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Obachan's Garden
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Description
In 1923, Asayo Murakami left Hiroshima and settled in a fishing village in Steveston, BC. Her family remembers a happy woman who sang, danced and nurtured a colourful flower garden, but underneath, the memory of what she left in Japan haunted her deeply.
Delicately peeling back the layers of her grandmother Asayo's life, filmmaker Linda Ohama discovers a painful, buried past. In poignant interviews, Obachan, now 103 years old, recalls life in Japan, her arrival in Canada as a picture bride, her determination to marry a man of her choice, the bombing of Hiroshima and the forced relocation of her family during World War II.
Beautifully rendered dramatic sequences are merged with an exquisite collection of memories,feelings, images and voices. Culminating in an emotional reunion with a long-lost daughter, this film is an intensely personal reflection of Japanese-Canadian history and a testament to one woman's incredible endurance and spirit.
2001, 94 min 13 s
Awards
Honorable Mention - Category: Social Issues
International Film and Video Festival
October 23 to 25 2002, Columbus - USA
Award Best Sound Editing
Leo Awards
May 10 to 11 2002, Vancouver - Canada
Award Best Overall Sound
Leo Awards
May 10 to 11 2002, Vancouver - Canada
Award for Best Screenwriter
Leo Awards
May 10 to 11 2002, Vancouver - Canada
Award Best Cinematography
Leo Awards
May 10 to 11 2002, Vancouver - Canada
Award for Best Director
Leo Awards
May 10 to 11 2002, Vancouver - Canada
Audience Award - Best Documentary
Newport Beach Film Festival
April 11 to 19 2002, Newport Beach - USA
Second Prize for best Documentary
Women Film Festival "La Mo-Viola"
March 1 to 9 2002, Torino - Italy
Federal Express Award for Most Popular Canadian Film
International Film Festival
September 27 to October 12 2001, Vancouver - Canada
