A Far Shore 遠いところ (2023), by director Masaaki Kudo @kudomasaaki, is a topical and harrowing drama that depicts the fight for survival of a teen mother in an uncaring society. It trades in despair a…
Apr 18, 2025 • Subscribe
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A Far Shore (遠いところ, Masaaki Kudo, 2022)
A teenage mother struggles to make a life for herself in contemporary Okinawa in Masaaki Kudo’s bleak social drama.
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!…
A Far Shore (2022) review
A highly engaging story that explores the destructive effects of a societal field that fails to reach out to subjects-in-need.
SAKKA Online Streaming Service Takes Us to “A Far Shore,” an Okinawa-set drama by Masaaki Kudo, set for release on April 18
Details on the streaming debut of Masaaki Kudo’s “A Far Shore” on SAKKA, coming April 18th, 2025.
konna koto mo arou ka to こんなこともあろうかと
What konna koto mo arou ka to こんなこともあろうかと means in Japanese, with examples.
Itoshii Koishi, Volume 3 (いとしこいし)
Hina is a high school senior with a secret -she’s dating an older woman. She wants very much to share that secret with her friends, she just needs…
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Far Away, Further Away 遠くへ,もっと遠くへ Director: Shinji Imaoka [Osaka Asian Film Festival 2022]
Far Away, Further Away is a road movie with a quirky and loving and independent lead character taking us from Tokyo to Sapporo as she aids a man…
Far Away, Further Away (遠くへ，もっと遠くへ, Shinji Imaoka, 2022)
A lonely young woman exiting an unhappy marriage bonds with a lovelorn estate agent in Shinji Imaoka’s frosty romantic drama
とんこつ Q&A
とんこつ Q&A collects four stories by Natsuko Imamura, the author of The Woman in the Purple Skirt. Each of these stories is built on a cute and wholesome…
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"これいる？ vs. これ欲しい？" #learnjapanese
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Noragami – Shounen gold on the Far Shore
The trials and tribulations of stray god Yato and his friends are rife with charm and style.
Sincerity (まごころ, Mikio Naruse, 1939)
When the daughter of a poor family leapfrogs that of a rich one to be named top of the class, it exposes a series of hypocrisies and contradictions…
Pokémon Animation Director Masaaki Iwane Shares JoJo Artwork
Longtime Pokémon series animation director and key animator Masaaki Iwane shares his artwork of characters from Phantom Blood.
Hanasaku Iroha 花咲くいろは
Ohana, a Tokyo high school girl, who had been living alone with her single mom has no choice but to relocate to her grandmother’s inn when her mom…
Passing Fancy (出来ごころ, Yasujiro Ozu, 1933)
A feckless widowed father faces twin crises when he falls for a young woman and his falls ill in Yasujiro Ozu’s depression-era drama.
My Blood & Bones in a Flowing Galaxy (砕け散るところを見せてあげる, SABU, 2020)
A young man’s attempt to protect a bullied schoolmate leads him into infinite darkness but eventually also to the light in SABU’s poetic teen drama
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Ito いとみち Director: Satoko Yokohama (2021) [Osaka Asian Film Festival 2021]
“Ito” is a heart-warming comedy drama rich in Aomori’s culture where a girl learning to express herself through time spent at a maid cafe and her shamisen skills.…
Town Without Sea (夏、至るころ, Elaiza Ikeda, 2020)
Filled with adolescent anxiety, a lost young man begins to discover the confidence to fly far from home in Elaiza Ikeda’s beautifully drawn Kyushu coming-of-age tale
あとになってわかったこと
Collector's Mindset - How to Japanese - February 2025
Rocking Out in History With Inu-Oh Director Masaaki Yuasa
Yuasa excitedly introduced his multi-award nominated movie and its characters with the same energy and fervor as if he were pitching the film from scratch.
A Girl Named Ann (あんのこと, Yu Irie, 2024)
A young woman’s attempts to turn her life around are frustrated by compromised authority figures and an indifferent society in Yu Irie’s hard-hitting drama.
Can You Say このぬいぐるみいる？ #learnjapanese
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Interview – Masashi Kudo
The post Interview – Masashi Kudo appeared first on Full Frontal.
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
Is This Heaven? (天国か、ここ？, Shinji Imaoka, 2023)
A middle-aged couple ponder loss and regret on a surreal odyssey into the afterlife , or something like it at least, in Shinji Imaoka’s cheerfully absurdist dramedy
Drifting Flowers, Flowing Days (この日々が凪いだら, Yutaka Tsunemachi, 2023)
Two young people experience a crisis of youth after discovering their apartment block is to be torn down in Yutaka Tsunemachi’s indie drama.
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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
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Chika Kudo – Character Profile
Overview Kudo is seen as a touble maker and a bad influence by lots of people at the high school he attends. His grandfather was a professional Koto…
Let Me Hear It Barefoot (裸足で鳴らしてみせろ, Riho Kudo, 2021)
Two alienated young men struggle to identify their feelings while searching for escape from moribund small-town Japan in Riho Kudo’s indie drama.
Mondays: See You “This” Week! (MONDAYS／このタイムループ、上司に気づかせないと終わらない, Ryo Takebayashi, 2022)
Harried office workers must get through to their dejected salaryman boss if they’re to escape a workplace time loop in Ryo Takebayashi’s zany corporate comedy.
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A Girl On The Shore (2021) review
“Ueda’s engaging film is all about two subjects trying to escape their phantasmatic identification with the notion of trash.”
Walking Down the Shore (A Short Story)
Much of my life feels like strolling down sunset-lit beach all by myself. In the horizon, I can see crowds of people tending and minding their own businesses;…
Manga Mondays: A Girl on the Shore
Visit the post for more.
Eternally Younger Than Those Idiots (君は永遠にそいつらより若い, Ryuhei Yoshino, 2021)
An insecure young woman struggles to assume her place in the world while preparing to leave the aimless security of college life for an uncertain adulthood in Ryuhei…
Winter 2023 Anime: Thoughts So Far
Now we’re more than halfway through February, it’s about time for me to share my opinions of the anime that I have been watching during the winter 2023…
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Spring 2023 Anime: Thoughts So Far
You probably know the drill by now: it’s (just after) the middle of the season of anime, so I’ll be sharing my thoughts on the shows I decided…
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We are around the halfway point of the autumn 2023 season of anime, so I’ll be sharing my thoughts on each of the shows I have been watching…
One Piece, The Vexations of a Shut-In Vampire Princess, I'm in Love with the Villainess, Kizuna no Allele, Kizuna no Allele 2nd Season
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Hold Me Back 私をくいとめて Director: Akiko Ohku (2020) [New York Asian Film Festival 2021]
Director Akiko Ohku and lead actor Non make a dream team for the film Hold Me Back, a romantic-comedy which reflects the concerns of modern women. 私をくいとめて Director: Akiko…
Common Japanese Mistake No.6 と思います
Learn Japanese with Me - https://bit.ly/4drmyU2
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A Rainbow-colored Trip にじいろトリップ Dir: Shinji Imaoka (2021) [Osaka Asian Film Festival 2021]
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Kidofuji (2023) Director: Atsuro Shimoyashiro
Kidofuji, from director Atsuhiro Shimoyashiro, is a well-shot and well-acted one take/one camera short shot in a real-life standing bar in Tokyo’s Koenji ward.
"Would it Be これがいりますか？" #learnjapanese
Learn Japanese with Me - https://bit.ly/4drmyU2
Struggling Man (私はいったい、何と闘っているのか, Toshio Lee, 2021)
A dejected middle-aged man experiences a crisis of masculinity when his home and work lives come under threat in Toshio Lee’s warmhearted comedy.
Yuri to Koe to Kaze Matoi, Volume 3 (百合と声と風纏い)
In Volume 1, we met Matoi, a high school senior with a talent for music and vocals. Surrounded by people her age who are in an out of…