The unresolved past conspires against present happiness in Chihiro Ito’s etherial drama.
Apr 1, 2023 • Subscribe
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Side by Side サイド バイ サイド 隣にいる人 (2023) Dir: Chihiro Ito [Osaka Asian Film Festival 2023]
Side by Side サイド バイ サイド 隣にいる人, by director Chihiro Ito, is a visually sumptuous film with a light supernatural story. Side by Side サイド バイ サイド 隣にいる人 (2023)…
Side by Side (2023) review [OAFF 2023]
A peaceful dream-like visual experience that celebrates both the impact subjects have on each other as well as the manner in which the subject remains opaque to himself…
Kono Naka ni Hotori, Imouto ga Iru! この中に1人、妹がいる!
Mikadono Shougo, son to a rich and powerful company chairman, has to attend school to find a girl he is serious on before he can inherit the company.…
What does まどかが好きな人は二人いる mean?
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いる vs ある #learnjapanese
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In Her Room (ひとりぼっちじゃない, Chihiro Ito, 2022)
A shy dentist’s sense of reality is undermined by his relationship with a mysterious woman living in an indoor forest in Chihiro Ito’s ethereal drama.
People Who Talk to Plushies Are Kind (ぬいぐるみとしゃべる人はやさしい, Yurina Kaneko, 2023)
A collection of sensitive uni students pour out their worries to cuddly toys to avoid burdening others with their fears in Yurina Kaneko’s charmingly empathetic drama.
Call Me Chihiro (2023) review
What makes Imaizumi’s narrative a pleasant and such an emotional watch is the fine balance he found between waves of light-heartedness and the forlorn aftertaste that remains after…
Lesson in Murder (死刑にいたる病, Kazuya Shiraishi, 2022)
A diffident student falls under the spell of a manipulative serial killer in Kazuya Shirashi’s intense mystery drama.
How to Subtly Flirt in Japanese No. 2 好きな人いる?
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Domains 王国 (あるいはその家について) (2019) Dir: Natsuka Kusano
Domains is a thoroughly absorbing drama thanks to excellent performances and its unique structure. Domains 王国 (あるいはその家について) (2019) Dir: Natsuka Kusano
Can You Say このぬいぐるみいる? #learnjapanese
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In Her Room ひとりぼっちじゃない (2022) Director: Chihiro Ito [New York Asian Film Festival 2023] 2
In Her Room ひとりぼっちじゃない (2022), by director Chihiro Ito, is an offbeat and erotic tale of jealousy that is told in a visually dazzling way with a slow pace…
掌に眠る舞台
Yōko Ogawa’s 2022 collection 掌に眠る舞台 contains eight stories connected by the broad theme of “stages.” Some stories are about the world of performing arts, while others take an…
Memories of His Scent (においが眠るまで, Kahori Higashi, 2024)
A young woman travels Japan looking for the scent of her later father in Kahori Higashi’s gentle summer move.
Great Absence (大いなる不在, Kei Chikaura, 2023)
A forced reconnection with his estranged father forces a young man to contemplate the great absences of life in Kei Chikaura’s poetic drama.
Ito (いとみち, Satoko Yokohama, 2021)
A shy young woman with a talent for Tsugaru shamisen grows in confidence after getting a job at a maid cafe in Satoko Yokohama’s warmhearted drama
寝転がる人/Person Lying Down
https://gogetfunding.com/animator-dormitory-project-2025/ The Animator Dormitory is a low-cost housing solution for new animators where they can live for less than 200 dollars per month, including rent, utilities, and internet. -------------------------------------- Audience…
An Interview with Chihiro Ito, Director of In Her Room ひとりぼっちじゃない (2022) [New York Asian Film Festival 2023]
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"これいる? vs. これ欲しい?" #learnjapanese
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いる vs ほしい to say "to want" #learnjapanese
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いろいろ December 2023
I ran out of space over at the newsletter this month, so I thought I’d share the いろいろ section on the blog instead. Podcast link at the bottom!…
All Under the Moon (月はどっちに出ている, Yoichi Sai, 1993)
Citizens of post-Bubble Tokyo struggle to reorient themselves amid changing realities in Yoichi Sai’s lighthearted comedy.
"Can I Say 日本に行く。お土産いる? Without けど?" #learnjapanese
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~ni suru ~にする - Meaning in Japanese
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Spring In Between (はざまに生きる、春, Rika Katsu, 2023)
A struggling editor at a magazine gains a new perspective while falling in love with an autistic artist in Rika Katsu’s romantic drama.
Alien’s Daydream (地球星人(エイリアン)は空想する, Yoshiki Matsumoto, 2023)
Assigned to investigate a possible alien abduction, a jaded journalist uncovers a completely different story in Yoshiki Matsumoto’s surreal dramedy.
Books: By Your Side
By Jonathan Clements. The inauguration of Barazoku (“Rose Tribe”), a magazine for gay men in 1971, brought with it a sop to the ladies, in the form of…
Kimi to Shiranai Natsu ni Naru, Volume 1 (君としらない夏になる)
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Inch Forward (走れない人の走り方, Su Yu-Chun, 2023)
An indie filmmaker experiences various setbacks while trying to complete her latest film in Su Yu-Chun’s cheerful dramedy.
漫画において重要…!脇を固める役者の描き方 Important to Manga! How to Draw Superior Side Characters
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Lesson in Murder 死刑にいたる病 Director: Kazuya Shiraishi [New York Asian Film Festival 2022]
Lesson in Murder is a fine Kazuya Shiraishi production that adapts a novel for the big screen. Although slow, the performances will enrapture viewers. Lesson in Murder 死刑にいたる病 Director: Kazuya Shir…
To Sleep So as to Dream (夢みるように眠りたい, Kaizo Hayashi, 1986)
A detective becomes lost in the labyrinths of cinema while chasing a ghost of the silver screen in Kaizo Hayashi’s ethereal ode to the silent movie
Yagate Kimi ni Naru Saeki Sayaka ni Tsuite, Volume 3 (やがて君になる 佐伯沙弥香について)
Saeki Sayaka, very serious, prone to overthinking things, has met someone who will change her life. Edamoto Haru, first year in college has confessed to liking Sayaka, and…
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In Volume 1, we met Ohsawa Aya, a fashionable girl in most ways – except for her retro taste in music. When she walks into a shabby CD…
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Aya is a high school student who loves music of the 90s-00s. She’s content to sit and listen to the Foo Fighters in her ear buds, but when…
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"Yuta Forgot to Mention There's Kanji For いる" #learnjapanese
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Basic Japanese Sentence Sentence No. 10 いる to need
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