I always gravitate toward documentaries that feature young people regardless of how they are made (in
this case, poorly from a technical standpoint). With
Gu Su-yeon's Hard Romanticker, this year's Japan Cuts highlights some of the trials and tribulations of the ethnic minorities in a very homogenous society.
Lonely Swallows,
made by Kimihiro Tsumura, a college professor with the help of Mayu Nakamura, chronicles 5
young Brazilian-Japanese who are the children of migrant workers, living in the
city of Hamamatsu, from 2007 to 2010. Their parents came to Japan
in the 90s for the prospects of jobs, mostly working in factories. These children are born in Japan, but they
are foreigners, they are not subjected to Japanese compulsory education
system. They don't continue their study after
Junior High and start working in factories. Some resent their parents
and join the gang, some form a b-boy group and others try very hard to
do right under very difficult circumstances. Then the recession hits Japan in
2008. Foreign workers were the first to be laid off. Many families had
no choice but to leave Japan to go back to Brazil. For the children who are
teens now and was born and grew up in Japan, this is an
earth-shattering, life changing experience.
The filmmakers
unevenly follow their journey, some turn out good, some don't. It's
heartbreaking, devastating and hopeful. The doc doesn't concentrate on
the unfairness of the system. Rather it concentrates on these
individuals and it's a welcoming move. It shows the resilience of these young people. One can immediately think of
Michael Apted's
Up Series. I really hope the filmmakers revisit these
young people periodically and see how they are doing.
Lonely Swallows is a small film that will probably never see the light other than in some festivals. But I'm very glad I got to see it at this year's Japan Cuts.
Lonely Swallows plays on July 28th, 5pm at Japan Society. For tickets and more information, please visit
Japan Cuts website.Dustin Chang is a freelance writer. His musing and opinions can be found at www.dustinchang.com
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