Kôji Fukada on What Drives His Cannes Competition Debut ‘Nagi Notes’: ‘I Believe What Is Being Tested Now Is the Evolution of Democracy’

Previously selected for Cannes Premiere (“Love on Trial”) and Un Certain Regard (“Harmonium”), Kôji Fukada will now vie for the Palme d’Or in his first competition film with “Nagi Notes,” a gentle yet simmering drama on surviving existential crisis in a seemingly secluded rural town while the world embroiled in tensions.

“I’m grateful and honored because there’s only a limited number of films that get selected,” Fukada tells Variety. “I’m trying not to get too excited. If I were to rejoice excessively over entering the competition this time, it would imply that my past works were ‘bad’ simply because they didn’t make the cut, and I don’t feel that way at all.”

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“Nagi Notes” follows architect Yuri (Shizuka Ishibashi) on a visit to her former sister-in-law, sculptor Yuriko (Takako Matsu), in Nagi. Revisiting shared memories, the two women struggle to untangle the complex perspectives defining their pasts and futures.

The project originated in 2017 when playwright Oriza Hirata invited Fukada to adapt his 1994 play “Tokyo Notes” and recommended Nagi Museum of Contemporary Art as the potential film set.

“I had never been to Nagi before, so I went to visit and see the museum for myself. I became very interested in the location, but at the same time, I realized it takes seven hours to get to Nagi from Tokyo. It would be a waste to make a film ‘about Tokyo.’ Instead, I wanted to make a film truly set in Nagi. That was where I moved away from ‘Tokyo Notes’ and began conceiving an original story,” says the filmmaker.

Nagi is a center for beef in Japan, and Fukada wanted to show how the war in Ukraine has impacted local ranchers, linking economic downturn to the rising tide of nationalism and extreme right-wing politics.

“In Japan, this [nationalism] is intensifying; exclusionary movements against foreigners and immigrants have become a common occurrence in daily life, much more severe compared to 10 years ago. However, the issue cannot be resolved by simply blaming those who lean toward the right or become nationalists. As a result of immense economic disparity, people’s dissatisfaction is what lies at the core of this trend,” says the filmmaker. “I believe what is being tested now is the evolution of democracy. It is not something that can be resolved by merely relying on majority rule and voting, or by simply dividing people into left and right.”

But Fukada eschewed creating confrontation among individuals, focusing instead on the characters’ profound loneliness and eventual life-saving bonds. The portrayal of gender minorities was an effort to shed light on invisible groups.

“I grew up and live in Tokyo, so I have no experience living in the countryside in Japan. I did lots of interviews with different people in Nagi, but what seemed to be missing were LGBTQ people. I think it must be difficult to come out as gay or lesbian in rural Japan, so I wanted to focus on what appears to be invisible,” he says.