Terms & Conditions

Please read these Terms of the Competition of Short Films Showcasing Possible Filming Locations (these "Terms") carefully before you ("you" or "Entrant") enter the competition (the "Competition") hosted by Japan and International Motion Picture Copyright Association, Inc. ("MPA Japan") of short films ("Short Films") that showcase possible filming locations throughout Japan for live-action motion pictures.

MPA Japan deems that, by entering the Competition, you agree to be bound by these Terms. If you are under 18 years of age, please obtain the prior consent of your parent or legal guardian. Any entry from an Entrant under the age of 18 will be deemed to have obtained the consent of their parent or legal guardian.

Article 1. Competition

  1. MPA Japan will conduct and operate the Competition in accordance with these Terms and other detailed operation rules separately established by MPA Japan. The Competition will be held as an event related to the U.S.-Japan Tourism Year 2024.
  2. The details and prizes of the Competition are subject to change at the discretion of MPA Japan.

Article 2. Eligibility Requirements

To enter the Competition:

  1. You must be an individual or a company or organization that agrees to these Terms (The Competition is open to Entrants of any nationality who live, reside, or are located at any address.); and
  2. You must comply with your obligations under these Terms and must not violate or be likely to violate these Terms.

Article 3. Requirements of Entries

The Short Film(s) you submit to the Competition must satisfy the following requirements, as well as those additionally set out by MPA Japan. There are no restrictions on the equipment you use to shoot your Short Film(s). You may use smartphones, digital SLR cameras, professional cameras, or any other equipment you deem appropriate at your own discretion to shoot your Short Film(s).

  1. Your Short Film(s) must be between 60 and 90 seconds in length and must be shot at a possible filming location in Japan;
  2. Your Short Film(s) must be shot by you (not by any other person) and must be either unpublished or an edited version of a previously published short film;
  3. Your Short Film(s) must be in MP4 or MOV file format with a resolution of 720 p or higher;
  4. Your Short Film(s) must not be made for the purpose of promotion or advertising of any products or services you or any third party may offer;
  5. Your Short Film(s) must comply with the obligations set forth in these Terms, including the provisions of prohibited acts; and
  6. There has been no determination by MPA Japan that acceptance of your short film(s) would be inappropriate.

Article 4. How to Submit Your Short Film

You must submit your Short Film(s) to the Competition by uploading it to the video streaming platform established by MPA Japan (the "Platform") no later than the entry closing date and in accordance with the submission method. The closing date and the submission method will be specified by MPA Japan in a separate document.

Article 5. Entry Fee

No entry fee is required, but you are responsible for all costs, fees and expenses incurred by you in making and submitting your Short Film(s) to the Competition, including, but not limited to, production costs and communication costs.

Article 6. Judging and Results

  1. All Short Films submitted by Entrants will be judged by MPA Japan in accordance with the method set forth by MPA Japan in a separate document. MPA Japan will announce the results of the judging and present the awards to the winners on the Platform or by such other means as MPA Japan deems appropriate.
  2. You may not ask MPA Japan, or cause a third party to ask MPA Japan, what the judging criteria are, how the judging process is being conducted and progresses, why a particular Entrant is awarded, or any other question related to the judging and awarding of the Competition. MPA Japan is under no obligation to answer such questions

Article 7. Obligations of Entrants

To submit your Short Film(s) to the Competition, you must fulfill the following obligations:

  1. To obtain all the necessary permissions from the owner or administrator of the copyright of any work, including musical compositions, contained in your Short Film to which a third party has rights, unless that work is contained in your Short Film as an incidentally captured object or sound" as stipulated in Article 30-2 of the Copyright Act of Japan;"
  2. To clear all personal and property rights as may be required to clear, of individuals who appear in your Short Film(s), including right of portrait, right of publicity and right of privacy;
  3. To comply with the guidelines published by the Cabinet Office, together with several government agencies of Japan, entitled "ロケ撮影の円滑な実施のためのガイドライン (guidelines to facilitate location shooting)," as amended (Please note that those guidelines are provided in Japanese only); and
  4. To comply with such other rules and regulations as may be established by MPA Japan for participation in the Competition.

Article 8. Prohibited Acts

In producing your Short Film(s), entering the Competition, or streaming your Short Film(s) on the Platform, you must not, or must not intend to:

  1. infringe any copyright, patent right, utility model right, trademark right or other intellectual property rights, right of publicity, right of honor, right of privacy, or any other statutory or contractual right of MPA Japan or any third party;
  2. contain in your Short Film(s) any expression that may lead to discrimination on the basis of race, nationality, creed, gender, social status, family origin, or other classifications, or that is excessively violent, sexually explicit, may invite or encourage suicide, self-harm, or drug abuse, or otherwise contains antisocial content that may be offensive to others;
  3. contain sexual or obscene acts in your Short Film(s);
  4. contain in your Short Film(s) any content that may promote dating or relationships with the opposite sex;
  5. contain in your Short Film(s) any harassment or defamation against any third party or any content that a third party may find offensive or objectionable;
  6. violate any law or ordinance, or disobey any judgment, decision or order issued by a competent court or any decision, order, disposition or guidance given by a competent national or local administrative agency;
  7. encourage illegal or immoral acts;
  8. do acts that may be contrary to public order or morality;
  9. overload or damage the servers, network systems, and other computer equipment in the possession of or under the management of MPA Japan;
  10. interfere with or disrupt the activities of MPA Japan, including the operation of the Competition, or the participation of any other Entrant in the Competition;
  11. do any acts that may be deemed to be any of the foregoing acts; or
  12. do any other acts that MPA Japan deems inappropriate.

Article 9. Disqualification

  1. If MPA Japan determines that your Short Film(s) submitted to the Competition is or is likely to be in breach of any of the provisions of these Terms, including the requirements of entries set forth in Article 3, the obligations of Entrants set forth in Article 7, and the prohibited acts set forth in the preceding Article, MPA Japan reserves the right to take any action it deems appropriate in its sole discretion, such as disqualifying your entry, excluding your Short Film(s) from the judging process, or suspending the streaming of your Short Film(s).
  2. MPA Japan will not be liable for any loss or damage incurred by you or any third party as a result of the disqualification, exclusion from the judging process, or suspension of the streaming as set out in the preceding Paragraph.

Article 10. Personal Information

  1. Unless otherwise provided for in these Terms, MPA Japan may use the personal information you provide for the Competition, to the extent that your personal information is necessary to conduct and operate the Competition, including communicating with you and with the persons sponsoring or otherwise being involved in the Competition.
  2. In addition to the preceding Paragraph, MPA Japan shall properly manage the personal information provided by you, in accordance with the applicable personal information protection laws, rules, guidelines, and the Privacy Policy established by MPA Japan.
  3. MPA Japan may not provide your personal information to any third party, except when MPA Japan announces the results of judging Short Films to the public in accordance with these Terms, when there is a good reason to provide your personal information to a particular third party, such as when required by law or the Privacy Policy, or when MPA Japan obtains your consent.

Article 11. Intellectual Property Rights

  1. It is acknowledged that you or a particular third party designated by you are the sole copyright owner of your Short Film(s).
  2. You hereby agree to grant to MPA Japan a license to use and exploit your Short Film(s), including streaming it on the Platform, for the purposes of MPA Japan’s conduct and operation of the Competition, including the announcement of the judging results and the publication and distribution thereof on or through any media, and for the promotion of MPA Japan’s activities, including the conduct and operation of the Competition.
  3. In addition to the preceding Paragraph, you hereby agree to grant to MPA Japan a non-exclusive license to present your Short Film(s) to the persons sponsoring or otherwise being involved in the Competition by means of an on-screen presentation or streaming at any event held in Japan and the U.S. in connection with the U.S.-Japan Tourism Year.

Article 12. Compensation

If you breach any of your obligations under these Terms, including the prohibited acts set out in Article 8, and such breach causes loss or damage to MPA Japan or to any third party, you shall be liable for such loss and damage at your own responsibility and expense.

Article 13. Antisocial Forces

  1. You hereby represent and warrant to MPA Japan that you or any of your representatives, officers and directors, any person substantially controlling your management, your employees, agents and intermediaries (collectively, "Related Persons") is not, and will never be, an organized crime group (boryokudan), a member of a boryokudan, an associated member of a boryokudan, an affiliate of a boryokudan, a corporate extortionist (sokaiya), a blackmailer camouflaged as a social or political movement activist (shakai undou hyoubou goro or seiji katsudou hyoubou goro), a special intelligent violent group (tokusyu chinou boryoku syudan), or any person having a close relationship with any such person, or any other person equivalent to any such person (collectively, "Antisocial Forces").
  2. You hereby covenant to MPA Japan that you or any of your Related Persons will never engage in, directly or indirectly, any of the following acts:
    1. an act of making violent demands;
    2. an act of making unjust demands beyond your or their legal responsibility;
    3. an act of using threatening words or actions or violence in connection with transactions, including, but not limited to, telling your or that Related Person’s counterparty that you are or that Related Person is an Antisocial Force;
    4. an act of spreading rumors about MPA Japan, damaging the reputation of MPA Japan by using fraudulent means or force, or obstructing MPA Japan’s business; or
    5. any other acts equivalent to any of the preceding items.
  3. If MPA Japan discovers that you have violated any of your representations or warranties set out in the preceding two Paragraphs, MPA Japan may cancel your entry in the Competition or discontinue streaming your Short Film(s) on the Platform without any notice. MPA Japan will not be liable for any loss or damage incurred by you as a result of such cancellation of your entry or discontinuation of streaming.

Article 14. Confidential Information

You must keep in confidence MPA Japan’s Confidential Information (which means any information regarding MPA Japan’s member companies, customers, activities, services, businesses, know-how, ideas, concepts or other matters disclosed by MPA Japan to you, regardless of how it is disclosed) and must not disclose or divulge MPA Japan’s Confidential Information to any third party without MPA Japan’s written consent, unless you are required to disclose MPA Japan’s Confidential Information by law or court order.

Article 15. Amendment of these Terms

MPA Japan may amend, modify, revise or change these Terms in accordance with the provisions of the Civil Code of Japan. MPA Japan shall notify the Entrants of such amended, modified, revised or changed Terms and the effective date thereof by posting them on the Platform or on MPA Japan’s website or otherwise using a method determined by MPA Japan.

Article 16. No Assignment

You may not assign or transfer to a third party, or create a security interest for the benefit of a third party over, your position, rights or obligations under these Terms without MPA Japan’s prior written consent.

Article 17. Governing Law and Jurisdiction

  1. These Terms shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of Japan.
  2. Any dispute arising between MPA Japan and an Entrant in connection with these Terms or the Competition shall be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the Tokyo District Court in the first instance.