1 The Basics of Our Programming<\/span><\/a><\/div>\n
2 Full Application Information<\/span><\/a><\/div>\n
3 Participation FAQ<\/span><\/a><\/div>\n
4 Pre-Departure Advice<\/span><\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\nSection 1 – About the WMDF Event<\/h2>\n
![\"3E6_7168\"](\"http:\/\/wmdf.org\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/01\/3E6_7168.jpg\")
This FAQ addresses some of the most common queries we receive from artists considering attending our event.<\/p>\n
Since our office is busy, we are sorry that we may not be able to respond to questions answered by this FAQ or elsewhere on this site. A number of the questions on this FAQ relate to finances: we regret that the monetary muscle of our Festival is not yet so mighty. Please know that we are working hard to improve every year.<\/p>\n
FAQ Last Update: Sep 2025<\/p>\n
Section 1 – About the WMDF Event<\/h2>\nQ 1-1: Can WMDF pay for our flights or peformances?<\/strong>\nA: We are sorry, but at the moment we cannot. Please \n understand our position.\u3000We are priviliged to provide\n a platform for overseas performers. But, we rely on \n collaboration with groups that have some source for \n supporting their own travel. We understand that there \n are many professional groups that would like to perform\n in Japan, and that performance opportunites are limited.\n In the long term, we expect to be able to offer competitive\n reimbursements, but our current finances simply do \n not allow more than what we state in our terms and conditions.\n We are very happy to establish connections with groups around\n the world. But please do not ask us for special permission\n to cover costs. The answer will be: yes, we would\n love to, but at the moment we cannot.\n\nQ 1-2: Is WMDF a competition?<\/strong>\nA: No, we are not a competition. We award no prizes,\n we just thank each group for representing their\n country. Each group receives a certificate\n acknowledging our gratitude for their participation.\n\nQ 1-3: Can we get information on previous groups?<\/strong>\nA: Yes, you can see the previous groups listed on the web. \n Please see the \"ARTISTS\" links on the sidebar on the \n right of this page.\n\nQ 1-4: Do international groups have only one performance in the festival, \n or multiple performances?<\/strong>\nA: Groups definitely have multiple performances. We have \n multiple stages and venues and each has a different character.\n Our aim is to afford each group a chance to experience many \n different performing conditions. Groups should expect to \n perform somewhere on most days of the festival. In recent years,\n it is extremely unlikely that groups do not get a day of \n rest, unless they request to perform every day.\n\n Q 1-5: Who runs this event?<\/strong>\n A:An event of our size takes the efforts of many people. The \n main organiser is \"Worlds Meet Japan\". This organisation \n is registered with the Japanese government as a non-profit, \n so-called \"General Incorporated Association\" (GIA).\n This is a relatively new layer of enterprise in Japan between \n charities and full companies. Worlds Meet Japan is primarily\n run by volunteers. Any proceeds of our events go towards \n transformational social and educational projects locally \n and internationally.\n<\/pre>\nSection 2 – About Travel Logistics and Staying in Japan<\/h2>\nQ 2-1: What is your advised route?<\/strong>\nA: We advise arriving by plane, at Hakodate airport, since it \n is the most cost-effective and fastest method, especially \n if you book ahead. By far the most common route for \n international travellers is through Tokyo. Another \n possible route is through Osaka. \n\n\nQ 2-2: How do we transfer planes in Tokyo?<\/strong>\nA: Japan's two main domestic carriers (JAL and ANA) fly from \n Tokyo to Hakodate from Haneda Airport. There \n are a growing number of international flights into Haneda,\n so you may be able to plan a route that does not require transfer \n to a different airport. If your flight arrives at Narita airport, \n changing from international to domestic flights involves some\n travel, but because the route is very common, it is also quite\n straightforward. There is a bus that leaves from outside the\n doors of the terminal building in Narita and goes directly \n to the terminal doors at Haneda. It leaves every 20 mins, takes \n 60-90 minutes, and costs 3000Yen. Sometimes it is possible for\n us to find volunteers in Tokyo to meet a group and help them \n with the change. This requires negotiation well in advance.\n\n\nQ 2-3: What about trains from Tokyo to Hakodate? Can you advise us on \n other ways to travel than plane?<\/strong>\nA: By train from Tokyo to Hakodate is about 4.5 hours with the \n Shinkansen service that started in 2016. But, groups \n have to leave from Tokyo station, which is maybe 90 mins \n from Narita airport. Trains are also busy in August, so please \n be aware that without seat reservations, it is likely that you \n may have to stand (although our experience of JR trains is that \n they will allow groups to travel with large amounts of luggage).\n You can see the schedule on P1 & P2 of this JR Hokkaido Rail Company<\/a> pdf. \n Please note that the station where trains from Tokyo stop \n (\"Shin-Hakodate-Hokuto\" station) is still 20Km from Hakodate \n station. The geography of Hakodate City made it too hard to build \n Shinkansen tracks all the way into the city, so the Shinkansen \n stop called \"Shin-Hakodate-Hokuto\" is not in Hakodate, but in\n the neighbouring city of Hokuto (population 50,000). It helps \n us if artists planning train journeys from Tokyo include \n a change at \"Shin-Hakodate-Hokuto\" to take the final 15 minute \n ride to Hakodate station. In the event that you do decide \n to travel by train, of course WMDF staff will greet \n your group on your arrival in Hakodate, as we do for \n all groups.\n\nQ 2-4: Do you have any inside knowledge that could help us reduce our costs?<\/strong>\n From 2015, both main Japanese domestic carriers introduced cheap\n domestic flights (less than 100USD one way) for people with overseas\n passports not resident in Japan. We recommend ANA tickets, as at \n the time of writing they are available for the entire festival \n period (JAL tickets are available for travel to Hakodate but not\n for return). Please use the \"Japan Explorer Pass\" link for JAL tickets<\/a>, \n and \"Visit JAPAN Fare\" link for ANA tickets<\/a>. Please book early, \n as numbers are strictly limited. A condition of these tickets is that \n you already hold an international ticket (or tickets) to and from Japan. \n (Either the ticket number or reservation code is required at the time \n of purchase.) Here is an example of the booking system:\n\n (click to enlarge)![\"Experience-Japan-Tickets-Jan-2015\"](\"http:\/\/wmdf.org\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/01\/Experience-Japan-Tickets-Jan-2015-294x294.jpg\")
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\n\n In the case that your international flights are with ANA or JAL,\n you may be able to take advantage of their even cheaper domestic\n transfer policy: if you fly within 24 hours or arriving in Tokyo,\n the cost can be as little as 5,000Yen. If you choose train travel, \n consider the Japan Rail Pass, Official site<\/a>, which allows one\n person to travel on an unlimited number of trains for 2 weeks for\n around 50,000Yen (or one week for around 30,000Yen). This can be \n a good option if you plan to visit other areas of Japan \n around the dates of our event. \n\n Apologies, but we are sorry that we cannot book tickets for you, \n since our staff cannot be responsible for any problems such as \n denied travel because of incorrect data entry, or other problems.\n\nQ 2-5: Can you quote us exact train fares or plane fares for within-Japan travel?<\/strong>\nA: The tickets that we, based in Japan, can get for trains and planes are \n expensive. We recommend you to use a travel agent outside Japan, which\n should have access to prices much cheaper than we pay ourselves.\n Also, see previous question for extremely cheap plane and train prices\n only available to people outside the country.\n\nQ 2-6: How about arriving at Sapporo instead of Hakodate? Is it far?<\/strong>\nA: In general, we don't recommend arriving in Sapporo, but it may be\n possible for us to arrange to pick groups up there. Some things\n to note: The airport typically called \"Sapporo airport\" is \n officially \"New Chitose Airport\"<\/a>. It is around 40 mins away from\n Sapporo by train. There is a train service to Hakodate that involves\n one change, but is relatively cheap (around 15,000Yen per person).\n For large groups, a bus is also a possibility, but since a couple\n of years ago, there have not been enough buses to meet tourism \n demand in summer in Hokkaido. The period at the beginning of August\n is the absolute peak of the year, since Hokkaido celebrates the Obon\n festival in August (usually from Aug 15). We recommend any group \n that is contemplating arriving in Sapporo to organise bus travel\n well in advance. It will take around 5 or 6 by bus hours to Hakodate.\n With a very long advance notice (at least 6 months), it may be \n possible for WMDF to charter a bus, and it may be possible for \n one or two Festival staff to accompany this vehicle. Price is \n around 300,000 JPY one way for a charter bus between Sapporo and Hakodate,\n if it is possible for us to secure the vehicle. Any charge can be \n paid in advance, or upon arrival to Worlds Meet Japan.\n\nQ 2-7: Can WMDF help us with our travel arrangements?<\/strong>\nA: Apologies, but we basically require that groups make their own travel arrangements. \n We are sorry that we cannot afford to take on the financial risk of paying for \n tickets on behalf of third parties, or the responsibility of refused travel in \n the case of incorrect entry of details. \n\nQ 2-8: Does WMDF help groups with visa applications?<\/strong>\nA: Yes, we have many years of experience in providing visa documents (in \n Japanese) to various Embassies. We can help you with the invitation letters\n and forms that get visas for groups through the normal channels. \n Note that we do not currently support application for \"artist visa\" status \n because the financial earnings stipulated by \"artist visa\" conditions \n are well above the totals generated by our event.\n\nQ 2-9: What kind of accommodations will groups be staying in?<\/strong>\nA: WMDF has so far used a variety of shared accommodations ranging\n from city-owned facilities designed as training bases for\n group-based outbound education to renovated hotels. We generally\n use a mix of double\/single rooms, with some facilities having\n larger shared accommodations. We always do our best to accommodate\n groups well, within the budgetary constraints of the festival.\n Groups should make sure to describe any rooming requests on the\n Artist@WMDF online portal, by the deadline of Apr 10. In general,\n we cannot guarantee rooming requests, but the portal allows groups\n to request for arrangement of higher class of rooming, or for\n guaranteed single rooming, at their own expense.\n\n Most likely current accommodations:\n Toyoko Inn Hakodate Ekimae Asaichi<\/a> \n Pension Jokura<\/a>\n Fururu<\/a> (bathing facilities are Japanese hot-spring communal baths).\n\n\nQ 2-10: What are the catering arrangements?<\/strong>\nA: In principle, WMDF provides three meals each day for all party\n members. For breakfast, we try to use accommodation facilities\n that prepare food in-house, and have some Western options in\n addition to the standard Japanese breakfast. For lunch, we have\n historically distributed Japanese bento boxes, but due to wastage\n conflicting with our SDG goals have also been experimenting with\n giving artists a stipend to buy the lunches of their choice.\n Evening meals are either in the form of catering at receptions or\n parties, or the communal catering for staff and artists at the main\n festival site. WMDF can cope with dietary special requests, and\n there is a clear space on the WMDF application form to describe\n these.\n\nQ 2-11: Can groups stay in Hakodate longer?<\/strong>\nA: In general, we request groups to stay within the dates stated on\n the WMDF web pages and the Artist@WMDF online portal. Over-running\n has multiple consequences on staff schedules, bus rental, and\n insurance, that make it difficult for us to accommodate.\n\nQ 2-12: Can groups leave before the end of the Festival?<\/strong>\nA: We strongly hope not. Since one of our goals is\n to create a diverse atmosphere of international \n friendship, each group is an integral part of our plans \n for the entire festival.\n\nQ 2-13: Can we get the stage schedule in June or earlier?<\/strong>\nA: We are sorry, but since our festival relies on groups finding\n their own travel funding from sponsors, there is too often \n the case where we experience late cancellations beyond our\n control. We do our very best to lay out a series of appropriate\n deadlines, but in practice, the \"Late July\" date that we \n list on our \"Full Application Information\" is the only practical time\n where we can commit to making the final running order.\n\nQ 2-14: Can groups tour Japan or Asia before or after WMDF?<\/strong>\nA: WMDF is happy for groups to visit other locations\n for tourism or performances, outside the dates of\n our own Festival.\n\nQ 2-15: We want to come with more than 20 members. Can we?<\/strong>\nA: Effectively, this is a question about finances.\n It costs WMDF around 10,000JPY\/person\/night to\n accommodate group members, so if groups\n groups cannot meet the limits we stipulate, this charge\n may be passed on to them. However, we have in the past \n granted exemptions for free accommodation of extra group \n members, so we encourage you to contact WMDF early to \n discuss your situation. Please tell us how many extra \n people you need to bring, your reasons, and your budget. \n We wish to be fair to all groups, so please be aware that \n it may only be possible to make the final decision on \n excess charges once WMDF has decided on its final list \n of participants.\n\nQ 2-16: Can we be accompanied by journalists and\/or TV crews?<\/strong>\nA: Yes, but the group size will be counted as the total\n number of people including the reporters. If the\n total number increases over 20, then you will need\n to discuss extra charges with WMDF. Common sense rules \n on the fair use of only brief portions of the performances\n of other artists apply. Also, there is a tendency for camera\n crews to get in each others' way (and sometimes in the way of\n audience, or even artists). To minimise the chance of \n problems, camera crews are requested to attend a daily \n meeting with the Festival Director and\/or his \n representative(s). We also need to know well in advance any\n requests for access to WMDF infrastructure such as pickup\n from stage microphones.\n\n The minimum requirement for filming is that WMDF is \n provided with a one-minute overview clip with permission\n to use on its web pages. For accompanying print \n journalists we would also very much appreciate being \n forwarded electronic or hardcopy articles that we can\n place on our web site.\n\nQ 2-17: Can artists be accompanied by family members,\n children or otherwise?<\/strong>\nA: We can offer only a small number of such places overall\n each year. Please contact us to discuss.\n Our basic policy is to include such members in the\n category of \"artist\". This means that they receive\n an artist pass, so that they can access areas such\n as backstage and changing areas, which is often important\n for group logistics. It also makes sense for extra members\n to be housed in the same location as the group, so\n that they can use our shuttle buses. There is space\n to include such members on the WMDF form. Please also\n indicate rooming possibilities in the space provided\n in Section 4 of the form. This is a kind of \"first come,\n first served\" arrangement, with very limited possibilities,\n so please contact us early. Maximum party size of \n 20 still applies.\n\n\nQ 2-18: What about customs? What goods are prohibited or restricted?<\/strong>\nA: Since we cannot take responsibility for giving incorrect \n information to this question, we hope that if you have \n questions about bringing goods into Japan, you could\n check with the relevant Japanese government information\n sources. Here are links to:\n Japan Customs brochures for travellers<\/a>\n Main English brochure from the above page<\/a>\n Carnet goods passports<\/a> (no group has ever needed this \n for our event, but we include it for reference).\n\n Typical international standards apply to goods made of furs: they\n must be presented to customs on arrival for inspection. The\n taxidermy must be of a sufficient standard to convince customs\n officials that there is no possibility of disease being brought\n into the country. Customs may require that items are treated before\n permitting entry.\n\n To check whether specific plant or animal species are CITES-listed under\n the Washington convention, you need to know their scientific name.\n For your reference, we list the Japanese government's files below.\n (There are three categories, each with its own rules and application form.\n Category I is the most restricted, and Category III the least).\n CITES-listed animals (pdf)<\/a>\n CITES-listed plants (pdf)<\/a>\n The above files are from this Japanese government page (J)<\/a>.<\/pre>\nSection 3 – About Finances<\/h2>\nQ 3-1: Can you help us cover international flights?<\/strong>\nA: Since we are not (yet) a rich festival, we simply do not have\n the funds to cover travel fees. On the other hand, we can guarantee\n to accomodate all groups that come to our site with traditional \n Eastern hospitality. (Please also see Q 1-1).\n\nQ 3-2: We can only pay for costs to Tokyo. Can you help us from there?<\/strong>\nA: We are very sorry, but we cannot. Our funds are limited, and we\n have to treat all groups equally. Airplane tickets bought outside\n Japan typically have very cheap options for connecting flights\n within the country. Also, special prices are available outside Japan\n (See Q 2-4). Please ask your travel agent. If you cannot find \n cheap tickets, you can try finding a route through Sapporo\n (see Q 2-6).\n\nQ 3-3: Can WMDF arrange for us to cover costs by performing at other events in Japan?<\/strong>\nA: WMDF features an \"Outreach\" program where our artists perform\n around the local Hakodate area, and sometimes this includes\n events organised by other bodies. However, these\n are not performances that offer fees. We are sorry, but\n it is difficult for Worlds Meet Japan to find other \n performance sites to cover fees for groups when they \n are in Japan. One of the reasons is that there are relatively\n few events in Japan that work with overseas groups. WMDF is \n unusual in this regard. The level of foreign languages\n spoken in Japan is surprisingly low, and most events would\n have significant difficulty communicating logistics on a\n daily basis. Our generic advice to groups who want to \n arrange other performances is to contact the Embassy of their\n country in Tokyo. They will have access to both events \n information and to bilingual speakers who will be able to \n ensure smooth running of logistics, should an event be possible.\n A number of previous WMDF groups have accompanied their\n visit to us with Embassy-organised events in Tokyo or elsewhere\n in Japan.\n\nQ 3-4: Can our group make extra performances for the purposes of cultural\n exchange (for example free-entry in a Japanese temple)?<\/strong>\nA: For performances before or after the group arrives in Hakodate,\n yes, we hope that groups will feel free to organise their own schedules.\n Please see the advice in 3-3 about Embassies. Once the group is in \n Hakodate, our staff are generally fully occupied with the \n festival logistics including the main event, outreach, and \n social events, so we ask that groups follow the WMDF schedule.\n Even non-ticketed events in Hakodate will require resources to \n publicise, co-ordinate, prepare for performance, and other logistics, \n and we are sorry that in this most busy period our expertise \n is all committed.\n\nQ 3-5: Will WMDF pay performance fees for professional groups?<\/strong>\nA: In the past, we have given some participants\n financial remuneration, but only as contribution towards\n covering some travel costs, and the support is not at a high\n level. It is best for use to treat all groups equally as \n listed in the conditions, with no fees. Groups view our \n logistical and accommodation support as \"in-kind\" payments,\n worth around USD 1,000\/person over the course of the event.\n Also, WMDF takes no margin from the goods sold by artists\n at the event: many groups cover fees with the sale of CDs,\n etc, and our staff work hard to help groups sell them.\n\nQ 3-6: Can WMDF work with us to gain sponsorship, eg from Japan Foundation?<\/strong>\nA: In general, foundations require applications to be made in the\n home country of the group. So, WMDF can support groups applying to\n bodies in their own country, but we cannot apply on their behalf\n to organisations in Japan. If you have a specific funding\n body to which you would like WMDF to support your group's \n application for funds, please send us materials and \n videos of your group in good time. Since our administration \n time is limited, it is unlikely that we will be able \n fill in forms of any size. Please send us completed examples,\n and a set of clear step-by-step instructions.\n\nQ 3-7: Are there any special conditions under which you would pay for us to attend?<\/strong>\nA: Our Festival has been attracting attention even from individuals\n and groups with a worldwide profile. We wish that we were \n in the financial position of being able to take advantage \n of our popularity as a destination, but at the moment our \n terms and conditions list all that we can practically do.<\/pre>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"1 The Basics of Our Programming 2 Full Application Information 3 Participation FAQ 4 Pre-Departure Advice This FAQ addresses some of the most common queries we receive from artists considering attending our event. Since our office is busy, we are sorry that we may not be able to respond to questions answered by this FAQ or elsewhere on this site. A number of the questions on this FAQ relate to finances: we regret that the monetary muscle of our Festival is not yet so mighty. Please know that we are working hard to improve every year. FAQ Last Update: Sep 2025 Section 1 – About the WMDF Event Q 1-1: […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":56,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"page-templates\/full-width.php","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-64","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/wmdf.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/64","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/wmdf.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/wmdf.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wmdf.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wmdf.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=64"}],"version-history":[{"count":37,"href":"https:\/\/wmdf.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/64\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6398,"href":"https:\/\/wmdf.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/64\/revisions\/6398"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wmdf.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/56"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/wmdf.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=64"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
Section 2 – About Travel Logistics and Staying in Japan<\/h2>\nQ 2-1: What is your advised route?<\/strong>\nA: We advise arriving by plane, at Hakodate airport, since it \n is the most cost-effective and fastest method, especially \n if you book ahead. By far the most common route for \n international travellers is through Tokyo. Another \n possible route is through Osaka. \n\n\nQ 2-2: How do we transfer planes in Tokyo?<\/strong>\nA: Japan's two main domestic carriers (JAL and ANA) fly from \n Tokyo to Hakodate from Haneda Airport. There \n are a growing number of international flights into Haneda,\n so you may be able to plan a route that does not require transfer \n to a different airport. If your flight arrives at Narita airport, \n changing from international to domestic flights involves some\n travel, but because the route is very common, it is also quite\n straightforward. There is a bus that leaves from outside the\n doors of the terminal building in Narita and goes directly \n to the terminal doors at Haneda. It leaves every 20 mins, takes \n 60-90 minutes, and costs 3000Yen. Sometimes it is possible for\n us to find volunteers in Tokyo to meet a group and help them \n with the change. This requires negotiation well in advance.\n\n\nQ 2-3: What about trains from Tokyo to Hakodate? Can you advise us on \n other ways to travel than plane?<\/strong>\nA: By train from Tokyo to Hakodate is about 4.5 hours with the \n Shinkansen service that started in 2016. But, groups \n have to leave from Tokyo station, which is maybe 90 mins \n from Narita airport. Trains are also busy in August, so please \n be aware that without seat reservations, it is likely that you \n may have to stand (although our experience of JR trains is that \n they will allow groups to travel with large amounts of luggage).\n You can see the schedule on P1 & P2 of this JR Hokkaido Rail Company<\/a> pdf. \n Please note that the station where trains from Tokyo stop \n (\"Shin-Hakodate-Hokuto\" station) is still 20Km from Hakodate \n station. The geography of Hakodate City made it too hard to build \n Shinkansen tracks all the way into the city, so the Shinkansen \n stop called \"Shin-Hakodate-Hokuto\" is not in Hakodate, but in\n the neighbouring city of Hokuto (population 50,000). It helps \n us if artists planning train journeys from Tokyo include \n a change at \"Shin-Hakodate-Hokuto\" to take the final 15 minute \n ride to Hakodate station. In the event that you do decide \n to travel by train, of course WMDF staff will greet \n your group on your arrival in Hakodate, as we do for \n all groups.\n\nQ 2-4: Do you have any inside knowledge that could help us reduce our costs?<\/strong>\n From 2015, both main Japanese domestic carriers introduced cheap\n domestic flights (less than 100USD one way) for people with overseas\n passports not resident in Japan. We recommend ANA tickets, as at \n the time of writing they are available for the entire festival \n period (JAL tickets are available for travel to Hakodate but not\n for return). Please use the \"Japan Explorer Pass\" link for JAL tickets<\/a>, \n and \"Visit JAPAN Fare\" link for ANA tickets<\/a>. Please book early, \n as numbers are strictly limited. A condition of these tickets is that \n you already hold an international ticket (or tickets) to and from Japan. \n (Either the ticket number or reservation code is required at the time \n of purchase.) Here is an example of the booking system:\n\n (click to enlarge)<\/a>
\n\n In the case that your international flights are with ANA or JAL,\n you may be able to take advantage of their even cheaper domestic\n transfer policy: if you fly within 24 hours or arriving in Tokyo,\n the cost can be as little as 5,000Yen. If you choose train travel, \n consider the Japan Rail Pass, Official site<\/a>, which allows one\n person to travel on an unlimited number of trains for 2 weeks for\n around 50,000Yen (or one week for around 30,000Yen). This can be \n a good option if you plan to visit other areas of Japan \n around the dates of our event. \n\n Apologies, but we are sorry that we cannot book tickets for you, \n since our staff cannot be responsible for any problems such as \n denied travel because of incorrect data entry, or other problems.\n\nQ 2-5: Can you quote us exact train fares or plane fares for within-Japan travel?<\/strong>\nA: The tickets that we, based in Japan, can get for trains and planes are \n expensive. We recommend you to use a travel agent outside Japan, which\n should have access to prices much cheaper than we pay ourselves.\n Also, see previous question for extremely cheap plane and train prices\n only available to people outside the country.\n\nQ 2-6: How about arriving at Sapporo instead of Hakodate? Is it far?<\/strong>\nA: In general, we don't recommend arriving in Sapporo, but it may be\n possible for us to arrange to pick groups up there. Some things\n to note: The airport typically called \"Sapporo airport\" is \n officially \"New Chitose Airport\"<\/a>. It is around 40 mins away from\n Sapporo by train. There is a train service to Hakodate that involves\n one change, but is relatively cheap (around 15,000Yen per person).\n For large groups, a bus is also a possibility, but since a couple\n of years ago, there have not been enough buses to meet tourism \n demand in summer in Hokkaido. The period at the beginning of August\n is the absolute peak of the year, since Hokkaido celebrates the Obon\n festival in August (usually from Aug 15). We recommend any group \n that is contemplating arriving in Sapporo to organise bus travel\n well in advance. It will take around 5 or 6 by bus hours to Hakodate.\n With a very long advance notice (at least 6 months), it may be \n possible for WMDF to charter a bus, and it may be possible for \n one or two Festival staff to accompany this vehicle. Price is \n around 300,000 JPY one way for a charter bus between Sapporo and Hakodate,\n if it is possible for us to secure the vehicle. Any charge can be \n paid in advance, or upon arrival to Worlds Meet Japan.\n\nQ 2-7: Can WMDF help us with our travel arrangements?<\/strong>\nA: Apologies, but we basically require that groups make their own travel arrangements. \n We are sorry that we cannot afford to take on the financial risk of paying for \n tickets on behalf of third parties, or the responsibility of refused travel in \n the case of incorrect entry of details. \n\nQ 2-8: Does WMDF help groups with visa applications?<\/strong>\nA: Yes, we have many years of experience in providing visa documents (in \n Japanese) to various Embassies. We can help you with the invitation letters\n and forms that get visas for groups through the normal channels. \n Note that we do not currently support application for \"artist visa\" status \n because the financial earnings stipulated by \"artist visa\" conditions \n are well above the totals generated by our event.\n\nQ 2-9: What kind of accommodations will groups be staying in?<\/strong>\nA: WMDF has so far used a variety of shared accommodations ranging\n from city-owned facilities designed as training bases for\n group-based outbound education to renovated hotels. We generally\n use a mix of double\/single rooms, with some facilities having\n larger shared accommodations. We always do our best to accommodate\n groups well, within the budgetary constraints of the festival.\n Groups should make sure to describe any rooming requests on the\n Artist@WMDF online portal, by the deadline of Apr 10. In general,\n we cannot guarantee rooming requests, but the portal allows groups\n to request for arrangement of higher class of rooming, or for\n guaranteed single rooming, at their own expense.\n\n Most likely current accommodations:\n Toyoko Inn Hakodate Ekimae Asaichi<\/a> \n Pension Jokura<\/a>\n Fururu<\/a> (bathing facilities are Japanese hot-spring communal baths).\n\n\nQ 2-10: What are the catering arrangements?<\/strong>\nA: In principle, WMDF provides three meals each day for all party\n members. For breakfast, we try to use accommodation facilities\n that prepare food in-house, and have some Western options in\n addition to the standard Japanese breakfast. For lunch, we have\n historically distributed Japanese bento boxes, but due to wastage\n conflicting with our SDG goals have also been experimenting with\n giving artists a stipend to buy the lunches of their choice.\n Evening meals are either in the form of catering at receptions or\n parties, or the communal catering for staff and artists at the main\n festival site. WMDF can cope with dietary special requests, and\n there is a clear space on the WMDF application form to describe\n these.\n\nQ 2-11: Can groups stay in Hakodate longer?<\/strong>\nA: In general, we request groups to stay within the dates stated on\n the WMDF web pages and the Artist@WMDF online portal. Over-running\n has multiple consequences on staff schedules, bus rental, and\n insurance, that make it difficult for us to accommodate.\n\nQ 2-12: Can groups leave before the end of the Festival?<\/strong>\nA: We strongly hope not. Since one of our goals is\n to create a diverse atmosphere of international \n friendship, each group is an integral part of our plans \n for the entire festival.\n\nQ 2-13: Can we get the stage schedule in June or earlier?<\/strong>\nA: We are sorry, but since our festival relies on groups finding\n their own travel funding from sponsors, there is too often \n the case where we experience late cancellations beyond our\n control. We do our very best to lay out a series of appropriate\n deadlines, but in practice, the \"Late July\" date that we \n list on our \"Full Application Information\" is the only practical time\n where we can commit to making the final running order.\n\nQ 2-14: Can groups tour Japan or Asia before or after WMDF?<\/strong>\nA: WMDF is happy for groups to visit other locations\n for tourism or performances, outside the dates of\n our own Festival.\n\nQ 2-15: We want to come with more than 20 members. Can we?<\/strong>\nA: Effectively, this is a question about finances.\n It costs WMDF around 10,000JPY\/person\/night to\n accommodate group members, so if groups\n groups cannot meet the limits we stipulate, this charge\n may be passed on to them. However, we have in the past \n granted exemptions for free accommodation of extra group \n members, so we encourage you to contact WMDF early to \n discuss your situation. Please tell us how many extra \n people you need to bring, your reasons, and your budget. \n We wish to be fair to all groups, so please be aware that \n it may only be possible to make the final decision on \n excess charges once WMDF has decided on its final list \n of participants.\n\nQ 2-16: Can we be accompanied by journalists and\/or TV crews?<\/strong>\nA: Yes, but the group size will be counted as the total\n number of people including the reporters. If the\n total number increases over 20, then you will need\n to discuss extra charges with WMDF. Common sense rules \n on the fair use of only brief portions of the performances\n of other artists apply. Also, there is a tendency for camera\n crews to get in each others' way (and sometimes in the way of\n audience, or even artists). To minimise the chance of \n problems, camera crews are requested to attend a daily \n meeting with the Festival Director and\/or his \n representative(s). We also need to know well in advance any\n requests for access to WMDF infrastructure such as pickup\n from stage microphones.\n\n The minimum requirement for filming is that WMDF is \n provided with a one-minute overview clip with permission\n to use on its web pages. For accompanying print \n journalists we would also very much appreciate being \n forwarded electronic or hardcopy articles that we can\n place on our web site.\n\nQ 2-17: Can artists be accompanied by family members,\n children or otherwise?<\/strong>\nA: We can offer only a small number of such places overall\n each year. Please contact us to discuss.\n Our basic policy is to include such members in the\n category of \"artist\". This means that they receive\n an artist pass, so that they can access areas such\n as backstage and changing areas, which is often important\n for group logistics. It also makes sense for extra members\n to be housed in the same location as the group, so\n that they can use our shuttle buses. There is space\n to include such members on the WMDF form. Please also\n indicate rooming possibilities in the space provided\n in Section 4 of the form. This is a kind of \"first come,\n first served\" arrangement, with very limited possibilities,\n so please contact us early. Maximum party size of \n 20 still applies.\n\n\nQ 2-18: What about customs? What goods are prohibited or restricted?<\/strong>\nA: Since we cannot take responsibility for giving incorrect \n information to this question, we hope that if you have \n questions about bringing goods into Japan, you could\n check with the relevant Japanese government information\n sources. Here are links to:\n Japan Customs brochures for travellers<\/a>\n Main English brochure from the above page<\/a>\n Carnet goods passports<\/a> (no group has ever needed this \n for our event, but we include it for reference).\n\n Typical international standards apply to goods made of furs: they\n must be presented to customs on arrival for inspection. The\n taxidermy must be of a sufficient standard to convince customs\n officials that there is no possibility of disease being brought\n into the country. Customs may require that items are treated before\n permitting entry.\n\n To check whether specific plant or animal species are CITES-listed under\n the Washington convention, you need to know their scientific name.\n For your reference, we list the Japanese government's files below.\n (There are three categories, each with its own rules and application form.\n Category I is the most restricted, and Category III the least).\n CITES-listed animals (pdf)<\/a>\n CITES-listed plants (pdf)<\/a>\n The above files are from this Japanese government page (J)<\/a>.<\/pre>\nSection 3 – About Finances<\/h2>\nQ 3-1: Can you help us cover international flights?<\/strong>\nA: Since we are not (yet) a rich festival, we simply do not have\n the funds to cover travel fees. On the other hand, we can guarantee\n to accomodate all groups that come to our site with traditional \n Eastern hospitality. (Please also see Q 1-1).\n\nQ 3-2: We can only pay for costs to Tokyo. Can you help us from there?<\/strong>\nA: We are very sorry, but we cannot. Our funds are limited, and we\n have to treat all groups equally. Airplane tickets bought outside\n Japan typically have very cheap options for connecting flights\n within the country. Also, special prices are available outside Japan\n (See Q 2-4). Please ask your travel agent. If you cannot find \n cheap tickets, you can try finding a route through Sapporo\n (see Q 2-6).\n\nQ 3-3: Can WMDF arrange for us to cover costs by performing at other events in Japan?<\/strong>\nA: WMDF features an \"Outreach\" program where our artists perform\n around the local Hakodate area, and sometimes this includes\n events organised by other bodies. However, these\n are not performances that offer fees. We are sorry, but\n it is difficult for Worlds Meet Japan to find other \n performance sites to cover fees for groups when they \n are in Japan. One of the reasons is that there are relatively\n few events in Japan that work with overseas groups. WMDF is \n unusual in this regard. The level of foreign languages\n spoken in Japan is surprisingly low, and most events would\n have significant difficulty communicating logistics on a\n daily basis. Our generic advice to groups who want to \n arrange other performances is to contact the Embassy of their\n country in Tokyo. They will have access to both events \n information and to bilingual speakers who will be able to \n ensure smooth running of logistics, should an event be possible.\n A number of previous WMDF groups have accompanied their\n visit to us with Embassy-organised events in Tokyo or elsewhere\n in Japan.\n\nQ 3-4: Can our group make extra performances for the purposes of cultural\n exchange (for example free-entry in a Japanese temple)?<\/strong>\nA: For performances before or after the group arrives in Hakodate,\n yes, we hope that groups will feel free to organise their own schedules.\n Please see the advice in 3-3 about Embassies. Once the group is in \n Hakodate, our staff are generally fully occupied with the \n festival logistics including the main event, outreach, and \n social events, so we ask that groups follow the WMDF schedule.\n Even non-ticketed events in Hakodate will require resources to \n publicise, co-ordinate, prepare for performance, and other logistics, \n and we are sorry that in this most busy period our expertise \n is all committed.\n\nQ 3-5: Will WMDF pay performance fees for professional groups?<\/strong>\nA: In the past, we have given some participants\n financial remuneration, but only as contribution towards\n covering some travel costs, and the support is not at a high\n level. It is best for use to treat all groups equally as \n listed in the conditions, with no fees. Groups view our \n logistical and accommodation support as \"in-kind\" payments,\n worth around USD 1,000\/person over the course of the event.\n Also, WMDF takes no margin from the goods sold by artists\n at the event: many groups cover fees with the sale of CDs,\n etc, and our staff work hard to help groups sell them.\n\nQ 3-6: Can WMDF work with us to gain sponsorship, eg from Japan Foundation?<\/strong>\nA: In general, foundations require applications to be made in the\n home country of the group. So, WMDF can support groups applying to\n bodies in their own country, but we cannot apply on their behalf\n to organisations in Japan. If you have a specific funding\n body to which you would like WMDF to support your group's \n application for funds, please send us materials and \n videos of your group in good time. Since our administration \n time is limited, it is unlikely that we will be able \n fill in forms of any size. Please send us completed examples,\n and a set of clear step-by-step instructions.\n\nQ 3-7: Are there any special conditions under which you would pay for us to attend?<\/strong>\nA: Our Festival has been attracting attention even from individuals\n and groups with a worldwide profile. We wish that we were \n in the financial position of being able to take advantage \n of our popularity as a destination, but at the moment our \n terms and conditions list all that we can practically do.<\/pre>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"1 The Basics of Our Programming 2 Full Application Information 3 Participation FAQ 4 Pre-Departure Advice This FAQ addresses some of the most common queries we receive from artists considering attending our event. Since our office is busy, we are sorry that we may not be able to respond to questions answered by this FAQ or elsewhere on this site. A number of the questions on this FAQ relate to finances: we regret that the monetary muscle of our Festival is not yet so mighty. Please know that we are working hard to improve every year. FAQ Last Update: Sep 2025 Section 1 – About the WMDF Event Q 1-1: […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":56,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"page-templates\/full-width.php","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-64","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/wmdf.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/64","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/wmdf.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/wmdf.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wmdf.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wmdf.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=64"}],"version-history":[{"count":37,"href":"https:\/\/wmdf.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/64\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6398,"href":"https:\/\/wmdf.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/64\/revisions\/6398"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wmdf.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/56"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/wmdf.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=64"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
<\/a> \n\n In the case that your international flights are with ANA or JAL,\n you may be able to take advantage of their even cheaper domestic\n transfer policy: if you fly within 24 hours or arriving in Tokyo,\n the cost can be as little as 5,000Yen. If you choose train travel, \n consider the Japan Rail Pass, Official site<\/a>, which allows one\n person to travel on an unlimited number of trains for 2 weeks for\n around 50,000Yen (or one week for around 30,000Yen). This can be \n a good option if you plan to visit other areas of Japan \n around the dates of our event. \n\n Apologies, but we are sorry that we cannot book tickets for you, \n since our staff cannot be responsible for any problems such as \n denied travel because of incorrect data entry, or other problems.\n\nQ 2-5: Can you quote us exact train fares or plane fares for within-Japan travel?<\/strong>\nA: The tickets that we, based in Japan, can get for trains and planes are \n expensive. We recommend you to use a travel agent outside Japan, which\n should have access to prices much cheaper than we pay ourselves.\n Also, see previous question for extremely cheap plane and train prices\n only available to people outside the country.\n\nQ 2-6: How about arriving at Sapporo instead of Hakodate? Is it far?<\/strong>\nA: In general, we don't recommend arriving in Sapporo, but it may be\n possible for us to arrange to pick groups up there. Some things\n to note: The airport typically called \"Sapporo airport\" is \n officially \"New Chitose Airport\"<\/a>. It is around 40 mins away from\n Sapporo by train. There is a train service to Hakodate that involves\n one change, but is relatively cheap (around 15,000Yen per person).\n For large groups, a bus is also a possibility, but since a couple\n of years ago, there have not been enough buses to meet tourism \n demand in summer in Hokkaido. The period at the beginning of August\n is the absolute peak of the year, since Hokkaido celebrates the Obon\n festival in August (usually from Aug 15). We recommend any group \n that is contemplating arriving in Sapporo to organise bus travel\n well in advance. It will take around 5 or 6 by bus hours to Hakodate.\n With a very long advance notice (at least 6 months), it may be \n possible for WMDF to charter a bus, and it may be possible for \n one or two Festival staff to accompany this vehicle. Price is \n around 300,000 JPY one way for a charter bus between Sapporo and Hakodate,\n if it is possible for us to secure the vehicle. Any charge can be \n paid in advance, or upon arrival to Worlds Meet Japan.\n\nQ 2-7: Can WMDF help us with our travel arrangements?<\/strong>\nA: Apologies, but we basically require that groups make their own travel arrangements. \n We are sorry that we cannot afford to take on the financial risk of paying for \n tickets on behalf of third parties, or the responsibility of refused travel in \n the case of incorrect entry of details. \n\nQ 2-8: Does WMDF help groups with visa applications?<\/strong>\nA: Yes, we have many years of experience in providing visa documents (in \n Japanese) to various Embassies. We can help you with the invitation letters\n and forms that get visas for groups through the normal channels. \n Note that we do not currently support application for \"artist visa\" status \n because the financial earnings stipulated by \"artist visa\" conditions \n are well above the totals generated by our event.\n\nQ 2-9: What kind of accommodations will groups be staying in?<\/strong>\nA: WMDF has so far used a variety of shared accommodations ranging\n from city-owned facilities designed as training bases for\n group-based outbound education to renovated hotels. We generally\n use a mix of double\/single rooms, with some facilities having\n larger shared accommodations. We always do our best to accommodate\n groups well, within the budgetary constraints of the festival.\n Groups should make sure to describe any rooming requests on the\n Artist@WMDF online portal, by the deadline of Apr 10. In general,\n we cannot guarantee rooming requests, but the portal allows groups\n to request for arrangement of higher class of rooming, or for\n guaranteed single rooming, at their own expense.\n\n Most likely current accommodations:\n Toyoko Inn Hakodate Ekimae Asaichi<\/a> \n Pension Jokura<\/a>\n Fururu<\/a> (bathing facilities are Japanese hot-spring communal baths).\n\n\nQ 2-10: What are the catering arrangements?<\/strong>\nA: In principle, WMDF provides three meals each day for all party\n members. For breakfast, we try to use accommodation facilities\n that prepare food in-house, and have some Western options in\n addition to the standard Japanese breakfast. For lunch, we have\n historically distributed Japanese bento boxes, but due to wastage\n conflicting with our SDG goals have also been experimenting with\n giving artists a stipend to buy the lunches of their choice.\n Evening meals are either in the form of catering at receptions or\n parties, or the communal catering for staff and artists at the main\n festival site. WMDF can cope with dietary special requests, and\n there is a clear space on the WMDF application form to describe\n these.\n\nQ 2-11: Can groups stay in Hakodate longer?<\/strong>\nA: In general, we request groups to stay within the dates stated on\n the WMDF web pages and the Artist@WMDF online portal. Over-running\n has multiple consequences on staff schedules, bus rental, and\n insurance, that make it difficult for us to accommodate.\n\nQ 2-12: Can groups leave before the end of the Festival?<\/strong>\nA: We strongly hope not. Since one of our goals is\n to create a diverse atmosphere of international \n friendship, each group is an integral part of our plans \n for the entire festival.\n\nQ 2-13: Can we get the stage schedule in June or earlier?<\/strong>\nA: We are sorry, but since our festival relies on groups finding\n their own travel funding from sponsors, there is too often \n the case where we experience late cancellations beyond our\n control. We do our very best to lay out a series of appropriate\n deadlines, but in practice, the \"Late July\" date that we \n list on our \"Full Application Information\" is the only practical time\n where we can commit to making the final running order.\n\nQ 2-14: Can groups tour Japan or Asia before or after WMDF?<\/strong>\nA: WMDF is happy for groups to visit other locations\n for tourism or performances, outside the dates of\n our own Festival.\n\nQ 2-15: We want to come with more than 20 members. Can we?<\/strong>\nA: Effectively, this is a question about finances.\n It costs WMDF around 10,000JPY\/person\/night to\n accommodate group members, so if groups\n groups cannot meet the limits we stipulate, this charge\n may be passed on to them. However, we have in the past \n granted exemptions for free accommodation of extra group \n members, so we encourage you to contact WMDF early to \n discuss your situation. Please tell us how many extra \n people you need to bring, your reasons, and your budget. \n We wish to be fair to all groups, so please be aware that \n it may only be possible to make the final decision on \n excess charges once WMDF has decided on its final list \n of participants.\n\nQ 2-16: Can we be accompanied by journalists and\/or TV crews?<\/strong>\nA: Yes, but the group size will be counted as the total\n number of people including the reporters. If the\n total number increases over 20, then you will need\n to discuss extra charges with WMDF. Common sense rules \n on the fair use of only brief portions of the performances\n of other artists apply. Also, there is a tendency for camera\n crews to get in each others' way (and sometimes in the way of\n audience, or even artists). To minimise the chance of \n problems, camera crews are requested to attend a daily \n meeting with the Festival Director and\/or his \n representative(s). We also need to know well in advance any\n requests for access to WMDF infrastructure such as pickup\n from stage microphones.\n\n The minimum requirement for filming is that WMDF is \n provided with a one-minute overview clip with permission\n to use on its web pages. For accompanying print \n journalists we would also very much appreciate being \n forwarded electronic or hardcopy articles that we can\n place on our web site.\n\nQ 2-17: Can artists be accompanied by family members,\n children or otherwise?<\/strong>\nA: We can offer only a small number of such places overall\n each year. Please contact us to discuss.\n Our basic policy is to include such members in the\n category of \"artist\". This means that they receive\n an artist pass, so that they can access areas such\n as backstage and changing areas, which is often important\n for group logistics. It also makes sense for extra members\n to be housed in the same location as the group, so\n that they can use our shuttle buses. There is space\n to include such members on the WMDF form. Please also\n indicate rooming possibilities in the space provided\n in Section 4 of the form. This is a kind of \"first come,\n first served\" arrangement, with very limited possibilities,\n so please contact us early. Maximum party size of \n 20 still applies.\n\n\nQ 2-18: What about customs? What goods are prohibited or restricted?<\/strong>\nA: Since we cannot take responsibility for giving incorrect \n information to this question, we hope that if you have \n questions about bringing goods into Japan, you could\n check with the relevant Japanese government information\n sources. Here are links to:\n Japan Customs brochures for travellers<\/a>\n Main English brochure from the above page<\/a>\n Carnet goods passports<\/a> (no group has ever needed this \n for our event, but we include it for reference).\n\n Typical international standards apply to goods made of furs: they\n must be presented to customs on arrival for inspection. The\n taxidermy must be of a sufficient standard to convince customs\n officials that there is no possibility of disease being brought\n into the country. Customs may require that items are treated before\n permitting entry.\n\n To check whether specific plant or animal species are CITES-listed under\n the Washington convention, you need to know their scientific name.\n For your reference, we list the Japanese government's files below.\n (There are three categories, each with its own rules and application form.\n Category I is the most restricted, and Category III the least).\n CITES-listed animals (pdf)<\/a>\n CITES-listed plants (pdf)<\/a>\n The above files are from this Japanese government page (J)<\/a>.<\/pre>\n
Section 3 – About Finances<\/h2>\nQ 3-1: Can you help us cover international flights?<\/strong>\nA: Since we are not (yet) a rich festival, we simply do not have\n the funds to cover travel fees. On the other hand, we can guarantee\n to accomodate all groups that come to our site with traditional \n Eastern hospitality. (Please also see Q 1-1).\n\nQ 3-2: We can only pay for costs to Tokyo. Can you help us from there?<\/strong>\nA: We are very sorry, but we cannot. Our funds are limited, and we\n have to treat all groups equally. Airplane tickets bought outside\n Japan typically have very cheap options for connecting flights\n within the country. Also, special prices are available outside Japan\n (See Q 2-4). Please ask your travel agent. If you cannot find \n cheap tickets, you can try finding a route through Sapporo\n (see Q 2-6).\n\nQ 3-3: Can WMDF arrange for us to cover costs by performing at other events in Japan?<\/strong>\nA: WMDF features an \"Outreach\" program where our artists perform\n around the local Hakodate area, and sometimes this includes\n events organised by other bodies. However, these\n are not performances that offer fees. We are sorry, but\n it is difficult for Worlds Meet Japan to find other \n performance sites to cover fees for groups when they \n are in Japan. One of the reasons is that there are relatively\n few events in Japan that work with overseas groups. WMDF is \n unusual in this regard. The level of foreign languages\n spoken in Japan is surprisingly low, and most events would\n have significant difficulty communicating logistics on a\n daily basis. Our generic advice to groups who want to \n arrange other performances is to contact the Embassy of their\n country in Tokyo. They will have access to both events \n information and to bilingual speakers who will be able to \n ensure smooth running of logistics, should an event be possible.\n A number of previous WMDF groups have accompanied their\n visit to us with Embassy-organised events in Tokyo or elsewhere\n in Japan.\n\nQ 3-4: Can our group make extra performances for the purposes of cultural\n exchange (for example free-entry in a Japanese temple)?<\/strong>\nA: For performances before or after the group arrives in Hakodate,\n yes, we hope that groups will feel free to organise their own schedules.\n Please see the advice in 3-3 about Embassies. Once the group is in \n Hakodate, our staff are generally fully occupied with the \n festival logistics including the main event, outreach, and \n social events, so we ask that groups follow the WMDF schedule.\n Even non-ticketed events in Hakodate will require resources to \n publicise, co-ordinate, prepare for performance, and other logistics, \n and we are sorry that in this most busy period our expertise \n is all committed.\n\nQ 3-5: Will WMDF pay performance fees for professional groups?<\/strong>\nA: In the past, we have given some participants\n financial remuneration, but only as contribution towards\n covering some travel costs, and the support is not at a high\n level. It is best for use to treat all groups equally as \n listed in the conditions, with no fees. Groups view our \n logistical and accommodation support as \"in-kind\" payments,\n worth around USD 1,000\/person over the course of the event.\n Also, WMDF takes no margin from the goods sold by artists\n at the event: many groups cover fees with the sale of CDs,\n etc, and our staff work hard to help groups sell them.\n\nQ 3-6: Can WMDF work with us to gain sponsorship, eg from Japan Foundation?<\/strong>\nA: In general, foundations require applications to be made in the\n home country of the group. So, WMDF can support groups applying to\n bodies in their own country, but we cannot apply on their behalf\n to organisations in Japan. If you have a specific funding\n body to which you would like WMDF to support your group's \n application for funds, please send us materials and \n videos of your group in good time. Since our administration \n time is limited, it is unlikely that we will be able \n fill in forms of any size. Please send us completed examples,\n and a set of clear step-by-step instructions.\n\nQ 3-7: Are there any special conditions under which you would pay for us to attend?<\/strong>\nA: Our Festival has been attracting attention even from individuals\n and groups with a worldwide profile. We wish that we were \n in the financial position of being able to take advantage \n of our popularity as a destination, but at the moment our \n terms and conditions list all that we can practically do.<\/pre>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"1 The Basics of Our Programming 2 Full Application Information 3 Participation FAQ 4 Pre-Departure Advice This FAQ addresses some of the most common queries we receive from artists considering attending our event. Since our office is busy, we are sorry that we may not be able to respond to questions answered by this FAQ or elsewhere on this site. A number of the questions on this FAQ relate to finances: we regret that the monetary muscle of our Festival is not yet so mighty. Please know that we are working hard to improve every year. FAQ Last Update: Sep 2025 Section 1 – About the WMDF Event Q 1-1: […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":56,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"page-templates\/full-width.php","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-64","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/wmdf.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/64","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/wmdf.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/wmdf.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wmdf.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wmdf.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=64"}],"version-history":[{"count":37,"href":"https:\/\/wmdf.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/64\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6398,"href":"https:\/\/wmdf.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/64\/revisions\/6398"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wmdf.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/56"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/wmdf.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=64"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
1 The Basics of Our Programming 2 Full Application Information 3 Participation FAQ 4 Pre-Departure Advice This FAQ addresses some of the most common queries we receive from artists considering attending our event. Since our office is busy, we are sorry that we may not be able to respond to questions answered by this FAQ or elsewhere on this site. A number of the questions on this FAQ relate to finances: we regret that the monetary muscle of our Festival is not yet so mighty. Please know that we are working hard to improve every year. FAQ Last Update: Sep 2025 Section 1 – About the WMDF Event Q 1-1: […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":56,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"page-templates\/full-width.php","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-64","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/wmdf.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/64","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/wmdf.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/wmdf.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wmdf.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wmdf.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=64"}],"version-history":[{"count":37,"href":"https:\/\/wmdf.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/64\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6398,"href":"https:\/\/wmdf.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/64\/revisions\/6398"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wmdf.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/56"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/wmdf.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=64"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}