Sketches of Kaitan City (2010)

Sketches of Kaitan City 2010 / 海炭市叙景 2010 / Kaitanshi Jokei

In the city of Kaitan, during the frost of another cold winter, the local shipyard is downsized and layoffs abound. Sota lives with his younger sister Honami. Sota loses his job at the shipyard and, feeling uneasy about their situation, goes with his sister Honami to see the sunrise on a nearby mountainside for New Year's Day. Makoto, a new city hall employee, visits the sole remaining house in a redevelopment area. The home belongs to a 70-year-old grandmother Toki who lives with her cat and a few livestock animals in her backyard. Toki refuses to vacate the land and Makoto tries to emphasize that she will be forcibly evicted otherwise. 49-year-old Ryuzo works in a small planetarium, while his relationship with his wife Haruyo and teenage son has deteriorated. Haruyo has found her release in her work as a hostess for a shady hostess bar. Haruo, who has now taken over operations of his father's gas company, worries about the state of his business. Furthermore, Haruo has a strained relationship with his volatile wife. Meanwhile, his wife takes out her anger on their son Akira. One day, street car driver Taichiro spots his son Hiroshi walking in downtown Kaitan. Hiroshi lives & works in Tokyo, but has come back to Kaitan for business. Even though it's the holiday season, he doesn't talk to his father. ~~ Adapted from the collected short stories by Yasushi Sato for his unfinished novel ‟Kaitanshi Jokei‟.