Natsumi Nishiyama directs this heartfelt production that was named as the best film at the Eiga World Cup 2021, a Japanese competition for films produced by high school students. Being a highschooler herself, Nishiyama delivers a pure and tender story about the innocence of friendship and yearning. The well-received short film took a year to produce and was entirely financed by crowd funding.
Natsumi, born 2003: her name literally means ‘Summer fruits’. The filmmaker immediately grabs our attention, brazenly indicating that ‘Re;birth’ echoes her real-life experiences attending Chikushioka High School in Fukuoka Prefecture. Everything was going well for Natsumi until the summer of her 14th year, when a routine bike ride back from school leaves her heaving in agony. The diagnosis from the doctor confirms the worst: Natsumi is afflicted with a rarely heart condition called orthostatic dysregulation (OD), a strange illness that makes it impossible for sufferers to wake up early in the morning.
As she spirals deeper …