KASAMAYAKI (MADE IN KASAMA)
KASAMAYAKI (MADE IN KASAMA)
Yuki Kokubo
USA/78min./2014
Shaken by the Japanese tsunami, earthquake and nuclear disasters, a young woman returns from New York City to Kasama. In a rural artist community 90 miles south of the Fukushima nuclear reactors, she turns the camera on her aging parents who live a lifestyle centered on art and nature. Interwoven with stories of the disasters, the family's tragic history is slowly revealed - of a tumultuous marriage and family life, which ultimately led her parents to abandon her by age sixteen. Meditative moments at the pottery wheel punctuated by tense family conversations, sudden earthquakes, and radiation level readings, KASAMAYAKI exposes the bittersweet process of coming to terms with an imperfect life, and the healing power of creativity.
Title in English | KASAMAYAKI (MADE IN KASAMA) |
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Title in Original Language | KASAMAYAKI (MADE IN KASAMA) |
Director(s) | Yuki Kokubo |
Director's Bio/Filmography | Yuki is a documentary filmmaker and photographer. Raised in an artists’ community in rural Japan, Yuki's family relocated to New York City in 1986. She began photographing as a teenager and attended the School of the Art Institute of Chicago to study fine art photography. More recently, she attended School of Visual Arts to study Social Documentary Film. After the Japanese earthquake, tsunami and nuclear disasters of 2011, Yuki began working on her first feature length documentary, KASAMAYAKI (MADE IN KASAMA). In 2013, KASAMAYAKI received funding from the Jerome Foundation, and was selected as one of ten documentary films for IFP’s Independent Filmmaker Labs. In 2014, Yuki received an Individual Artist Grant from the New York State Council on the Arts for her work on KASAMAYAKI. As of 2018, Yuki is currently residing in Okinawa, Japan, where she is working on her second film. |
Year of Completion | 2014 |
Nationality of the Film | USA |
Running Time | 78 min. |
Aspect Ratio | Video: 16:9 |
Color | Color |
Screening Format | DCPBD |
Shooting Locations | |
Shooting Dates/Periods | |
Names of Characters | |
Language of Commentary and Dialogue | Japanese,English, |
Subtitles | English, |
Date of First Public Screening | 2014/11/16 |
Place of First Public Screening (Country) | USA |
Date of First Public Screening in Japan | |
Previous Screenings at Other Film Festivals and Events | DOC NYC, Ashland Independent Film Festival, Thessaloniki Documentary Film Festival (Greece), Nashville Film Festival, Japan Society New Orleans, Japan America Society San Antonio, University of Rochester, Cinema Caixa Belas Artes (Sao Paulo, Brazil), Centro Cultural Carlos Fernandes de Paiva (Bauru, Brazil) |
Staff Credits |
Photography: Yuki Kokubo Editing: Yuki Kokubo, Keiko Deguchi Sound: Yuki Kokubo Music: Jesse Peterson Narration: Yuki Kokubo |
Producer | Yuki Kokubo |
Distributor / Distribution Company | Ocarina Media LLC |
Official Website for the Film | http://www.kasamayakifilm.com |
Other Online Access to the film | http://www.ocarinamedia.com/kasamayaki/ |
Screenings at the Past YIDFF Programs and Events | None |