Grief Drama Seeks Funds in Tokyo

The Tokyo Gap-Financing Market opened its doors to producers seeking final capital for films in development. Among the projects presented was 'Yellow Chrysanthemum,' the debut feature from Japanese-Brazilian director André Hayato Saito. The film centers on a teenager named Erika who lives with a family loss that no one in her household will discuss.

The narrative is set in São Paulo in July 2014 during the World Cup. Erika is a 16-year-old third-generation Japanese-Brazilian who feels like an outsider. She rejects any connection to her family's cultural roots. This rejection stems from an incident when she was seven years old. Her cousin Yam, who was also her closest friend, disappeared during a traditional festival in the Liberdade neighborhood. Erika's mother was watching the children at the time. The family has maintained a guilty silence about the event ever since.

The plot shifts when Erika befriends Bianca, a Black classmate who is grieving the recent death of her mother. Bianca is open about her sorrow. As the two girls grow closer, Erika's suppressed feelings resurface. Her family can no longer avoid facing the absence of Yam.

Saito said the story draws on his own childhood memories. He recalled sitting in a bathroom with his father when he was a small boy. He asked where they go after they die. His father paused and answered with a long and profound silence. Saito noted that growing up in a Japanese-Brazilian household, he learned that silence could express love and respect while also concealing pain. He described the feature as a continuation of his earlier work, which explores grief, memory, identity, and life between two cultures.

The director's short film 'Amarela' shares a similar premise. It follows a Japanese-Brazilian teenager named Erika who rejects family traditions. The short takes place across the length of the World Cup final between Brazil and France. It competed for the short film Palme d'Or at Cannes in 2024. It was also shortlisted for the live-action short Oscar at the 98th Academy Awards. The film won best live-action short at Brazil's Grande Otelo Awards. It is part of a trilogy of shorts that includes 'Kokoro to Kokoro' and 'Vento Dourado.' All were made with São Paulo-based MyMama Entertainment.

Saito stated he does not want to offer easy answers or a conventional sense of closure. He hopes audiences will recognize something of their own families in Erika's journey. He wants viewers to reflect on the things that remain unspoken in their own lives, regardless of cultural background.

The project is a co-production involving Brazil, Japan, Germany, and France. It is currently in pre-production after several years of development. The project took part in TorinoFilmLab, where it won the TorinoFilmLab Production Award. It was also selected for Focus Copro at Cannes. The team plans to shoot a key sequence at a traditional Japanese Toro Nagashi ceremony in Brazil in November.

Producer Mayra Faour Auad founded MyMama Entertainment. She produced 'Amarela' and has more than 20 credits, most of which are international co-productions. MyMama is developing the film with One Two Films, Loaded Films, and Blue Monday. Faour Auad said the team hopes to close the financing gap in Tokyo. She aims to meet producers, distributors, and sales agents who can take the film to audiences across Asia. She noted that finding an audience in Japan has particular meaning for the project given its Japanese-Brazilian roots.

Saito is also developing his second feature, 'Little Faults.' This project earned a place in Turin's Boost IT Lab this year. It follows an aging Japanese-Brazilian woman living in Japan who begins committing minor offenses. She hopes to end up in prison, where she believes she might finally be cared for and feel she belongs. The Tokyo Gap-Financing Market runs as part of TIFFCOM, the content market attached to the Tokyo International Film Festival.