196X. Anna, an enigmatic and attractive professional kidnapper, abducts The Professor during his wedding ceremony on request from one of his former girlfriends. This woman, whose face Anna has never seen, wishes to die with The Professor before he marries. Leaving the church with The Professor on the back seat of her motor-bike, Anna starts on the journey to the fictional city of Alpha Paris. Anna is a tribute and homage to old movies of the ‘60s, an ideally highly effective sophisticated cartoon with trendy visual effects.

Interview with Writer/Director/Producer Kaichi Sato

Congratulations! Why did you make your film?

I like movies from the ’60s, so I wanted to reproduce them using Japanese animation skills/techniques.

Imagine I’m a member of the audience. Why should I watch this film?

Because you will have nostalgic feelings and new experiences.

How do personal and universal themes work in your film?

People seek love and love is said to be precious above all. But when you seek a reward, it turns obstinate and when you feel betrayed it turns into jealousy. And if you drown in love, you would become selfish to your partner without limit. Having a "love" that is fluid and quickly breaks down, maybe we are all lonely. In other words, the theme was that we might be very lonely, and each of us could be irreplaceable because of our loneliness.

How have the script and film evolved over the course of their development?

This animation is produced with the movie of the '60s as an inspiration. However, I think it seems that the universal themes and contemporary problems have gradually come to light in the editing process.

What type of feedback have you received so far?

There was a person who told me that this film reminded him of La La Land, mixing styles of the old France and Britain with the animation technique of collage. Coincidentally, the voice actress who performed the voice of Anna also performed the Japanese voice of Emma Stone in La La Land.

Has the feedback surprised or challenged your point of view?

It was a pleasure to hear this nice feedback. As he noticed the essence of my film which is mashing up with past works to create new things.

Who do you need to come on board (producers, sales agents, buyers, distributors, film festival directors, journalists) to amplify this film’s message?

I would like to hear any kind of message from all of them. In addition, I also would like to hear the opinion of influencers such as internet influencers and celebrities.

What type of impact and/or reception would you like this film to have?

By the newness of Japanese 3D (2.5D) animation expression and the re-imagination of the nostalgic European film, I think that there is something that resonates with movie enthusiasts other than animation enthusiasts and people who are enthusiastic about the films of those days.

What’s a key question that will help spark a debate or begin a conversation about this film?

Did you know that love is the most misused word in the world?

What other projects are the key creatives developing or working on now?

I am working on animation clips in the United States. I also finished the edit for a short film, using CGs, for international audiences titled Misunderstandable Japan.

Interview: April 2019

We Are Moving Stories embraces new voices in drama, documentary, animation, TV, web series, music video, women's films, LGBTQIA+, POC, First Nations, scifi, supernatural, horror, world cinema. If you have just made a film - we'd love to hear from you. Or if you know a filmmaker - can you recommend us? More info: Carmela

ANNA (Kidnapper)

196X. Anna, an enigmatic and attractive professional kidnapper, abducts The Professor during his wedding ceremony on request from one of his former girlfriend. This woman, whose face Anna has never seen, wishes to die with The Professor before he marries. Leaving the church with The Professor on the back seat of her motor-bike, Anna starts on the journey to the fictional city of Alpha Paris. Anna is a tribute and homage to old movies of the ‘60s, an ideally highly effective sophisticated cartoon with trendy visual effects.

Length: 27:04

Director: Kaichi Sato

Producer: Kaichi Sato

Writer: Kaichi Sato

Key cast: Professor and Anna

Looking for: sales agents, distributors, journalists, film festival directors

Facebook: Kaichi Sato

Twitter: @kaichisato

Instagram: @kaichisato

Hashtags used: #annakidnapper #誘拐アンナ

Website: annakidnapper.com