The Japanese release date of the film ‘Desert of Namibia’ has been set for September 6 (Friday).
The film had its world premiere at the 77th Cannes International Film Festival, where director/screenwriter Yoko Yamanaka became the youngest female director to win the FIPRESCI Prize. Yuumi Kawai plays the role of Kana, a 21-year-old woman who has no passion for anything and feels that even love is just a way to pass the time. Kaneko Daichi plays Hayashi, with whom Kana gradually develops a relationship, and Kanichiro plays Honda, Kana’s lover.
Kawai was inspired to become an actress when she was a student after seeing ‘Amiko,’ which Yamanaka shot and directed for the first time when she was just 19 years old, and went directly to Yamanaka to tell him that she would like to act in the film someday. She has been increasing her presence on the screen.
The “Desert of Namibia” will also be screened at the 26th Shanghai International Film Festival in the International Panorama section of the Cannes Express.Cannes Express is a section of the Cannes International Film Festival where selected films from the festival are screened in Asia,Sammon Zhang, Manager of the Festival’s Programming Department, has also commented on the festival.
Director Yoko Yamanaka’s first feature film “Amiko,” which she made on her own at the age of 19, was invited to the 68th Berlin International Film Festival’s Forum section as the youngest director ever. But her real first feature is this film, which was selected for the Directors’ Fortnight at the 2024 Cannes International Film Festival, where it won the FIPRESCI Prize. In this film, Yamanaka presents a sharp look at the love lives and lives of young people in Japan today. Her lens captures them with a cynical charm and a passion that seems ready to explode, as if she were watching the protagonists of a New Wave film. The heroine is played by Yumi Kawai, who has been called the “Yamaguchi Momoe of 2025. Her naturalistic performance injects fresh and charming vitality into the film.
Sammon Zhang / Manager, Film Competition & Programming Dept.
‘Desert of Namibia’
Friday, September 6, 2024
Director/Screenplay: Yoko Yamanaka
Cast: Yuumi Kawai, Daichi Kaneko, Kanichiro, Yuzumi Shintani, Ayumi Nakajima, Erika Karata, Ayaka Shibutani, Asami Shibuya, Moe Kurata, Ku Ishima, Keisuke Horibe, Makiko Watanabe
Producers: Keisuke Konishi, Shinji Ogawa, Masashi Yamada, Tokuji Suzuki
Production: Bridgehead, Cogito Works
Production Manager/Distribution: Happinet Phantom Studio
Production: “The Namibian Desert” Production Committee
©2024 “The Desert of Namibia” Production Committee
Official website: happinet-phantom.com/namibia-movie
Official X (former Twitter): @namibia_movie
Official website: happinet-phantom.com/namibia-movie
Official X (former Twitter): @namibia_movie
