Memorizu
Press Play to start
Theatrical Screenings
Kinoteka 4
Kinoteka 4
Kinoteka 3
Film description
Yuta leaves Tokyo for a small town in Kyushu to assist his father-in-law, a photographer running a traditional studio, who is recovering from an accident. Away from his wife and daughter, he stays longer than expected, gradually adjusting to the rhythm of local life – a slower pace enveloped in quiet, punctuated by chance encounters and casual conversations. In time, he finds a place of his own within this new world. Yuta remains in touch with his family through photographs and short smartphone videos, creating a unique mosaic of everyday moments and longing.
Miiku Sakanishi’s intimate feature debut is a film brimming with a sense of space and tranquillity. Yet it is far from a mere love letter to the Japanese countryside where life slows down; it is a subtle story about building closeness through attentiveness to others. Sakanishi openly acknowledges the inspiration of Edward Yang – much like the Taiwanese masterpiece Yi Yi, Memorizu demonstrates that memory is not forged from monumental events, but from what so often escapes the human eye: small details, shared glances, and unobtrusive presences – everything that may one day remain only in a photograph.
text:
Łukasz Mańkowski
Miiku Sakanishi
Born in Tokyo in 1992, graduated from the Department of Film Production at Kyoto University of the Arts. He is the son of Japanese music video pioneer Isac Sakanishi. Sakanishi began his career directing music videos and award-winning student short films, before working as an assistant director alongside filmmakers such as Yūya Ishii. His feature directorial debut, Memorizu, premiered at the Tribeca Festival in New York, where it won the Best New Narrative Director award.
2026 Memorizu
