every fan and director alike.

Aside from all that, what’s the real attraction of the TIFF? It might be that fans and directors keep coming back to find that special gem of a movie, or to catch that up-and-coming indie director’s first feature film before he blows up big in Hollywood, or to find inspiration for their next project. And, maybe, they might meet that one director that is pushing the bar and pioneering the way movies are made.

That’s what Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu did when he used different film stock (Vision 800 & 500) for the first and second halves of his movie Amores Perros, garnering him a win at the thirteenth TIFF. He took home the Tokyo Sakura Grand Prix award which helped solidify his directing career in Hollywood. Following his success at The TIFF, he went on to direct 21 Grams whose budget was ten times bigger than Amores Perros and BABEL which earned $135 million at the box office worldwide. This alone should be motivation enough for Indie filmmakers, considering that Inarritu began his career in Mexico as a DJ before directing commercials, until finally directing his first feature film Amores Perros.

Of course in the spirit of movies, the overall ambience of the festival is at heart a place where independent and experimental film directors can also meet audiences and each other and discuss their love of films and filmmaking. As Akira Kurosawa himself said, “Man is a genius when he is dreaming.”

(Side note: The TFF ran biannually from 1985-1991)