chorus
18—24 AUG 2024 | SAPPORO TENJINYAMA ART STUDIO
What does family and ancestry mean to us in the contemporary world, where the structure of the family unit is rapidly evolving?
After my obaachan’s* funeral I reflected deeply on our relationship, and how a wide gap in geography, language, and culture may have affected our ability to understand one another.
I became curious about the nature of our integenerational relationships more broadly, so I invited both the local community and my online networks to submit a letter to their grandmother/s—particularly something they have found difficult to say or regret not saying earlier. 32 letters were submitted, written in both Japanese and English.
In response, a socially-engaged work/short film was created in collaboration with local grandmothers and artists based in Sapporo.
A work-in-progress showing of chorus took place at Sapporo Tenjinyama Art Studio around the period of Obon. Obon is an annual event in Japan where our ancestors’ spirits come and visit for a little while. They descend to earth to sing and dance with us, before returning back to their world. It is a time to reflect on and reconnect with family.
*grandmother in japanese
| Director, producer & editor: Maki Morita |
| Director of photography: Kouhei Kushibiki |
| Assistant camera: Ryo Hashidzume |
| Assistant director: Lin Oshiro |
| Sound recordist: Teis Ravn-Jonsen |
Cast: Maki Morita, Ryotaro Kobayashi, Midori, Rin Oshiro, Kumiko Oda, Ryo Hashidzume, Teis Ravn-Jonsen, Kyon Shu Doornbos
Readers: Hiroko Takahashi, Mikiko Ishizuka, Futae Nakagawa, Toshie Katou, Noriko Hayasaka, Yoshiko Osanai, Tamiko Miyata, Rieko Yamamoto, Yukari Yamamoto, Etsuko Honma, Youko Kawashima
Residency supported by the Ian Potter Cultural Trust Emerging Artist Grant
Photography by Ryo Hashidzume