German PremiereCanada, Japan 2018Language:English, JapaneseSubtitles:EnglishDirector:Kyoka TsukamotoWriter:Kyoka TsukamotoCinematographer:Pierre Tisseur, Claude Lafrance, Alex Margineanu, Kyoka TsukamotoEditor:Kyoka TsukamotoMusic:Kyoka Tsukamoto, Sarah PagéSound:Eric LeMoyneWith:Yuuka Bergman, Kyoka TsukamotoProducer:Michel Ouellette, Kyoka TsukamotoDistributor:La Distributrice de Films73 min, Colour

Filmmaker Kyoka Tsukamoto emigrated to Canada in 1998. Now, she embarks on a courageous journey back to Japan in order to create a very personal essay film about her sister, a successful potter, who lives in Fukushima. Tsukamoto’s attempts to confront her sister with their past and their abusive parents raise difficult questions about guilt and forgiveness.  This intimate travelogue tells us how the artist faces the sources of her anguish with the “help” of the legendary queen Himiko, her patron saint. Tsukamoto’s film reflects upon a fragile identity between East and West, and artfully interweaves her personal trauma with Japan’s collective traumata.

Director's Biography:Kyoka Tsukamoto came to Canada as a student. Following her film studies in Toronto, she moved to Montreal. The artist also composes the music for her experimental films. MY DEAREST SISTER is her first feature-length essay film.