An appreciation of life in our most dire times.

Overview

Ayaka is in hospital and the news is not good: due to arteriosclerosis she will lose her legs. While she still can, she paces the leafy hospital surroundings in search of a suicide spot. She finds the perfect tree, one with a sturdy branch from which to hang herself. Just as she loops a noose around her neck, she is interrupted by a mysterious patient named Yoshino. This slightly macabre girl is also afflicted by a disease, but a fantastical one that will see her turn into a tree. Even though Ayaka is surrounded by death, disease, and defective bodies, Yoshino’s intervention leads her to cling on to life, no matter how absurd.

1. Masaru Sano

   Director