WINNER
Los Angeles Movie and Music Video Awards
Feature Film / Director Indie Feature Film
November 2026
Official results ↗A FILM BY MITSUO KURIHARA
SHIMO MIZUNO MEETING HALL
下水野集会所
2026 · Japan · Approx. 90 min English · Black & white · 4:3
Across cultures. Toward belonging.
An American woman begins a new life in Japan’s tea country, where marriage is only the beginning of finding a place to call home.
LATEST FESTIVAL NEWSThree new award wins in Los AngelesLos Angeles Movie and Music Video AwardsLos Angeles Film and Documentary AwardsExplore festival recognition ↗
2026JapanApprox. 90 minutesEnglish languageBlack & white4:3Narrative feature / Drama
01 /THE STORY
A new country. A life to make her own.
An American woman from the East Coast marries into a tea-farming family in Shimo-Mizuno, Sayama, Japan.
Facing language barriers, unfamiliar customs and the expectations of a close-knit community, she slowly finds common ground with the people around her. Rooted in the tea fields and local traditions of Sayama, the film follows the patient work of understanding one another and learning to live together across cultures.
Love. Family. Community. The meaning of home.
02 /THE TRAILER
Step into her world.
A first look at the film.
SHIMO MIZUNO MEETING HALL
03 /FESTIVAL RECOGNITION
From Sayama to the world.
Selected awards & festival recognition
Category awards, official selections and other distinctions are listed separately. Festival recognition does not imply a public screening.
Awards
WINNER
Los Angeles Film and Documentary Awards
Director Feature Film
November 2026
Official results ↗WINNER
Los Angeles Short Film Awards
Best Indie Feature Film
October 2026
Official results ↗Hollywood Stage Script Film Competition
Best Indie Feature Film · October 2026
Official results ↗Toronto Film Awards
Feature Film · 2026
Official selection
Swedish International Film Festival (SIFF)
Official Selection · 2026Honorable mentions & semi-finalists
Hollywood Best Indie Film Awards
Honorable Mention · 2026New York Film & Cinematography Awards
Honorable Mention · 2026Kyoto Independent Film Festival
Semi-Finalist · 2026Oslo Independent Film Festival
Semi-Finalist · 2026Rotterdam Independent Film Festival
Semi-Finalist · November 2026Sacramento Independent Film Festival
Semi-Finalist · 2026Melbourne Independent Film Festival
Semi-Finalist · 2026Los Angeles Silver Screen Film Festival
Semi-Finalist · 2026Records updated 15 November 2026 · Selected recognition for this film.
04 /ON THE BIG SCREEN
A film shared with a community.
Screening history
SAYAMA PREMIERE
Hikobae Hall · Fukuju no Sato
A local screening in the community where the film is set, with audience members, cast and production participants in attendance.
Screening heldTOKYO PREMIERE
Cinema House Otsuka · Tokyo
The film’s Tokyo premiere at Cinema House Otsuka.
Screening held
05 /THE FILMMAKERS
Mitsuo Kurihara
栗原光男 · Director & producer
An independent filmmaker based in Sayama, Saitama, Japan, Mitsuo Kurihara has completed 15 narrative features.
His films explore encounters, conflicts, and understanding between Japanese and other cultures. In recent years, he has made English-language features that bring stories rooted in his local community to international audiences.
Previous films include IRISO (2024), The Haunted Jizo of Shimo-Mizuno, Sayama City (2022), and Regional exchange center, IRISO (2021).
Key credits
- Director / Producer
- Mitsuo Kurihara
- Screenplay
- John Cairns
- Original concept
- Mitsuo Kurihara
- Production
- MK Production · Japan
Featured cast
- Cailee Oliver
- Yuta Uchida
- Jacqueline Roussety
06 /GET IN TOUCH
Bring the story to your audience.
For festival programming, distribution, press, or screening inquiries, contact director and producer Mitsuo Kurihara at MK Production.
MITSUO KURIHARA / MK PRODUCTION
tanager@ozzio.jpYour email app will open. You can also copy the address above.
To request a private screener or discuss a release, please include your organisation, country or territory, and proposed dates.
Sayama, Saitama, Japan