Natalie Murao

After being forced to return early from summer camp, Dana and Sam are planted in the midst of their recently late grandfather's Buddhist funeral ceremony.

Visionary chef Hidekazu Tojo grapples with his life's struggle to make himself and his culinary creations palatable to a Western audience. He embarks on a journey of identity intertwined with the mythical presence of Daruma, a legendary monk from Japanese folklore - shaping a narrative that transcends borders, realities, and flavours.

Blue Garden is a hybrid-doc-animation that retells the history of a Japanese Canadian fisherman during the WW2 internment. The film explores how trauma can fester and family stories can remain unspoken for generations. However, through the participatory nature of filmmaking, the younger generation is able to reconcile their grief and feel empowered to tell their family history.

While struggling to move forward in life, Rose attends her friend’s karaoke party.

An encounter with a doppelganger in Japan cracks open the edges of reality, as a return to the homeland becomes a search through memory, absence, and the ghosts of identity.

After being forced to return early from summer camp, Dana and Sam are planted in the midst of their recently late grandfather's Buddhist funeral ceremony.

After being forced to return early from summer camp, Dana and Sam are planted in the midst of their recently late grandfather's Buddhist funeral ceremony.

Visionary chef Hidekazu Tojo grapples with his life's struggle to make himself and his culinary creations palatable to a Western audience. He embarks on a journey of identity intertwined with the mythical presence of Daruma, a legendary monk from Japanese folklore - shaping a narrative that transcends borders, realities, and flavours.

Blue Garden is a hybrid-doc-animation that retells the history of a Japanese Canadian fisherman during the WW2 internment. The film explores how trauma can fester and family stories can remain unspoken for generations. However, through the participatory nature of filmmaking, the younger generation is able to reconcile their grief and feel empowered to tell their family history.

While struggling to move forward in life, Rose attends her friend’s karaoke party.

While struggling to move forward in life, Rose attends her friend’s karaoke party.

An encounter with a doppelganger in Japan cracks open the edges of reality, as a return to the homeland becomes a search through memory, absence, and the ghosts of identity.