When sophomore university student Nanamori meets Mugito, they decide to join a club. Intrigued by the Plushies Club, they soon realize it is not a place where people make plushies, but rather one where members are welcome to talk to stuffed animals about their feelings, or anything they might not want to discuss with other people. An introvert’s paradise. A safe space. An escape from society’s pressures and rules. For Nananori, it’s a natural fit: the club allows him to explore his uneasiness about dating and society’s imposed gender roles. But soon, an overwhelmed Mugito disappears, and the more pragmatic club member Shiraki begins voicing opposition to the group’s insular methods. Real life encroaches.
A film about making films, we follow the exploits of Kiriko, an indie film director who is struggling to make a road movie that ends on a beach. Why do so many independent films have to have a beach scene? That is a question that gets asked along the way but her journey to the location is beset with difficulties, from budget to casting. There is only so much she can do and so she inches forward making compromises and finding ways around problems to realise her dream, all while living in the real world and fulfilling obligations to others as best she can.
Instead of worrying about his future, Takuya aimlessly spends his time with his high school classmates. After a tragic accident, he decides to keep a promise that he made a long time ago: His friend’s porn collection must disappear before his parents find it!
A married Japanese man living in the country agrees to meet with an ex-lover in Tokyo, leading him to question his life choices.
A writer from Kamakura named Hiraoka Eisei is researching supernatural stories but finds himself revisiting memories from a previous visit to his wife’s home town. Ogura Kako,a shy local woman, is asked to help an actor from Tokyo practice speaking with Kyoto intonation and, after the lesson, he asks her to show him around Arashiyama.
Ema suffers from memory loss. One day she gets a drawing of an elephant from Yang , a childhood friend who has gone missing. With the postmark as her only clue, Ema heads on a journey to find Yang with her childhood friend Ban and his girlfriend Yuri .
