Knowing Me, Knowing You: The True Self in Japanese Cinema

In 1983, at the age of 24, director Fujino Tomoaki’s older sister Masako, a kind and caring person, began showing symptoms of schizophrenia. Having excelled academically, she was set to follow in her parents’ footsteps and become a medical doctor. But her sudden outbursts derailed both her plan and her life. Despite the severity of her symptoms and Tomoaki’s pledge to treat her medically, their parents refused to acknowledge her condition, declined psychiatric treatment, and insisted that everything was normal.

In 2001, nearly two decades later, Tomoaki, now a trained film director, decided to turn the camera on the daily realities of his family, grappling with unanswered questions and unresolved pain always lingering within him.

This deeply personal and emotionally charged documentary presents a haunting examination of family taboos, human dignity, as well as self-destruction through illness, while posing a question for which there is no correct answer.

Screening as part of The Japan Foundation Touring Film Programme 2026. Passes are available allowing entry to multiple films in this programme at a significant discount. Visit this page to purchase a pass.

Ⓒ Moving Images Studio Zou-shima 2023