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YUMENO
Japanese Official Website : http://www.netcinema.tv/yumeno/
PRODUCTION NOTES
Three total strangers are on the run together. Yoshiki is a young
hoodlum who unintentionally committed a murder. He has a tendency to
become uncontrollably violent and is headed for a dead end. Yumeno is a
high school girl whose sense of self-identity is obscured by a
monotonous routine: home, school#and relationships. Nothing makes her
feel secure. Ryo is an elementary school boy who has already figured
out that he won't amount to much. How did these three meet and end up
on this overland chase? This is a road movie with three very different
characters who are all on a search for the same thing. They are
running, but going nowhere until there is a most unexpected outcome...
Defying the Japanese movie market's current demand for formulaic
lightness, 'Yumeno' presents a story that is at times bleak but thought
provoking. Based loosely on a real account, the movie doesn't limit
itself to a reconstruction of the true story. The focus is on its
characters and their behavior, giving the audience an insight into
human nature. The director never loses sympathy for the characters that
he has created. As a result, audiences experience unexpected feelings
of warmth, strength and pathos.
The director, Kamada Yoshitaka, comes from a background of making TV
dramas and soft-core porno movies (aka 'Pink Eiga'). 'Yumeno' is a
project he had in development for a long time and it has now been
realized. It was with much determination that he was able to arrange
the financing for the production costs. To make this film he combined
his own experiences growing up in Hokkaido with the actual true-life
account that is being told. 'Yumeno' is directed with such confidence
that it is evident that another major talent has been spawned out of
Japan's unique soft-core porno industry. The narrative is quite complex
and yet it never loses its audience. The editing is so bold that it
creates a unique and dynamic synthesis. The cinematography is so
all-encompassing that every shot is filled with either humor, tension
or sadness. The principle photography commenced in February, 2004 and
lasted for one month throughout multiple locations (Tomakomai, Muroran,
Shiraoi) in Hokkaido.
STORY
Yoshiki had beaten up a woman without knowing that she was a yakuza's girl. The yakuza demands that Yoshiki pays him a million yen within three days. In a panic, he breaks into the apartment of a girl, Yumeno, who he's recently met. But the break-in goes disastrously wrong when he ends up murdering the girl's parents. He takes Yumeno as a hostage and escapes with the dead parents in the trunk of the car. As he dumps the bodies in a frozen lake, he notices that a boy has seen him. Ryo, a disillusioned young boy, happens to be there on his way to meet his divorced mother. Yoshiki and his unwilling companions are now on the run across snow-covered Hokkaido. It seems like an escape to nowhere...
YOSHITAKA KAMADA - Director
Kamada was born in Hokkaido, where 'Yumeno' was filmed. After graduating from Hosei University he joined a video production company and directed late night dramas, documentaries and industrial videos. Later he left the company to become a freelance director. After assisting directors such as Sato Toshiki and Ueno Toshiya, Kamada directed "Sara" in 1998, his theatrical film debut. "Yumeno" is his debut for theatrical feature film.
Nahana
Katsuya Kobayashi
Shikoh Kanai
Directed by Yoshitaka Kamada
Produced by Hirotaka Asano, Daisuke Asakura & Haruki Iwata
Screenplay by Kishu Izuchi & Yoshitaka Kamada
Director of Photography Atsuhiro Nabeshima
Music by Isao Yamada
Edited by Naoki Kaneko
2004 / 35mm / 93mins. / Theatrical Release in Japan: January 2005
STORYYoshiki had beaten up a woman without knowing that she was a yakuza's girl. The yakuza demands that Yoshiki pays him a million yen within three days. In a panic, he breaks into the apartment of a girl, Yumeno, who he's recently met. But the break-in goes disastrously wrong when he ends up murdering the girl's parents. He takes Yumeno as a hostage and escapes with the dead parents in the trunk of the car. As he dumps the bodies in a frozen lake, he notices that a boy has seen him. Ryo, a disillusioned young boy, happens to be there on his way to meet his divorced mother. Yoshiki and his unwilling companions are now on the run across snow-covered Hokkaido. It seems like an escape to nowhere...
YOSHITAKA KAMADA - DirectorKamada was born in Hokkaido, where 'Yumeno' was filmed. After graduating from Hosei University he joined a video production company and directed late night dramas, documentaries and industrial videos. Later he left the company to become a freelance director. After assisting directors such as Sato Toshiki and Ueno Toshiya, Kamada directed "Sara" in 1998, his theatrical film debut. "Yumeno" is his debut for theatrical feature film.
Nahana
Katsuya Kobayashi
Shikoh Kanai
Directed by Yoshitaka Kamada
Produced by Hirotaka Asano, Daisuke Asakura & Haruki Iwata
Screenplay by Kishu Izuchi & Yoshitaka Kamada
Director of Photography Atsuhiro Nabeshima
Music by Isao Yamada
Edited by Naoki Kaneko
2004 / 35mm / 93mins. / Theatrical Release in Japan: January 2005