Blue Thermal

Thursday 23rd February

Dir. TACHIBANA Masaki, Japan, 2022, 103 mins, subtitled. Cast. HOTTA Mayu, SHIMAZAKI Nobunaga, ENOKI Junya. Age rating: PG. The age guidance to be able to read the subtitles on the screen is 10 years old minimum.

Tamaki (voiced by HOTTA Mayu), a university fresher from Nagasaki, is determined to have a fairy-tale romance in Tokyo by joining the right student club. However, Tamaki ends up joining the aviation club after damaging their prized glider. Far from the university life that Tamaki had dreamed of, she is at first reluctant to attend the training sessions, but gradually discovers a fascination towards flying. One day, during a joint training session with another university, she meets her estranged sister, Chizuru (voiced by KOMATSU Mikako). Knowing that her sister remains cold towards her and feeling the pressure at her first tournament, Tamaki loses her confidence and becomes doubtful about herself.

With the world of aviation providing an unusual setting, this coming-of-age animation is a successful collaboration between respectable creators and voice actors. The film is like a ‘blue thermal’ – an updraft that occurs under a blue sky which pushes a glider higher. This beautiful work with its spectacular depiction of the sky captures the ever-moving emotion of Tamaki tenderly.

Dates & Times

 Thursday 23rd Feb  6:00pm
Event has Passed

The Japan Foundation Touring Film Programme 2023

Hold Me Back – Thursday 16 February, 8.30pm
Blue Thermal – Thursday 23 February, 6pm
Ito – Thursday 2 March, 8.30pm
BL Metamorphosis – Thursday 9 March, 6pm

Experience Japan Through Cinema
The Japan Foundation Touring Film Programme, the UK’s ever-evolving and largest festival of Japanese cinema, celebrates its 20th anniversary!
With an exciting lineup of films, most of which have only recently been released, but also featuring some masterpieces from the distant past, the Japan Foundation Touring Film Programme 2023 explores the theme of “the evolution of Japanese cinema”. Audiences will be provided with food for thought: Where has Japanese cinema come from? What is its current position in the world of cinema? And where is it heading next?
Come and see some of Japan’s finest cinematic works, with films that showcase varied tones and styles, as well as the diverse skills of both experienced and emerging film talents.

Organised by: The Japan Foundation
Major Supporter: Great Britain Sasakawa Foundation
Sponsor in Kind: SUQQU, Athletia, Clearspring

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