WHOLE

Preceded By Tokyo Kurds

An intimate documentary following 18-year-old Ozan, one of the roughly 1,500 undocumented Kurds living in Tokyo. 2018. 20 min. Directed by Fumiari Hyuga. U.S. Premiere.

Feature Slate

International Premiere

Q&A with director Bilal Kawazoe and stars Kai Hoshino Sandy and Usman Kawazoe

After dropping out of college abroad, Haruki (Kai Hoshino Sandy) returns home to an indifferent mother and an absent father in Japan. Struggling to connect with people around him, he soon runs into Makoto (Usman Kawazoe), a laborer with a strong Kansai accent and affable nature who also happens to be biracial. Though their backgrounds and personalities are vastly different, they quickly find kinship in their shared experience as “hafu.” Handled with sincerity and subtle humor, WHOLE is a deeply personal drama about identity, isolation and the unique perspective of biracial Japanese living in one of the world’s most homogenous countries.

2019. 45 min. Directed by Bilal Kawazoe. With Kai Hoshino Sandy, Usman Kawazoe, Aoi Ibuki, Meimei Kikuchi.

JAPAN CUTS Award: Honorable Mention, 14th Osaka Asian Film Festival