Kazuyuki Kuga aspires to become an actor. He auditions for the lead role in a theater company’s next work. Among the 300 people who take part in that audition, only…
Haru, a bookstore clerk, talks to Yukiko pretending to ask for directions. Haru has detected deep sorrow on Yukiko’s face. Meanwhile, Haru has been spending days following Tsuyoshi discretely and…
Kiyosumi is a live in manger of an apartment building. He spends most of his time composing & playing music in his apartment. He doesn’t relate well with people and…
In a story told straight and with restraint we watch Naoko Hanami. She quit her job to look after her dementia-stricken mother Kiyo while the health of her father, Eiji,…
An inexplicable wave of tragic deaths plunges two investigators into the heart of a fateful whirlwind, where logic and facts have no value as a far-fetched urban legend seems to…
Manta Okamoto is a strange young man. He is prone to spontaneous tantrums. On the verge of hikikomori, he faces reality through numbers and with a brain full of crisp…
Akoko has a straightforward and honest personality, and acts immediately on what she thinks, unable to lie to herself or others. By her side is her best friend since third…
Minato studies piano at a music academy. One day, he falls head over heels in love with fellow student Yukino, who harbors a tragic secret that will put their romance…
Three young men live and work in a nearly-deserted Japanese city. The three wander the streets, ruminating on the pointlessness of life in the modern age, never quite living up…
Hagino, her husband Atsuhiro and her teenage stepdaughter Moeka move into a new house. For someone who was not blessed with a warm affectionate family, this was what she had…
The setting is a recruitment examination for an IT company, there are six finalists who are given the task to build a team and hold a discussion in one month’s…
Shino, who works at a real estate company, is having an affair with her older, married co-worker, Okumura. Wanting to save on hotel fees, Okumura suggests to Shino that they…
Rino believes that “the man of her destiny” is Jun who always disappears from her whenever she feels their love for each other. In their lifetime, they meet many times…
From rising cult filmmaker Kenichi Ugana, a misfit horror-themed rock band moves to the Japanese countryside to write the greatest punk anthem in the world.
It’s summer vacation, but two high schoolers have been instructed to clean the (empty) swimming pool. As they sweep the pool, they initially discuss school life, love and makeup. But…
Azusa and Kanami have been best friends since high school. After Kanami dies in an unexpected accident, Azusa despairs yet finds comfort in sending text messages to Kanami’s cellphone. Kanami’s…
Zenitendo is a mysterious candy store that only lucky people can reach. All the candy recommended by Beniko, the owner of the store, is perfectly suited to the buyer’s troubles….
Chisako Satoya, a writer, and her father, Kozo, had a long-standing feud and had been living apart for a long time. However now that Kozo, who lives alone, has dementia,…
Osamu Kogure spends his days in near poverty, but he keeps going by taking odd jobs. After being forced by an unscrupulous co-worker who enjoys manipulating people, he decides to…
Tokio Takenaka (48) is a scriptwriter who’s lost his passion for his work, and whose relationship with his wife Madoka (37) has turned sour. He spends his days lost in…
The narrative centers on Taichi Tamiya, a television scriptwriter living in modern-day Tokyo with his family. Their ordinary lives are disrupted when they inexplicably time-travel to June 1944, during the…
Takeharu Samejima is a reticent photographer who runs a deserted photo studio. Taiichi Igarashi, a talented photographer captivated by his photos, gives up his brilliant career to become his apprentice….
Sanae, who went to prison after failing to kill her ex-boyfriend six years ago, meets Kenta, a forest ranger, and gets married. Sanae and Kenta’s married life takes a new…
The day before his exhibition, world-renowned painter Tamura discovers that his own work contains a forgery. Meanwhile, the body of a woman with countless ukiyo-e tattoos is discovered at the…
The title of Tanaka Toshihiko’s ambitious exploration of human relationships is polysemous. A genderless given name, the kanji character can similarly represent a variety of meanings. As such, it’s the…
Cha-Cha is the love story between the titular Cha-Cha, a free-spirited artist, and Raku, a boy with increasingly questionable tastes. Cha-Cha is painted with the whimsical colors of a romantic…