Kazuo Hara and Sachiko Kobayashi behind the scenes of 1972's Goodbye CP (image courtesy Japan Society)

In 1971, director Kazuo Hara and producer Sachiko Kobayashi founded Shisso Productions. For decades, the independent film company has been the home for the married collaborators’ various documentaries about the downtrodden and outcasts of Japanese society. In honor of its 50th anniversary, Japan Society has put together an online retrospective of their work. Cinema as Struggle: The Films of Kazuo Hara & Sachiko Kobayashi features eight of the director/producer pair’s films, from their debut feature Goodbye CP (1972), about the lives of people with cerebral palsy, to their latest, the epic-length MINAMATA Mandala (2020), about the victims of a long-running industrial poisoning disaster.

The titles can be purchased individually to stream for $10 each ($8 for Japan Society members), or in variably priced bundles.

When: Through July 2
Where:
Online

More info available via Japan Society

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Dan Schindel

Dan Schindel is a freelance writer and copy editor living in Brooklyn, and a former associate editor at Hyperallergic. His portfolio and links are here.