ホウセンカ (Hosenka)

The Japan Foundation Touring Film Programme 2026

Dir. KINOSHITA Baku
2025 | 90 mins | Japan | Japanese with English Subtitles
KOBAYASHI Kaoru, TOZUKA Junki, MITSUSHIMA Hikari, MIYAZAKI Yoshiko

In this tender anime a man with a criminal past seeks a new beginning in life — but can he really become someone beyond himself?

AKUTSU Minoru is an elderly man serving a life sentence. As he awaits a lonely death in his prison cell the only real sign of life is a potted balsam flower — hosenka in Japanese. One night, Minoru begins sharing his life story with the flower — and, improbably, it starts talking back. Through their conversations, Minoru recalls his past and reflects on the meaning of his life.

Minoru Akatsu, an elderly prisoner serving life in prison, reflects on his final summer of freedom in 1986. A gentle, stoic man, he lived a peaceful life with a woman and her son, surrounded by Housenka flowers. This peace is short-lived, however; when money flows in, so does trouble. As death approaches, a Housenka flower growing in his cell guides Akatsu through the gut-wrenching memories of his past as a yakuza.

Director KINOSHITA Baku’s thoughtful and tender anime explores love and life’s changes in a way that everybody can resonate with.

Content warning: contains some violence

The Japan Foundation Touring Film Programme 2026

Knowing Me, Knowing You: The True Self in Japanese Cinema

The UK’s largest festival of Japanese cinema, the Japan Foundation Touring Film Programme (JFTFP), is back again. This is the place where cinema comes alive!

Knowing others — let alone ourselves — is not easy, as we behave differently depending on the relationship, environment, or even intention. In an age of advanced digital technology, where imagery can be readily manipulated, it is even harder to define who we, or others, truly are. This notion of identifying the self has been repeatedly explored in cinematic narratives in various ways. However, is it really possible to know our true selves? And if so, would such revelations lead to happiness and freedom, or might they instead bring disastrous and harsh consequences? With these questions in mind, the Japan Foundation Touring Film Programme 2026 showcases some of the most unmissable Japanese films nationwide across the UK. From powerful social crime dramas and laugh-out-loud comedies to gender-defining films, fantasy, and horror, the programme offers something for everyone.

Co-organised with the Japan Foundation

Major supporter: Great Britain Sasakawa Foundation

Sponsors in Kind: Calbee, Clearspring, Pentel, Athletia and SUQQU

Venue: Studio 74, Exeter Phoenix

*Subject to a £1.50 ticketing system charge. We don’t charge this to make a profit. Find out more >>