Dragon Boat Film Festival – Being Good

Sponsored by Sakura Foundation

With five features under her belt, the films of Mipo O, specifically Being Good and its predecessor The Light Shines Only There, are Exhibit A that Western distributors focus only on the established names from Japan and ignore the new masters. Schoolteacher Tadashi (Kengo Kora) has a hard enough time keeping order in his classroom but finds himself at a moral crossroads when he suspects one of his students is being abused at home. Masami (Machiko Ono) is left to her own parenting devices while her husband is abroad, creating a strict and punishing environment for her daughter. Her parenting is confronted when she befriends a openly loving and carefree mother (Chizuru Ikewaki). An elderly woman with no one else in her life offers her home as a respite from the outside to an autistic child. Together these slightly intertwined stories form a small town triptych exploring cycles of abuse and the influence adults have on children. The stakes are high and the film dares to suggest it’s okay to reject indifference and not mind your own business.

NETPAC Award, 2015 Moscow International Film Festival
Official Selection – Busan Internation Film Festival
Best Actor (Kengo Kora) – Nikkan Sports Film Awards

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