THE WORK-STAY: Ishinomaki

Mei Liu and Lieko Shiga in Japan

In late October, Amsterdam-based Chinese filmmaker Mei Liu traveled to Japan to join her mentor Lieko Shiga for their work-stay. Together, they engaged in productive research in and around Ishinomaki, where Lieko’s studio is located. They also traveled to Tokyo, where they delivered lectures at two universities, and later visited Kyoto to participate in the Kyoto Experiment Festival.

In Mei Liu’s project, Homesick for Another World, explores the histories of people across China who experienced forced confinement. Now, she seeks paths toward transforming and transcending those experiences via an image-making process based on a speculative screenplay.

A co-director of the festival Kyoto Experiment is former Forecast mentor Yuya Tsukahara, who joined Liu and Shiga on stage for a conversation at the festival, alongside Forecast's Artistic Director Freo Majer. 

The project will premiere at the Forecast Festival in March.