Previously working with Hirokazu Kore-eda on MIFF 2013’s Like Father, Like Son and MIFF 2015’s Our Little Sister, filmmaker Nanako Hirose makes her feature directorial debut with a drama about family, secrets and trauma.

Found washed up by the local river, the enigmatic Shin-ichi – played by Yûya Yagira, the Cannes Film Festival best actor winner from Kore-eda’s Nobody Knows (MIFF 2007) – is taken in by an ageing furniture maker. While the pair lacks any obvious similarities, they’re soon drawn together by their pasts.

Influenced by Kore-eda’s fondness for rich emotions, evocative imagery and naturalistic performances, His Lost Name is a powerful and engaging directorial debut for Hirose that announces her as an exciting new voice in world cinema.

“A perfectly written and executed family drama … a bright light for the future of Japanese cinema.” – Tokyo FILMeX jury