The Kamagasaki Cauldron War

Preceded By Takoyaki Story

Animated sensual delights of the titular octopus balls popularized by Osaka street vendors. 2018, 2 min. Directed by Sawako Kabuki. East Coast Premiere.

Feature Slate

East Coast Premiere

Q&A with star Yota Kawase

A boisterous comedy produced in beautiful color 16mm following the hard-knock characters stirred up by the theft of a cauldron used in yakuza ceremonial rites. Set in Kamagasaki—home to the working poor of Osaka under constant threat of erasure by local government—Leo Sato’s dramatic debut follows his documentary Nagai Park Elegy (2009) on local people’s struggle against forced displacement. Magnetic character actor Yota Kawase centers this delightful ensemble of professionals and amateurs, a timeless scrappy vision of radical humanism, rendering the neighborhood’s day laborers, sex workers, union activists and street performers with empathy and respect.

2018. 115 min. Directed by Leo Sato. With Mari Ota, Yota Kawase, Kiyohiko Shibukawa.

Great Prize (Best Film), 5th Porto/Post/Doc: Film & Media Festival