Little Forest - Winter & Spring (HKAFF 2015)

Mori Junichi’s soothing four-part film series based on Igarashi Daisuke’s manga concludes with the winter and spring chapters which are again filled with scrumptious recipes of seasonal treats, like natto mochi and holiday cake, that reveal telling memories and stories about troubled heroine Ichiko (Hashimoto Ai) and her relationship with her mother. As the seasons progress, the residents of Aomori prepare for the frost and a new cycle of crops. The beautiful town is blanketed in snow, then blooming in renewal, and Ichiko too emerges from her shell to make a decision about her life and where she belongs.