7.23 (Wed)Competition
Mimesis
- Onsite
- 7.23 (Wed) 10:30 Audio Visual Hall
Featuring: Over the Mountains, Another Day to Stay Alive, Mimesis, and Lucky Strike
©Volvoxtudio
Director: Takeru MOGI, Taichi NAGASAWA
Voice Cast: Zentaro OIKAWA, Mao KITAGUCHI
2025 / Japan / 28min.
Hajime Saiki draws manga in a stacked house on an island built to escape rising sea levels. He feels frustrated with a society that accepts Shino—an AI creature that strips people of their self-driven pursuits. When he meets Emi Niijima, who plans to destroy Shino, he discovers Mimesis, a secret organization operating beneath the sea. Driven by a desire to restore a society that values humanity, he becomes deeply involved in their mission. Eventually, he launches a full-scale attack against Shino...
This film, a collaborative effort between the Department of Imaging Arts and Sciences at Musashino Art University and members of the Composition Course at Toho Gakuen School of Music, brings together the unique talents of its creators in a dynamic work that showcases their full artistic potential. Mimesis will have its world premiere at this festival.
Director: Takeru MOGI
Takeru Mogi was born in Tokyo in 2003 and graduated with a degree in Animation from the Department of Imaging Arts and Sciences, College of Creative Thinking for Social Innovation, at Musashino Art University.
Since his time at university, he has produced advertising videos and banners for websites and bookstores while working at Shogakukan’s Digital Network Office. He currently works as a freelance animation artist in commercial animation production. He is also skilled in gas welding.
Director: Taichi NAGASAWA
Taichi Nagasawa was born in Hokkaido in 2002 and raised in Tokyo. He graduated from Tokyo Metropolitan Senior High School of Fine Arts, Performing Arts and Classical Music, where he majored in oil painting. He is currently enrolled in the Magister artium program within the Institution of Fine Arts at the Academy of Fine Arts, Vienna (Michaela Eichwald studio). He engages in diverse activities, including creating paintings and video works, and planning projects related to contemporary art. He is skilled at distinguishing train departure melodies.
Message
I went to a public bath after working on this film. While I was soaking, an elderly man fainted from the heat. He said he was okay, but he didn’t seem to be. I gave him some water, and he perked up a bit. An ambulance came, and he received treatment. As I left the bathhouse, I could hear his cheerful voice echoing from inside. In some ways, the process of making this film was just like that. Incidentally, I was going through a breakup at the time, and Takeru had a crush on the woman at the front desk of the bathhouse.
