Following their successful collaboration on the Oscar-winning international feature film Drive My Car, multi-instrumentalist and composer Eiko Ishibashi and filmmaker Ryūsuke Hamaguchi have teamed up once again: Gift is both a live performance and film created in parallel to Hamaguchi’s recent feature film Evil Does Not Exist.
Both works use the same footage and scenario, yet applying a different approach. While “Evil Does Not Exist” was created as a classic feature film for cinematic release and won the Grand Jury Prize at last year’s Venice International Film Festival, the companion piece “Gift” was crafted as a separate silent film meant for live soundtrack performance by Ishibashi.
The story: In Mizubiki Village, not so far from Tokyo, Takumi and his daughter Hana lead a modest life, following the cycle of nature. However, one day, the plan to build a glamping site near Takumi’s house causes unrest in the village, disrupting the community’s calm way of life. A counterpart to Evil Does Not Exist, “Gift” offers an alternative perspective on disharmony and inevitable imbalances in man’s relationship to nature by using the same material and story, but creating a distinct, emotionally charged experience enhanced through Ishibashi’s live performance.
Eiko Ishibashi has been fusing styles and genres for over a decade now, from chamber pop and musique concrète to jazz improv, prog, and noise. She has collaborated with international artists such as Jim O’Rourke, Keiji Haino, Charlemagne Palestine, Merzbow, Giovanni Di Domenico, Phew, and many others. In 2016, she made her debut as a film composer with the score for “The Albino’s Trees”, before going on to write the music for Ryûsuke Hamaguchi’s Oscar-winning film Drive My Car in 2021.
Ryûsuke Hamaguchi, an alumnus of the Graduate School of Film and New Media at the Tokyo University of Arts, started to garner international recognition with his 2008 graduate film Passion at film festivals both in Japan and abroad. His feature film Happy Hour (2015) was honoured with multiple awards at international festivals. His film “Wheel of Fortune and Fantasy” (2021) won the Silver Bear Grand Jury Prize at the Berlinale. Drive My Car (2021) also received widespread recognition, including the award for Best Screenplay at the 74th Cannes Film Festival and the Academy Award for Best International Feature Film.
