Cannes Launches Japan IP Market with TIFFCOM

By Pickle April 15, 2026

The Marché du Film and TIFFCOM (Tokyo International Film Festival Content Market) are launching the Japan IP Market, a three‑day event in Cannes dedicated to Japanese intellectual properties with strong potential for international film and transmedia adaptations. This new initiative sits at the heart of the Marché du Film’s “Japan, Country of Honour 2026” programme and is designed to strengthen business and creative ties between Japanese IP holders and global producers, distributors and streaming platforms.

“We are thrilled to demonstrate how the Country of Honour program can create new opportunities for collaboration, and the launch of the Japan IP Market with TIFFCOM is a perfect illustration,” says Guillaume Esmiol, Executive Director of the Marché du Film. “Japan is renowned as the birthplace of some of the world’s most powerful IP, from manga and anime to novels, remakes and video games. This new initiative will create further opportunities to foster international collaborations.”

“The Japan IP Market is an important step for Japanese intellectual property on the global stage,” says Yasushi Shiina, CEO of TIFFCOM. “We are very pleased to launch this platform with the Marché du Film, especially with Japan as Country of Honour this year. This is the ideal environment to highlight the extraordinary adaptability and creativity of Japanese content across multiple formats and markets.”

What the market will do

The Japan IP Market will run from May 15 to 17, 2026, aboard the Art Explora catamaran moored at Cannes’ Vieux‑Port. It is conceived as a high‑level business and networking hub where Japanese rights holders can directly pitch properties to international buyers, producers, immersive‑studio executives and adaptation‑focused streamers.

The programme sits at the intersection of cinema, animation and publishing, spotlighting franchises that already function as rich transmedia universes—manga, anime, novels, remakes and video games—while underlining their readiness for cross‑border film and series formats.

Key players and structure

Leading Japanese IP holders participating include Amuse Creative Studio, Kadokawa Corporation, Nihon Bungeisha, Nippon Animation, Shochiku, Shufu To Seikatsu Sha and Toei Company, giving buyers access to a curated mix of established and emerging franchises.

The event’s core structure comprises:

Pitch sessions featuring select Japanese rights holders presenting their IP in a structured format to an international audience.

One‑on‑one meetings spread across Friday, Saturday and Sunday, allowing targeted discussions with producers, distributors and platform executives.

Curated conference sessions focused on adaptation strategy, rights packaging and transmedia storytelling.

All pitch sessions and one‑on‑one meetings are pre‑registration only, reflecting the market’s focus on serious business rather than open‑access showcase.

Expanded key highlights

The Saturday, May 16 pitch session (11:00–12:00) is positioned as a concentrated window for Japanese owners to present their most adaptation‑ready properties to a global seller‑buyer audience.

The one‑on‑one meeting days (May 15–17) will see rights holders and buyers paired according to genre, format and territory interest, enabling deeper conversations around development, co‑production and licensing.

A flagship session, “The Future of Japanese IP in Global Adaptations,” will be led by Tetsu Fujimura, Executive Producer of Netflix’s live‑action One Piece series and Founder/CEO of Filosophia Inc., who will dissect how Japanese IP can be re‑engineered for different markets and platforms.

A dedicated France–Japan focus will highlight the long‑term creative and industrial partnership between the two countries, with panels on adapting literary and graphic works for the screen, plus sessions on animation, video games and the synergy between manga, film and international distribution.

One of the key panels, “Manga & Anime: Publishers and Broadcasters Driving Success,” will bring together companies like Crunchyroll and Glénat Editions to discuss how Japanese content continues to gain traction with global audiences, especially in streaming.

Why this matters for the global market

By launching the Japan IP Market alongside existing initiatives such as Shoot the Book! and Cannes Remakes, the Marché du Film is reinforcing its position as a primary hub for IP circulation, adaptation and licensing across film, TV and digital‑first formats.

The move also aligns with Japan’s Country of Honour status at the 2026 Marché du Film, which includes a broader slate of Japanese films in the Festival and multiple B2B sessions, all aimed at connecting Japanese creators and rights owners with international financiers, distributors and platforms.

With the Marché du Film running from May 12–20 and the Festival winding up on May 23, 2026, the Japan IP Market adds a sharp, adaptation‑driven edge to Cannes’ annual content‑buying calendar.