True Mothers
Japan
|
2020
|
Color
|
140 min
In her meticulous exploration of family ties and motherhood, Naomi Kawase delivers one of her most delicate yet sophisticated works: a kaleidoscopic narrative delving into the emotional complexities of adoption and the diverse ways of understanding motherhood. After a long and painful struggle to have a child, Satoko and her husband decide to turn to an adoption agency. The child's arrival finally seems to bring stability and fulfillment to the couple, who build a serene and seemingly solid life around him. However, years later, this balance shatters with the appearance of Hikari, a young stranger who claims to be the child's biological mother.
Technical Details
Direction:
Naomi Kawase
Cinematography:
Yutaka Yamazaki, Naoki Sakakibara
Language:
Japanese
Production:
Yumiko Takebe, Hiroaki Saitô
Sound:
Roman Dymny
Subtitles:
Spanish
Screenplay:
Naomi Kawase, Izumi Takahashi, Mizuki Tsujimura
Editing:
Roman Dymny, Tina Baz
Cast:
Hiromi Nagasaku, Arata Iura, Kiyokazu Kurihara, Hikari Katakura
Director
Naomi Kawase
Born and raised in Japan's Nara Prefecture, Naomi Kawase graduated in Visual Arts from Osaka in 1989, embarking on a cinematic career deeply marked by memory, intimacy, and the observation of human connections. Her early documentary works, *Embracing* and *Katatsumori*, garnered international recognition and awards at the Yamagata International Documentary Film Festival in 1995, establishing a unique authorial voice within contemporary Japanese cinema from an early stage. In 1997, she made her fiction feature debut with *Suzaku*, becoming the youngest filmmaker to receive the Caméra d’Or at the Cannes Film Festival. Since then, her relationship with the French festival has been constant and distinguished: in 2007, she won the Grand Prix du Jury for *The Mourning Forest*, and she also received the Carrosse d’Or at Cannes. The poetic and humanist sensibility of her filmography has also earned her significant institutional accolades.
