DIRECTOR: Soda Kazuhiro
PRODUCERS: Soda Kazuhiro, Kashiwagi Kiyoko
PRODUCTION CO: Laboratory X
​PHOTOGRAPHY: Soda Kazuhiro
EDITOR: Soda Kazuhiro
FESTIVALS: Berlin

REVIEWS

“In the picturesque small coastal town of Ushimado in Japan’s Okayama Prefecture, a Shinto shrine has become home to an ever-growing colony of stray cats. Enter Japanese documentarian Kazuhiro Soda, renowned for his self-imposed ‘10 Commandments of Observational Documentary', which include doing no prior research, having no pre-set themes or goals, and shooting long takes without scripts, narration, or superimposed titles — all while filming everything himself. In his tenth documentary, Soda casts a calm and meditative eye over the shrine, its feline inhabitants, and their human neighbours. Set over the course of a year, he captures the lives of the cats as they adapt to the seasons, steal fish from local fishermen and interact with local residents, some of whom see the cats as a nuisance, while others view them as a potential tourist attraction for the town. The result is a charming and thoughtful portrait of the delicate balance between cats and humans in an ever-evolving world set over the backdrop of a little explored region of Japan.

“Soon there might not be any cats left at Gokogu Shrine, but the lives they have touched remain, and Soda’s sparing, sweet film is a gorgeous tribute to the independent felines, and the kind people who lived in harmony with them.”

– Hannah Strong, Little White Lies

FILM SOCIETY SCREENINGS

​Dunedin     
Wednesday, 15 April, 7.30pm ​

Westport
Wednesday, 13 May, 7.00pm

Hamilton
Monday, 22 June, 6.30pm

Palmerston North     
Wednesday, 01 July, 6.00pm

Canterbury     
Wednesday, 01 July, 7.00pm

Nelson
Wednesday, 22 July, 6.00pm

Carterton
Friday, 31 July, 7.30pm

Tauranga
Wednesday, 05 August, 6.00pm

Auckland
Monday, 28 September, 6.15pm

Timaru
​Tuesday, 13 October, 6.30pm
CONTEMPORARY JAPAN  >> ​ ​