RETRODREAMING

 

2022, 18 min, experimental documentary,

Director: Alisa Berger 

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RETRODREAMING examines the common phenomenon of ghostly, abandoned schools due to demographic change in the countryside of Japan. Empty schools in deserted villages tell their own story: May it be during the pandemic, after a nuclear catastrophe, or just due to depopulation. The film references the Japanese tradition of telling "Kaidan"(ghost stories/scary stories) and the multiple school-themed "Kaidan"(Gakkō no Kaidan, Japanese for "Scary School Story") in Japanese mainstream culture, which encompass the idea of entities and memories remaining in these architectures.
 

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