Yuka Itaya

An American actor in Tokyo struggles to find purpose until he lands an unusual gig: working for a Japanese 'rental family' agency, playing stand-in roles for strangers. As he immerses himself in his clients' worlds, he begins to form genuine bonds that blur the lines between performance and reality.

Yuma, a 23-year-old comic book artist with profound cerebral palsy, has been emotionally stunted by her well-meaning but overprotective mother. As she begins to seek independence and sexual awakening on her own terms, she discovers an unexpected path to love and forgiveness.

When a tough yakuza gangster is betrayed by his bosses, it means all out war. Bodies pile up as he takes out everyone in his way to the top in a brutal quest for revenge.

Rei Kiriyama is a 17-years-old shogi (Japanese chess) player. He debuted as a professional shogi player when he was in middle school. He lives by himself in Tokyo, because his parents and younger sister died in an traffic accident when he was little. One day, Rei Kiriyama meets three sisters who are his neighbors. The three sisters are Akari Kawamoto, Hinata Kawamoto and Momo Kawamoto. This is his first meeting with someone outside of the shogi world in many years. Having meals with the Kawamoto family brings warm feelings to Rei Kiriyama. As Rei Kiriyama continues his shogi career, his interactions with his neighbors allows him to grow as a shogi player and as a person.

Five bizarre stories with no apparent connection to one another eventually become intertwined, resulting in surreal circumstances.

The time spent between professional Shogi player Kiriyama and his three stories helps to heal his wounds. As he prepares to secure another win in an upcoming tournament, the father who left the three sisters appears and disturbs the peace.

The emotional journey of a four-member family that fails to recognize that it is rapidly growing apart until the mother is diagnosed with terminal cancer.

We often spin tender lies out of love for someone. Fourteen-year-old Kiita has grown up in just such a lie, living alone with his blind mother, Hanae. As his voice begins to change, the boy decides to venture beyond the fence on his own, and in the back alleys of Tokyo comes face to face with realities far removed from what he has known. Yet just as truth has many faces, so too does its opposite, and Kiita gradually comes to see—and accept—that the lie that has protected his world has another face of its own.

Reiji Kanzaki is a wildly popular actor who has made a career out of starring in classic, sparkling romantic comedies. However, as he turns 30, he begins to grow weary of the genre and wants to be recognized for his acting skills in serious dramas. Just as he plans to make a career shift, he receives another offer to star in a rom-com, this time opposite the earnest idol Misato Minamikaze. The film follows their clash of ideals, professional struggles, and the romantic sparks that fly between them.

In a not so distant future where lifespan extension has become a priority following the spread of a mysterious virus, a privileged man looks back upon his life as he is facing a dilemma: should he live if it means taking someone else's life?

The housewife and part-time private detective Noriko Yamada plays her old tricks again, uncovering mysterious corruption cases. But this time she will solve it adopting the style of "Beatrix Kiddo" from Kill Bill.

Yoko, who gets a job at a nursing home, witnesses the elderly and disabled people there having their human dignity threatened.

Satoshi Makino is a genius classical guitarist. One day, he meets journalist Yoko Komine. They become attracted to each other, but Yoko Komine has a fiancé.

Abandoned by his mother, Kenji scrapes out a meager existence doing odd jobs, including driving bar hostesses and their customers home. Besides this, he cares for the sister of an incarcerated friend and a young illegal immigrant. Eventually, his life reaches a turning point.

Hiromi works in a posh French restaurant. One day, he meets an ordinary-looking old man who has a discerning palate. He is no ordinary cook, and can pinpoint the exact problems with Hiromi's dishes. His name is Tatematsu Ippei, a legendary chef renowned for his work in France once upon a time. After a food poisoning mishap, his fiance Sophie had left him and he cut himself off from the culinary world. Hiromi is engrossed with Ippei's cuisine and asks for lessons. Meanwhile, Sophie, now the wife of the director of a top tableware manufacturer, comes to Japan. Ippei cooks a banquet for her using Hiromi's restaurant as a front. Sophie notices that the food is made by Ippei, her former lover. The two meet and enjoy a short-lived reunion, but go on to live their own separate lives.

Misuzu Hara (Nao) works as a high school teacher and prefers to keep a distance from her students. In her past, she was raped by her best friend’s boyfriend Hayafuji after he found out she liked him. She didn't report the crime to the police and she didn't tell anyone else what happened. She still suffers from the trauma from what happened, but she continues to have a forceful relationship with Hayafuji who is now her best friend’s fiancee. One day, a rumor spreads that her student Yuki Niizuma is in a secret affair. Misuzu Hara, as his teacher, has a meeting with him to provide counseling.

Yokubo from director Tetsuo Shinohara is based off of the award-winning love story by Mariko Koike. A young man searching for physical comfort and dumb lust, and the world-weary woman drowning in a sea of men that works with him. This is a fantastic new film from a remarkably skilled cast about "the beauty of sensualism."

Diagnosed with dementia, Yuriko's mind quickly begins to fade. Yet, for her son Izumi, memories of the mother feel as vivid as when he lived them. One in particular, when he believed she had disappeared, haunts him terribly.

A group of friends from high school days reunite for once more time before one of them dies from cancer.

Arima Kousei won numerous piano competitions while under the strict watch of his mother. He was known as the human metronome during that time. Since the death of his mother, Kousei has been unable to hear the sound of his piano. He then meets Miyazono Kaori through childhood friend Sawabe Tsubaki. Kaori plays the violin and has a free sprit. Since meeting her, Kousei is able to face the piano again. Meanwhile, Kaori holds a secret.

Ai has had a crush forever on her classmate Tatoe. When she finds out that Tatoe is in a secret relationship with another girl, she sets out to sabotage their plans for the future.

While celebrating with her friends in her new cheaply rented apartment on the thirteenth floor of a building, the young Sayaka unexpectedly jumps off the balcony committing suicide. Her mother goes insane and her older sister, Mariko, decides to investigate the mysterious death of her sister.

A serial-murderer is on the loose who just so happens to also be removing the hearts of his victims and taking them with him. His victims however, are not merely random humans as thought by the police. They are in fact, the past and present guardians of the gateway of the afterlife.On the day he is to be married, Detective Kanzaki, who happens to be on the case, discovers that his fiancé Mina has been murdered with her heart also missing. He also learns that the killers are Kudo, a geneticist, and his evil secretary Rei. The two are trying to obtain six hearts from the guardians so that they may call forth a horde of demons from the Gate of Rage and have their every desire granted. Only problem is, once they open the gate the entire world will be covered in darkness.

Satoru Mizushima is a designer, who prefers traditional things like handmade items and handwritten works. One day, he happens to meet a mysterious woman, Miyuki Miharu, at the cafe named Piano. She seems to have similar values to him and he is attracted to her. Satoru asks for Miyuki's cellphone number, but she doesn't own a cellphone. They make a promise to meet at the cafe every Thursday. Since then, Satoru and Miyuki meet every Thursday and their relationship develops romantically. Satoru decides to propose Miyuki, but she doesn't show up at the cafe.

No description available.

Spring, a freshman in high school, in the middle of youth. Yukari has yet to find something she is passionate. Then she meets Mimi, a classmate who loves a wildflower. The two of them decide to join the Wildflower Research Club = "ZAKKEN" together.

Six women attempt to make it in current day Tokyo, living their everyday lives the best and worst they can. For them, every little moment becomes a ritual of the ordinary and the exciting, a balancing act for their dreams and hopes as the days perpetually tug on their heartstrings.

Noriko Yamada is a housewife and mother of five children, she and her husband go through an economic crisis that causes them to have problems with the bank. But while looking for work will Hitoshi befriending Hibino, president of "K & D Research" a detective agency. This will give you the opportunity to spend a trial investigating an infidelity. So get to be a part-time detective Noriko.

"Girls" follows four beautiful women and depicts the troubles found in their love lives and work place. Yukiko Takigawa (Karina) works at a big advertising firm and has a good looking boyfriend. Seiko Takeda is married and has no children. She works at a large real estate company. Yoko Kosaka is a single woman working at a historic stationary company. Takako Hirai is a single mother who works for a car manufacturer.

Set two years after after "Hotaru no Hikari" drama series, Hotaru Amemiya learns that her boss and now husband Seichi Takano has dreamed of vacationing in Rome, Italy like in the movie "Roman Holiday". Hotaru then makes plans to go to Rome for their honeymoon. Rome, Italy prepare ... Hotaru Amemiy and Seichi Takano are coming!

The story is set in Japan several years from now. The government has decided to experimentally establish "euthanasia special zones." The protagonists are rapper Shotaro Sako, who has been diagnosed with an incurable disease with no hope of recovery and only six months to live, and his partner, journalist Ayumi Fujioka. Opposed to the euthanasia law, the couple decide to move into the national strategic special zone, the "euthanasia special zone," with the aim of exposing the state of the special zones from the inside. There, they witness the love and suffering of people who have decided to end their lives. Through their conversations with the doctors, a subtle change occurs in their hearts, but...

Hosted by veteran comedian Tamori, "Bizarre Tales 2003 Fall Special" presents five tales. 1. *Kagi (The Key) - starring Eguchi Yosuke. 2. Perfect Couple - starring Yada Akiko. 3. Toosugita Otoko (The Man Who Was Too Far Away) - starring Nakamura Shido. 4. Meiro (The Maze)- starring Tanihara Shosuke. 5. Kage ga Omonaru Toki (When Shadows Accumulate) - starring Yashima Norito. * Adapted from a novel by Tsutsui Yasutaka.

Japanese horror film with four segments.

This documentary-style film recreates the infamous Asama Sanso Incident of 1972 wherein an extreme faction of the Students Allied Red Army holed themselves up in a mountainous cabin in the dead of winter. By the time the police finally caught up with them, it was discovered that they had murderously turned upon themselves in a bizarre extension of their radical philosophy. This event virtually marked the end of the Student Revolution.

In one long Friday evening, Takeshi Miyata, a straight-arrow businessman, will encounter a number of people (some only fleetingly) who have intertwining fates.

Mitsuko has a prestigious job as an editor at a publishing company, while her husband Tomatsu works as a freelance photographer, but he spends all of his time taking care of housework. One day, Mitsuko suspects Tomatsu is having an affair with Mayu, a model, and immediately throws him out. With no place to go, he moves in with Mayu, disrupting her affair with Nakazaki, who happens to work with Mitsuko.

Michiko used to work as a live-in part-timer at an izakaya, but suddenly lost her job and her house at the same time due to COVID-19 pandemic. There are no new jobs because of the COVID-19 pandemic, and diners and internet cafes are closed. Michiko is at her wits' end, but there in front of her is a bus stop that stands slightly brightly in the darkness, illuminated only by the streetlights.

Sasaki Ryohei (Yamada Ryosuke), the second son of the Sasaki family, is a high school student who lives in Shimane. He has just been chosen to be the vice captain of the youth soccer club. Setting his sights on participating in the prefectural championship, Ryohei practices every day with his buddies. One day, Ryohei has a severe headache and is brought to the hospital. Ryohei is diagnosed with an acute brain tumor from the test results. The family is told by the doctor that Ryohei will not live long. However, Ryohei musters the strength to say, "I will win. I will beat the illness. " Given a push by his words, the Sasakis try to stay positive.

A short film by Jun Shison.

Kae Horii moves into her new flat in an undisclosed area of Kyoto. While unpacking her belongings, she discovers a hidden compartment behind a inconspicuous mirror. In that compartment, Kae finds a notebook, that turns out to be a diary belonging to the previous tenant. Later that evening Kae starts to read the diary. The writer of the diary is Ibuki Mano, a young lady about to embark on her first year as an elementary school teacher. Ibuki is also in love with a man named Takashi, who may or may not hold similar feelings for Ibuki.

The film centres on Taro, an aimless indie filmmaker who gets convinced by Yuki, his girlfriend and financial sponsor, to attend a film festival in Beppu. There he meets the bubbly drifter actress Miki. Part travelogue, part self-reflexive comedy, the dynamic that follows this encounter delivers an ironic and realistic spin on Before Sunrise (1995), depicting two souls wandering around in search of life’s meaning.

No description available.

Yamakura of the Kobe Fire Department aspires to wear the vaunted “orange” uniform of an elite rescue force that only 3% of all firefighters can attain. But to do so, he and his fellow trainees must suffer through the most rigorous training. As Yamakura and his fellow trainees grit their teeth and complain, their superior officer, Sakurai, impresses upon them the lessons of the Great Hanshin Earthquake (Kobe Earthquake) 20 years ago as “the only time we ever lost.” What happened on the front lines of rescue that day and in the aftermath? What raced through the hearts and minds of rescuers as they tried to get a handle on unimaginable disaster? The shocking facts pour from Sakurai’s mouth in hopes of preparing the recruits for the unforgettable event that awaits them.

No description available.

Chinami (Erika Sawajiri) works at a fabric shop, dreaming of one day working in the fashion industry. By accident, she begins work in the editing section for a fashion magazine. Chinami believes her new job may open doors for her to new opportunities, but it turns out her new job is like working in a war zone with daily fights and competitiveness between the women who work there. Can Chinami survive in such a cutthroat environment?

Maye Sora, a 19-year-old university student living in Tokyo, receives news of her grandfather's death. Busy with moving with the help of her friends, she puts off confirming the news.