since 1976
since 1976
From Auto Film Festa Press Release
Mazda’s documentary film “Goodbye RX-7: Saying Farewell To A Dear Friend” has just triumphed with two category wins at the 4th annual “International Auto Film Festa - Powered by Dunlop” (IAFF) prize giving ceremony in Tokyo, Japan. The short 10-minute film took home the coveted Grand Prix trophy as well as the Team Ukyo prize, presented by ex-F1 driver Ukyo Katayama.
The RX-7 movie won the top prize out of 519 entries from 73 countries. To commemorate the award, all 19 finalist short films will be screened daily in a loop format at MAZDA TRANS Aoyama studio in central Tokyo from May 12-17, 2026. RX-7 film director Rinichi Ogawa said, “It was a great experience making a movie about Naoko Nishimoto, a lady turning 80 who has decided to hand in her driver’s license, and therefore give up her precious RX-7 after spending 25 memorable years with the car. Very emotional story.”
Only last week, the film festival welcomed Dunlop Tires as its title partner, creating the new festival naming of International Auto Film Festa - Powered by Dunlop. “Dunlop supports the International Auto Film Festa, which aims to showcase the appeal and potential of automotive culture through film, and has decided to sponsor this film festival,” said Dunlop CEO, Akito Makino.
IAFF founder Yoshiyuki Shimizu said, “All of the winning films reminded us that cars are not merely a means of transportation, but are deeply intertwined with people's emotions, culture, and lives. In particular, director Ogawa's RX-7 film, which achieved the first-ever double win, had a powerful ability to resonate with many people regardless of nationality.”
The newly created Dunlop Tyre Award went to “A Day in Rothenburg, Germany in 1:87 Scale” from Japanese director Kenji Yokokawa, while the Best Cars of the Year trophy was awarded to the “Driven: Maserati 300S: Masterpiece in Motion” created by British director Sam Hancock. Of the two Japanese media awards, the Auto Bild Japan trophy went to “A Drive Through Time” by Luxembourg director Lukas Grevis, with the Luxembourg embassy’s Deputy Head of Mission, Anne Moes attending in Grevis’s place to say a words on his behalf. The final ProNews trophy was awarded to “Mannequin,” an eye-opening animated movie by Romanian directors George ve Ganaeaard and Horia Cucuta telling the story of a family of crash test dummy mannequins.
WATCH AWARD WINNING FILMS HERE : https://autofilmfesta.net/en/iaff2026-awardwinners/ IAFF website : https://autofilmfesta.net/
