At first glance, it may seem like a contradictory pairing. Yet in Tadao Ando’s architecture, nature—light and wind, the sky and the sea—enters into the concrete, and its expression changes with time. Nature and architecture do not cancel each other out; precisely because of their difference, each presence becomes more pronounced, and they form a single landscape. In that distinctive tension and beauty, we felt a profoundly cinematic allure.

When we were given the opportunity to do script hunting at SETOUCHI RETREAT and the surrounding area, the director was able to discover the story’s central axis: its “allegorical quality.” By visiting the location in person, the director’s inspiration was stirred, and the script was developed to make full use of this place.

Moreover, when seen through the camera, the straight lines of the architecture, the expanse of the space, the Setouchi landscape stretching beyond it, and the complex curves woven by nature create rich depth and scale within the frame. Despite the grandeur of the space, the people standing there are not swallowed by it; rather, the actors’ presence and expressions—and the slightest tremors of emotion—rise into sharper relief. That way of being closely aligned with this work’s direction, which trusts the actors and observes their presence with care.

And within the space of SETOUCHI RETREAT, we also sensed a distinctly Japanese aesthetic: not enriching by adding, but by stripping away and leaving negative space, allowing what is there to stand out. Light and shadow. Stillness and margin. A sensibility that does not set nature and the artificial in opposition, but draws them in as a single landscape. It may be something that could be called a contemporary form of “Japonism.”

In this work, we also value an “allegorical quality”—a feeling that, while it lies on an extension of reality, is somehow slightly detached from it. At SETOUCHI RETREAT, although it is a real place, we felt as though time flowed a little differently from everyday life. As the architecture, the Setouchi landscape, the light, and the quiet hours connect as one, we felt there is a cinematic world that can be born only here.

We are truly delighted that we were able to film within Tadao Ando’s remarkable architecture, and that we were fortunate enough to encounter the land of Ehime and Setouchi. We feel that the time we spent at SETOUCHI RETREAT—and even the light and landscapes we encountered there—became an essential part of this work.”

Producers of the film “After Sunday”