Conference Report on the 2025 Forum on East Asia and Contemporary Japanese-Language Literature

This report documents the 13th “Forum on East Asia and Contemporary Japanese Literature,” held in Kitakyushu in August 2025. The keynote address discussed the novel and film adaptations of Fumiko Hayashi’s “Ukigumo” (Floating Clouds), presenting a perspective that opens up the “afterlife” or continuing influence of the work. The conference was large in scale, and through the diverse panels and the Next Generation Forum, the breadth of current research was on full display. In particular, the presentations on digital humanities and verse studies were impressive. I was keenly interested in gaining insight into the latest developments in adaptation and digital humanities, methodologies that will drive the field forward. At the same time, I was prompted to think about their limitations and the issues surrounding archival preservation. I would like to emphasize the significance of this forum, which fosters international academic exchange, and my gratitude to the organizers.