Drive in Theater Japan Tour
A complete archive of pop-up drive-in cinema events organized by OUTDOOR THEATER JAPAN across 24 locations in 28+ screenings from 2020 to 2022.
This event series was originally documented on this website (driveintheater.fun) by the tour organizers.
Tour Map
Every city visited during the Drive in Theater Japan Tour. Events spanned from Hokkaido in the north to Tokunoshima island in the south.
About the Tour
When the COVID-19 pandemic forced the closure of indoor entertainment venues across Japan in spring 2020, OUTDOOR THEATER JAPAN launched the Drive in Theater Japan Tour — a traveling pop-up drive-in cinema that brought movies to parking lots, parks, and cultural venues in prefectures across the country.
The tour operated from May 2020 through April 2022, staging events in over 15 prefectures from Hokkaido to Kagoshima. Events used portable inflatable screens and FM radio audio transmission, with audiences tuning their car stereos to a designated frequency. Capacities ranged from 70 to 100 cars per screening.
Many events were organized in partnership with local governments, chambers of commerce, and cultural institutions. Several screenings were free, allocated by lottery to residents of the host prefecture — a reflection of COVID-era travel restrictions that limited attendance to local communities.
The tour's signature event, Drive in THEATER with HANABI, combined drive-in film screenings with live fireworks displays. This format won the 7th JACE Event Award Excellence Prize in 2021, Japan's foremost recognition for event production, praised as an innovative way to deliver safe entertainment during the pandemic.
Films Screened
Programming consisted primarily of family-friendly Hollywood animated features and feel-good films, subtitled in Japanese:
- Amélie (アメリ) — screened at Ebetsu Tsutaya Bookstore, Hokkaido (June 2020)
- Pets 2 (ペット2) — screened at Nishio, Aichi (May 2020) and Shimabara, Nagasaki (August 2020)
- SING (シング) — screened at Shimabara, Nagasaki (July 2020) and Kutani Ceramics Village, Ishikawa (September 2020)
- A Dog's Purpose (僕のワンダフル・ライフ) — screened at Omura, Nagasaki (August 2020) and Kutani, Ishikawa (September 2020)
- Despicable Me 2 (怪盗グルーのミニオン危機一髪) — screened at Kutani Ceramics Village, Ishikawa (September 2020)
Additional films were screened at other tour stops, though not all titles were documented in the archived event listings.
Event Timeline
2020 — Launch Year
Drive in Theater Japan Tour in Nishio
The tour's first event, held at Mikawa Isshiki Fish Village (三河一色さかな村). 70 cars, free entry by lottery. Screened Pets 2. Co-organized with the Nishio Junior Chamber of Commerce. Attendance restricted to Aichi Prefecture residents.
Drive in Theater Japan Tour in Tokyo
Early Tokyo debut of the tour series. Event sold out through Peatix ticketing platform.
Ashita no Shiataa at Ebetsu Tsutaya Bookstore
Co-produced with local arts group "Ashita no Shiataa" at the Ebetsu Tsutaya Bookstore parking lot. 70-car capacity, ¥3,000 per car. Screened Amélie (subtitled). Sponsored by Nets Toyota Sapporo and One Cruise Inc. Restricted to Sapporo and Ebetsu area residents.
Drive-in Festa Koriyama
The tour reached the Tohoku region with a screening event in Koriyama city.
Hoshino Construction presents Star Drive-in Theater 2020
Three-day event sponsored by Hoshino Construction and co-hosted with NCC Nagasaki Culture Broadcasting. Day 1: SING at Shimabara Sports Park. Day 2: Pets 2 at Shimabara. Day 3: A Dog's Purpose at Omura. Free entry by lottery. Restricted to Nagasaki Prefecture residents.
Family Summer Festival 2020 — Drive-in Theater Kashiwa-no-ha
Summer family event combining drive-in cinema with festival activities in the Kashiwa-no-ha new town development area.
DOZAN11's Heijo Palace Starry Sky Film Festival
A unique collaboration with Nara-born reggae artist DOZAN11 (Miki Dozan) at the UNESCO World Heritage Heijo Palace site (平城宮跡). Featured a film screening with live talk show and surprise musical performance, all transmitted via FM radio to cars.
Drive in THEATER with HANABI
The tour's signature event combining movies with live fireworks. This format later won the 7th JACE Event Award Excellence Prize in 2021 for innovative pandemic-era entertainment.
Drive in Theater Japan Tour in Nakashibetsu
Screening in the remote eastern Hokkaido town known as "the town where you can see the earth is round" (地球が丸く見える町), referencing its vast flat landscape near the coast.
Drive in Theater at Kutani Ceramics Village
Three consecutive nights at the Kutani Ceramics Village (九谷陶芸村) parking lot in Nomi City. 100-car capacity, free entry. Organized by the Nomi City Young Merchants Association. Films: SING (Friday), Despicable Me 2 (Saturday), A Dog's Purpose (Sunday).
Drive-in Theater in Shirakawa
Second Fukushima stop of the tour, in the historic castle town of Shirakawa in southern Fukushima Prefecture.
Sanriku Fireworks Festival
The Hanabi (fireworks + cinema) format traveled to the Sanriku coast in the Tohoku region, an area still recovering from the 2011 tsunami. The event aimed to support regional revitalization efforts.
Starry Sky Cinema at Jindai Botanical Garden
Open-air screening at the Jindai Botanical Garden (神代植物公園) in Chofu, western Tokyo. Known as "Hoshizora Eiga" (星空映画 — Starry Sky Cinema).
Drive-in Theater at Hibikinda Green Park
The tour reached Kyushu's northern industrial city with a screening at Hibikinda Ryokuchi Green Park (響灘緑地グリーンパーク), a large public park along the coast.
Drive-in Theater in Wakayama
The tour's final event of 2020, bringing drive-in cinema to the Kansai region's Wakayama Prefecture.
2021 — Expansion and Awards
Drive-in Theater on Tokunoshima Island
The tour traveled to Tokunoshima, a remote subtropical island in the Amami chain between Kyushu and Okinawa. One of the most geographically distant stops on the entire tour.
El Gaia Ooi Drive-in Screening
A screening at El Gaia Ooi (エルガイアおおい), an energy science museum and cultural facility in the town of Ooi on the Sea of Japan coast.
7th JACE Event Award — Excellence Prize
The "Drive in THEATER with HANABI" concept was awarded the Excellence Prize at the 7th JACE (Japan Association for the Convention Industry) Event Award. The judges recognized the format for enabling safe entertainment during the pandemic while supporting fireworks operators and local economies affected by event cancellations.
Pool-side Drive-in & Shinagawa Events
Multiple Tokyo events including an innovative poolside drive-in format and a screening in the Shinagawa district.
T-Site / Daikanyama Tsutaya Screening
Screening at the iconic Daikanyama T-Site, home of the architecturally acclaimed Tsutaya Books flagship store. A cultural landmark hosting a cultural event.
Drive-in Theater in Iwade
Return to the Wakayama region with a screening in the city of Iwade.
Drive-in Theater in Oarai
Screening in the coastal resort town of Oarai, northeast of Tokyo along the Pacific coast.
2022 — Final Events
Chofu 2022
The last documented event of the Drive in Theater Japan Tour, returning to the Chofu area in western Tokyo. As pandemic restrictions eased and indoor entertainment resumed, the frequency of drive-in events naturally declined.
About This Archive
The Drive in Theater Japan Tour events were originally documented on this website (driveintheater.fun) by OUTDOOR THEATER JAPAN between 2020 and 2022. The organization used this domain to publish event announcements, photo galleries, ticketing links, and news about their touring drive-in cinema series.
This archive preserves that history as part of our broader coverage of drive-in cinema culture across Asia and Oceania. The tour represents one of the most significant modern drive-in cinema initiatives in Japan and contributed to renewing public interest in outdoor cinema experiences.
For more on Japan's drive-in cinema history — from the 1962 origins in Tachikawa to the present day — see our complete guide to drive-in cinemas in Japan.