Japan Cuts 2020 Shorts: BLIND BOMBING FILMED BY A BAT, BLEACHED BONES AVENUE and TOKYO GIRL

This year's Japan Cuts is running a good number of shorts (they cost a $1.50 or $3 each depending)  and as part of Unseen Films' coverage of the festival we are going to try and review as many as we can- first up three documentary shorts.

BLIND BOMBING FILMED BY A BAT
A kind of experimental exploration of the Japanese efforts to bomb the west coast of America with large balloons. Mixing drone footage, period pictures and documents as well as the testimony of people whose family sent or found the balloons, the film creates neat portrait of an event many people don't know about, especially in the US where coverage of the bombing attempts were censored.
Recommended.


BLEACHED BONES AVENUE
The people of Myanmar are tasked with reclaiming the bodies of fallen Japanese soldiers decades after the terrible battles that ravaged the countryside. The film quietly examines the question of why are they doing it and what purpose does it serve. This is a small gem of increasing power.


TOKYO GIRL
Stream of consciousness film has a young woman's rapid fire thoughts mixed with truly rapid fire images as she tries to explain her life and world view. It is an exhausting 8 minutes that will thrill you with its very real sense of life. Recommended.

For more information on the festival and its screenings go here.