Japan

Route 29

A lonely 30-something cleaner, who struggles with even basic communication, unwittingly kidnaps a young girl to reunite her with her mother. As they traverse the picturesque Route 29 across Western Japan, the two misfits start to forge a bond, learning about human connection from the many strangers—surreal, wacky, and wise—they chance upon along the way. Moments of darkness and light dapple the path of this bittersweet yet hopeful sojourn.
A large group of students form a human pyramid outdoors. Two others stand facing them.

New Group

If Invasion of the Body Snatchers traded pods for human pyramids and took place in a Japanese high school, it would be New Group.

Shorts 9: Family Friendly Animation

Clever animated shorts from across four continents appear in this delightful family program full of polar bears, empty cans of tuna, and beloved grandparents. Presented as a relaxed screening and recommended for cinema-enthusiasts ages 8 years and older.
An illustration rendered in muted pastels depics a woman's hand gently lifting the lip of a white dog with a black nose

Ordinary Life

Yoriko Mizushiri’s gorgeous short lulls the viewer into a dreamy tactile world. A meditation on the beauty of simplicity led by a graphic design that seems at once exacting and soft, Ordinary Life calls attention to the present moment.

This film screens as part of Shorts Program 2: Animation.[…]

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