Supported by the Centre national du cinéma et de l'image animée (CNC), the Ministry of Europe and Foreign Affairs and the Institut français, as part of the strategy for the international export of Cultural and Creative Industries. This Franco-Japanese program is aimed at French video game creators wishing to enrich their projects through contact with the Japanese video game scene. The program combines 360-degree support, professional exchanges and cultural immersion.

The initiative was born of a shared desire to foster creative cross-fertilization between France and Japan, two countries with rich and complementary videogame cultures.

Three-week immersion in Japan

For three weeks in Japan in May 2026, the four selected participants will benefit from personalized mentoring by recognized Japanese professionals, take part in themed workshops, group sessions, visits and be invited to present their project at BitSummit in Kyoto, Japan's biggest independent games fair.

Two key partners in France and Japan

The Indie Game Lab Japan relies on:

• In France, on Game Créalab, which selects the winners and prepares them for the program;
• In Japan, on the Kodansha Creators' Lab, which coordinates on-site incubation, educational content and local mentoring. The Kodansha Creators' Lab is a new business development department launched in 2021 by publishing house Kodansha to support creators' activities in several fields, including video games and films, without limiting themselves to any particular content format.

Call for Projects open until December 18

Find all the information and apply on gamecrealab.com