Welcome to the first of three film trailer posts.
The next one follows tomorrow and the final one for this week the day after.
Japanese classes are going apace and I’m also doing festival work so I’m continuing to narrow down the things I do. The repetition of Japanese learning is having an effect since I’ve upped the hours I do compared to a decade ago when I would just do an hour or so a day.
What are the first Japanese film trailers released this weekend?
My Sunshine 
ぼくのお日さま 「Boku no Ohisama」
Release Date: September 13th, 2024
Duration: 90 mins.
Director: Hiroshi Okuyama
Writer: Hiroshi Okuyama (Screenplay),
Starring: Keitatsu Kohiyama, Kiara Takanashi, Sosuke Ikematsu, Ryuya Wakaba, Maho Yamada, Yunho,
Website Twitter: @bokuno_ohisama IMDB
This one played at Cannes 2024 where it got favourable reviews.
So Hiroshi Okuyama directed the feature coming-of-age comedy Jesus (2018), which netted him Best New Director at San Sebastian, and won the praise of a lot of critics. Since then, he was involved in directing an episode of The Makanai: Cooking for the Maiko House (2023), a TV show on Netflix overseen by Hirokazu Kore-eda.
Okuyama became the youngest Japanese director to be selected for Cannes Film Festival’s Un Certain Regard section and this film, dedicated to figure skating, features two emerging talents in Keitatsu Kohiyama and Kiara Takanashi (a trained dancer) along with excellent support from veterans like Sosuke Ikematsu, Ryuya Wakaba, and Maho Yamada.
Apparently, this same-named song served as something of an inspiration for this, Okuyama’s commercial film debut as did his training in figure skating, which he embarked upon at the age of five as he followed in his sister’s footsteps.
Synopsis: Takuya and Sakura live in a snowbound town but are polar opposites in abilities as she is a talented and dedicated figure skater while he is hopeless on the ice, especially with his ice hockey skates fouling him up. Arakawa, a former figure skater who coaches Sakura, sees Takuya trying to mimic her moves and senses the boy has feelings for the girl so he supports Takuya by lending him figure skates and helping him practice until he can begin practicing with Sakura. As the two train together, a love blurs the relationship between the young skaters.
Tenchi yuyu Tota haiku no ippon michi 
天地悠々 兜太・俳句の一本道 「Tenchi yuyu Tota haiku no ippon michi」
Release Date: September 10th, 2024
Duration: 74 mins.
Director: Atsunori Kawamura
Writer: Atsunori Kawamura
Starring: Tota Kaneko
Synopsis: Director Atsunori Kawamura has made a series of documentaries on great people who have lived a long time and his latest is on Tota Kaneko, a haiku poet who was born in Saitama Prefecture in 1919 and was in the Navy during the Pacific War. Since then, he has dedicated his life to haiku. This film is a document of his life that comes complete with interviews he did up until his death.
All About Suomi 
スオミの話をしよう 「Suomi no Hanashi wo Shiyou」
Release Date: September 13th, 2024
Duration: 114 mins.
Director: Koki Mitani
Writer: Koki Mitani (Screenplay),
Starring: Masami Nagasawa, Hidetoshi Nishijima, Tori Matsuzaka, Kenichi Endo, Koji Seto, Emma Miyazawa, Takashi Kobayashi,
Website Twitter: @suomi_movie IMDB
Koki Mitani, master of the ensemble comedy, returns with his first film in five years and he has a star-studded cast for this work.
Synopsis: Suomi is the wife of a wealthy poet and he is her fifth husband. When she disappears from their luxurious mansion, her four previous husbands show up to solve the mystery with her husband Samukawa. They include a detective named Keigo Kusano and a Youtuber named Tokachi. While they may all be thinking about Suomi, it turns out that each man has a different image of who she is and what her personality is like…
Mrs. GREEN APPLE // The White Lounge in CINEMA 
Release Date: September 13th, 2024
Duration: N/A
Director: Kazuyuki Inoue
Writer: N/A
Starring: Mrs. Green Apple: Motoki Ohmori, Hiroto Wakai, Ryoka Fujisawa,
Website Twitter: @twl_movie
Synopsis: In 2023 Mrs. GREEN APPLE celebrated their 10th anniversary and also made their first appearance at the NHK Kohaku Uta Gassen. They went on tour from 2023 to 2024 and recorded some of their performances at “The White Lounge,” an all-white venue, where they played newly rearranged songs. Here’s the band’s Wikipedia entry.
Shisam 
シサム 「Shisam」
Release Date: September 13th, 2024
Duration: 114 mins.
Director: Hiroyuki Nakao
Writer: Masaya Ozaki (Screenplay),
Starring: Kanichiro, Takahiro Miura, Masato Wada, Rosa Sahel, Ryota Hondo, Takahiro Fujimoto, Kotone Furukawa, Yasuko Tomita,
Website Twitter: @Sisam_movie JFDB
Synopsis: In 17th century Hokkaido,- Matsumae clan are rely principally on trading with the Ainu people, a lucrative set-up. So lucrative is this set up that other organisations and clans want to muscle in on. Kojiro, the son of a Matsumae clan retainer, and his older brother, Einosuke murdered,, are sent to Ezo on a trade mission but are betrayed and Einosuke killed. Kojiro tries to hunt down the killer but falls off a cliff and has to be rescued by the Ainu. After he starts living with them, he begins to learn their language and culture and starts to reassess his life. All of this while a conflict surrounding trade with the Ainu and unfair trade terms cause the Ainu to rise up.