Special Screenings

Japan / 2018 / 134 min.
Director: NAKAE Yuji

2015. Even after 5 years since the Great East Japan Earthquake, the residents of Futabamachi in Fukushima Prefecture are unable to return home and have been living in temporary housing. What gives the people of Futabamachi hope is the fact Hawaiians of Japanese descent have been handed down the Bon (Lantern) Festival dance by the people of Fukushma who immigrated to Hawaii over 100 years ago. People from Futabamachi head to the island of Maui in order to demonstrate the Futaba Bon Uta. Furthermore, the film reveals how over 200 years ago a group of immigrants from Toyama Prefecture more than 500 kilometers away came to the aid of Fukushima's Souma region during a depopulation crisis due to famine and epidemic. The Bon Uta became a reassurance for people who lived far from their birthplace. Director NAKAE Yuji of "Nabbie's Love" and "Hotel Hibiscus" devoted 3 years making this moving documentary accompanying people who will not allow traditions deeply rooted in their region to die out.