This year marks the 100th anniversary of Shochiku’s entry into film production. In celebration of the major studio’s centenary, this section offers a selection of titles featuring their most popular and longest-running film series of all time: Tora-san (Otoko wa Tsurai yo). Played by Kiyoshi Atsumi, Tora-san is a kind-hearted but crude travelling salesman who delighted Japanese audiences with 48 films from 1969-1995 (almost all directed by Yoji Yamada) and has become an icon of nostalgic yearning for simpler times. For Tora-san’s 50th anniversary last year, Shochiku invested in gorgeous 4K restorations of the entire Tora-san series. JAPAN CUTS is proud to present three of these, including the iconic first film from 1969 and two films that are especially significant to Tora-san, Wish You Were Here, the newest and last film in the series released in 2019, which is also included in the Feature Slate. Films listed in chronological order.