Synopsis

Set in late 1980s Tokyo, Renoir follows 11-year-old Fuki navigating the complex landscape of pre-adolescence while her father battles terminal illness. Director Chie Hayakawa draws from personal experience to craft an intimate portrait of childhood grief, where a reproduction of Renoir's painting becomes a poignant symbol of longing and connection. As Fuki's mother struggles with work and caregiving, the young girl retreats into a world of hypnosis and dangerous experimentation, seeking answers about death and solitude. Through newcomer Yui Suzuki's remarkable performance, the film captures the delicate interplay between family bonds and isolation against Japan's economic prosperity, where material comfort fails to fill emotional voids.

Competition, Cannes Film Festival
Karlovy Vary International Film Festival
Toronto International Film Festival

The screening on 2/11 at BC will be a student screening.