Originally published on metropolis.co.jp on February 2012

Most Japanese filmmakers aim to have their works screened overseas, but that rarely happens even with big budgets and household-name stars. However, director Keiichi Kobayashi is seeing the dream come true with a low-budget, black-and-white debut starring first-time actors. About the Pink Sky tells the story of three high-school girls whose lives take an unexpected turn when one of them finds a wallet stuffed with cash and the owner convinces them to produce a “good news newspaper” for a hospitalized friend. The total staff and crew for the indie numbered fewer than 10 people. Norihiko Miyazaki, who acted as the production manager, explains “when you reduce the number of staff, you lower the budget but you also increase your freedom. It never felt like hard work.” Since the teenage stars were acting for the first time, two months of rehearsal preceded the filming. The result is a slow, naturalistic pace that sets the film apart from the usual fare from Japan and has garnered considerable attention, winning the “Japanese Eyes” award at the 2011 Tokyo International Film Festival, and being picked up as an official selection at last month’s Sundance Film Festival in Utah. “My father used to say that you could name anything and find 20,000 fans of that in Japan,” Kobayashi recalls. “My goal was to make a film that would be seen by that many people.” The way things are going, he will achieve that goal many times over.