Due to be released in autumn 2024
Due to be released in autumn 2024
Cast: Fumiko Kataoka, Nanami Bansyo, Tomomi Yokoo, Shinji Murakami, DAKEI
Camera assistant: Sayaka Katayama Photos by Kazuho Kurita Title design by Arisa SasakiWeb design by Hitomi Fujiwara DTF design by Aya Okamoto
In cooperation with: Kyoto Media Support Center, Keifuku Electric Railroad Co., Ltd., Urban Renaissance Agency, Notre Dame Jogakuin Junior & Senior High School, Kyoto City Keihoku Hospital, Myoren-ji Temple, Oarahiko Shrine, Nishijin Textile Center, All Japan Deaf Students Association , Ohara Tourism and Conservation Association
Supported by: Japan National Center of Sign Language Education, Nagasaki Association of the Deaf
2024 / 60 min / Japan / Color / Sound only in parts
Advertising: “Please bless us” Film Production Committee ⒸTomomi Yokoo
STORY
An elderly woman who has lost her husband and is now shuttling back and forth between the past and the present. A daughter who looks at her mother, who was forbidden to use sign language and could never learn Japanese. A woman who longs to have a child...What lies beyond the recurring pain of these three women?
MESSAGE
Forced sterilization under the old Eugenic Protection Act, the period when sign language was banned, reduced compensation payouts due to being disabled and a woman... An artistic film that delicately and intensely portrays the difficulties deaf women face in their everyday lives.
When I learned the news of a compensation payout being reduced in a court case due to the awardee being a woman and disabled, I was shocked to learn that discrimination still exists today. Growing up, I had heard a lot about forced sterilization in the deaf community, and I had come to take it for granted that sign language was forbidden in schools for the deaf and that times were hard for many deaf people. But now that I am an adult, I know it is not the norm, and as a woman and a mother, I felt it was okay to be angry. This anger led me to rush into filmmaking. This story is filled with the pain and love of us deaf women. I hope you can experience and empathize with the past, present and future through these three stories. (Director: Tomomi Yokoo)
Director/Screenplay/Starring/Photograph/Editor :
Profile Artist (Photography, video, physical expression)
Deaf. Born in Nagasaki Prefecture and currently residing in Kyoto City. She was awakened to physical expression after appearing in the film “LISTEN.” She has been involved in physical expression activities that connect with her sensitivity and identity as a deaf person through video, photography, and stage performances. Themes covered include love, deaf elderly, music, boundaries, emotions, liberation, body lines, and women.
CAREER: Collaborator and performer in the film “LISTEN” (2016), co-directed by Eri Makihara and DAKEI. Collaborator and performer in Yuske Taninaka’s stage production “Kuki kimagure” (Air Whimsy) (2023). Directed, produced, and performed in the short film “Watashitachi ni tsuite” (About Us) (2023). Winner of the Grand Prize at the 20th Sagano Deaf Movie Festival.
CAST
She is an indispensable presence in the film, brimming with the charm of sign language expression. I instinctively sensed that she was a dancer, and my instincts were proved right when I saw her dancing naturally between takes. A movie that strives to give the viewer a sense of her appearance through the images. Long active in the Women's Club (Women's Division) of Deaf activities in Kyoto Prefecture, she received the “Kyoto Citizen's Commendation” from Kyoto City as a contributor to the community. Widely loved by sign language learners.
A trusting relationship with the mother was important, and we wanted a child actor with wonderful eyes, so we asked the daughter of Rie Bansyo, a senior at my alma mater (Special Needs Education School for the Deaf, University of Tsukuba). She is very expressive, as she does karate! She sometimes mischievously peeked at the camera or played tricks on us, but when it came time for the real work to begin, she switched gears and really worked hard. Please pay attention to her eyes and facial expressions.
We have been working with him since the movie “LISTEN” and were able to shoot a good scene this time after consulting with him on various aspects of the scene around the fire. The process of capturing DAKEI's physical movement in the angles was mind-blowing. A Butoh artist active not only in Japan but also all over the world. He has also appeared in a wide range of films, including “Watashi no Namae wa...” (My Name is ...), the first film directed by Agnès B.
I saw him playing an active role in NPO Comekko and asked him to perform. The resourceful and flexible way he tackled his role inspired me time after time. He made a good addition to the film. He is also an anchor for “Me de Kiku Terebi,” (TV Listening with the Eyes) a sign language performer for “NHK Sign Language for Everyone TV,” and a lecturer for local sign language classes.
COMMENT
Yutaka Osugi (Professor, Tsukuba University of Technology)
This is a film in which one woman was able to sublimate her anger!
Hidehiko Kado (Illustrator)
It is as if the entire work is a one lyric poem. A work of art.
Jo Matsuzaki (Professor, Miyagi University of Education)
The inner “words” of a deaf woman, deprived of human dignity and blessings,
are captured with a sharp but soft focus.
Eri Makihara (Auteur)
I saw an extraordinary movie.
A generational anthem that tells us that we are worth living.
Manami Moriyama (Photographer, interviewer)
“My enemy was myself”
THEATER
coming soon...
