Keiko TSURUOKA 鶴岡慧子
Makuko
まく子
Nippon Cinema ª
Kozue’s an alien! This would be big news for some, but it hardly upsets fifth grader Satoshi, because he is already totally confused. Just sitting next to a girl is quite an experience for him and ever since Kozue has popped up in town she won’t leave his side. On top of that, she keeps staring at him with this totally penetrating gaze… And as Kozue and her mother start living in the guesthouse of Satoshi’s family, running away is not an option. In a sunny tale of youth, Keiko TSURUOKA recounts the alien sensation of first love from the angle of a boy who doesn’t want to become a man. Instead he ponders the big questions of youth and mortality. Animated journeys to Saturn come as no surprise when the youngsters follow their fantasies.
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Makuko (NC 2020)
Female Futures Comedy Coming of age
まく子
Japan 2019
108 minutes
Director
Keiko TSURUOKA
Script
Keiko TSURUOKA based on a novel by Kanako NISHI
Cinematography
Ryuichi SHIMOKAWA
Production
Flamingo, Office Shirous
World sales
Nikkatsu
About Keiko TSURUOKA
鶴岡慧子
Keiko TSURUOKA was born in Nagano Prefecture in 1988 and began making her first films during her studies at Rikkyo University. Her graduation project THE TOWN OF WHALES (2012) was awarded the Grand Prize at the PIA Film Festival and was screened at other festivals such as the Berlin International Film Festival. In 2012, she studied directing under Kiyoshi KUROSAWA at the Tokyo University of the Arts Graduate School of Film and New Media, where she made her second directorial work, MY FIRST LOVE (2013). Her film MAKUKO (2019 / NC ‘20) has previously been screened at Nippon Connection. She currently teaches film at Kobe Design University.