The story takes place in a hypothetical future in which high
technology is integrated into slightly nostalgic environments.
Underneath the exhausted tree, a machine has been constructed to keep it
alive. An old craftsman lives there and takes care of the machine's
maintenance. "The box" he has constructed travels along the old railroad
tracks, taking over the memories of the people and the happenings at the
village. The craftsman is worried about "the box" and thinks he still
hasn't satisfied its wishes. Everything changes in the village after the
old man dies, the tree falls over, the box breaks down…
"This is a completely new kind of SF film which shows the future of our
civilization profoundly and quietly but humorously, having Hako
as the leading role. It tells allegorically like a picture book the
possibility of the peaceful co-existence of high technology and tree, a
symbol of nature. The quite unique world of this film is depicted in its
simple and beautiful images, which can entirely change our images for
monochrome films. There is the future no one has ever imagined in
Hako" (Nakajima Kanji).
Biography
film director
Kanji Nakajima
Nakajima Kanji was born in 1970 in Kouchi, Japan, and lives in Yokohama. He began making films and audiovisual projects at Tokyo Zokei University. In 1989 his video Ka · Ke · Ra won the prize for most originality at the Image Forum Festival and the silver prize at the Video Biennale of Medellin. In 1990 he began working on his first full-length film, Hagane, which he completed in 1994. The film won numerous prizes, including one for best first film, the Silver Plate at the Portugal International Film Festival, and the jury's grand prize at the UNESCO Art/Education International Film Festival. In 1997 he began working on his second feature film, Hako, which he completed in 2002.
FILMOGRAFIA
Negative (cm, 1988), Ka · Ke · Ra (cm, 1989), Fe, Dream of Fish (cm, 1991), Fe (Hagane) (1994), Hako (2002).
Cast
& Credits
Assistente alla regia/Assistant director: Ishigami Jynichi
Fotografia/Director of photography: Nakajima Kanji, Yamaoka Kazuma
Scenografia/Set design: Katsuta Akira, Cho Takayuki, Nakai Toshiaki, Aiba Emiko
Interpreti/Cast: Hayashi Koichi, Yamazaki Shigenori, Masaki Chie, Miura Tom
Produttore/Producer: Kobayashi Yoshikazu
Contatti/Film contact: Nakajima Kanji, Kanagawaku Yokohama-City