Japan Festival Returns For Its 4th Year – Bigger & More Exciting Than Ever!

  • by XpatAthens
  • Thursday, 27 February 2025
Japan Festival Returns For Its 4th Year – Bigger & More Exciting Than Ever!

A Journey Through Time and the Beauty of the Land of the Rising Sun

The 4th Japan Festival, Greece’s most anticipated Japanese culture festival—and the only one of its kind in the country—is returning BIGGER and more EXCITING than ever on the weekend of April 26-27, 2025, at the Peristeri Exhibition Center!

Visitors will have the opportunity to immerse themselves in both contemporary and traditional Japanese culture through a variety of engaging activities, including workshops, talks, presentations, live demonstrations, and discussion panels, all aimed at showcasing the beauty and richness of Japanese cultural heritage.

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Dozens of Greek and international artists, academics, authors, comic creators, gamers, cosplayers, and martial artists who share a passion for Japan will come together to offer an interactive and unforgettable experience for festival goers. Highlights include taiko drum performances, kimono showcases, exclusive Japanese merchandise & delicacies, bonsai exhibition, live concerts, cosplay parade, interactive workshops (origami, calligraphy, tea ceremony, kintsugi, and more!).

So far, the festival has been held three times (2019, 2022, 2024), attracting over 18,000 visitors in total!

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Japan Festival 2024 in Numbers:
  • Over 8,000 visitors in two days
  • 13,000+ social media followers
  • 26 talks, presentations & screenings
  • 2 Panels featuring well-known Anime actors
  • 4 Live Streaming events from Japan
  • 40 FREE cultural workshops (calligraphy, tea ceremony, sumi-e, origami, sushi-making, taiko drumming, Japanese swordsmanship, etc.)
  • 16 Japanese-themed art exhibitions (kimono, bonsai, origami, sumi-e, photography, Japanese artifacts, etc.
  •  32 stage presentations with 12 hours of live performances
  • 70 artists & creators, plus 20 exhibitors & vendors
  • Traditional Japanese board games (Go, Shogi, Hanafuda, etc.)
  • Retro & modern Japanese video games
  • Cosplay parade with prize giveaway
  • Martial arts & cultural demonstrations
  • Cosplay Photo & Video Booth

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What Makes Japan Festival Greece Unique? The 6 Pillars of the Festival
  1. Exhibitions – Showcasing Japanese visual and performing arts through interactive displays and artistic collaborations.
  2. Workshops – Over 40 free cultural workshops, offering hands-on experiences in calligraphy, tea ceremony, sumi-e, origami, Japanese bookbinding, sushi-making, taiko drumming, swordsmanship, kintsugi, and more! (Pre-registration required due to limited spots.)
  3. Talks & Presentations – Live discussions and expert panels exploring various aspects of Japanese culture, traditions, literature, philosophy, and daily life.
  4. Interactive Panels & Cultural Dialogue – Creating a bridge between Greek and Japanese cultures through insightful discussions with academics, artists, and cultural representatives.
  5. Film Screenings – Presenting a selection of Japanese films & series, from pop culture classics to traditional cinematic masterpieces.
  6. Commercial & Artist Alley – Featuring 70+ artists, vendors, and exhibitors, blending traditional & pop culture elements into a vibrant shopping and art space.
About the Venue & Organizers

The Japan Festival Greece is organized by Rising Sun Productions, in collaboration with Athens Bushido Center and under the auspices of:
  • Greek-Japanese Association
  • UNESCO Club of Piraeus & Islands (More sponsors to be announced soon!)
🏛 Venue: Peristeri Exhibition Center
📍 3000 sq.m. exhibition space
🚇 10-minute walk from "Anthoupoli" Metro Station
🚗 1,000 parking spaces available

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Meet the Organizers

Rising Sun Productions

  •  Panos Agrios (Event Organizer, Public Relations)

  • Dorita Papadodima (Production & Event Management)

Panos Agrios has been involved in sports and martial arts from a young age. Aikido, along with a trip to Japan, proved to be pivotal in his life and future path. He decided to pursue Aikido professionally, take Japanese language lessons, and travel to Japan again and again to deeply explore the Land of the Rising Sun. At the same time, his studies in antiquities conservation instilled in him a sensitivity toward the arts and cultural heritage. Meanwhile, Panos Agrios was accepted as a student at the oldest school of Japanese swordsmanship, Katori Shinto Ryu. After years of training, he took the keppan blood oath in the presence of Nobutoshi Otake sensei, officially becoming a member of the Katori Shinto Ryu family.

Since then, Panos Agrios has continuously attended advanced training seminars in Greece and abroad. He is a certified Jiu-Jitsu coach and Aikido instructor and volunteers in the Aikido teaching program at KETHEA in the women's prison of Thebes.

Dorita Papadodima was captivated by the Land of the Rising Sun through her interest in Japanese culture and the arts, and later, in its music as well. She soon decided to deepen her knowledge by studying the Japanese language and actively participating in organizing cultural and educational events in Greece, such as the Japanese Language Proficiency Test (JLPT) examinations and the smooth operation of the active Greek-Japanese Association. Naturally, traveling to Japan was an inevitable step for Dorita Papadodima, as was making many friends from Japan! Dorita is the quiet force behind the festival—the person you want by your side when managing large and demanding projects.

Together, they founded the Japan Festival Greece, turning their love for Japanese culture into Greece’s premier immersive Japanese cultural event!

Artistic Direction & Social Media: art.hub team
  • Konstantinos Moraitis
  • Margarita Bourneli
  • Efi Konst
Press & Content Management:
  • Michaela Konstantellou
  • Eli Kritharaki
Marketing & PR:
  • Nikos Kolokatsis
Japanese Language & Translations:
  • Viki Tsiousta

LIFE & CULTURE