Blind Willow, Sleeping Woman

Director: Pierre Földes
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Watch the trailer

Film Info

  • Year: 2022
  • Film Format: DCP, Blu-ray and DVD
  • Origin: France, Luxembourg, Canada, Netherlands
  • Runtime: 110 mins
  • Color
  • Language: English

A giant talking frog and an elusive cat help a listless bank employee, his traumatized wife, and a lonely accountant seek meaning in their lives and possibly save Tokyo from catastrophe in the animated feature Blind Willow, Sleeping Woman. Based on stories by acclaimed Japanese author Haruki Murakami (Drive My Car), this feature debut by composer Pierre Földes won the Jury Special Mention award at the renowned Annecy Animation Film Festival and the Grand Prize at the Anima Festival in Brussels.

In Tokyo, not long after the 2011 earthquake, Kyoko suddenly leaves her husband Komura after spending five days glued to the news on TV.  Komura takes a week’s leave from work and heads north to deliver a box and its unknown contents to two young women. His colleague Katagiri, a simple debt collector by profession and an awkward loner in life, returns home one evening to find a 7-foot-tall frog asking for his help to save Tokyo from a tsunami. Using an innovative live-action 3D motion capture process, Foldes captures the memories, dreams and visions of these characters as they attempt to rediscover their true selves. 


Blind Willow, Sleeping Woman is a Zeitgeist Films release in association with Kino Lorber and will open in theaters starting April 14, 2023. To book this film please contact Nancy Gerstman or Emily Russo.

A press kit, trailer, stills, jpegs of the poster and social media assets are available to download from our Exhibition DropBox.

Pierre Földes

A consummate artist, Pierre Földes is a director, composer and painter. Born in the United States to a Hungarian father and British mother, Pierre Földes is the son of a pioneer of computer animation, Peter Földes, nominated for an Oscar and a César winner. Pierre grew up in Paris where he studied piano and composition. He began his career in New York composing music for film and advertising before moving to Europe. Fascinated by drawing and animation, he has written and directed several short films by adapting a production pipeline to his idea of film. He has thus developed his own unique and personal style and technique.

Filmography

Blind Willow, Sleeping Woman (Saules Aveugles, Femme Endormie)

Petites scènes d’été

Coffee and Bananas

On the subjectivity of the notion of existence in relation to the authenticity of femal climax
(De la subjectivité de la notion d’existence liée à l’authenticité de la jouissance féminine)

Mikrodramas

Les Allemands du Pont-Neuf

“ELEGANTLY SURREAL...an impressive achievement, a piece of storytelling which balances moments of flighty whimsy against deeper existential questions.” – Wendy Ide, Screen Daily
“Above all the film perfectly holds the course of the pleasures of an exciting and very rich narrative (a scenario in interlocking parts very well constructed by the filmmaker with parallel advances, flashbacks, dreams, ‘normal’ and fantastic world, etc.) and of an animation style accessible to all audiences. Pierre Földes succeeds in his challenge...to adapt Haruki Murakami while remaining himself.” – Fabien Lemercier, CineEuropa

Photos

A scene from BLIND WILLOW, SLEEPING WOMAN. A Zeitgeist Films release in association with Kino Lorber. A scene from BLIND WILLOW, SLEEPING WOMAN. A Zeitgeist Films release in association with Kino Lorber.
A scene from BLIND WILLOW, SLEEPING WOMAN. A Zeitgeist Films release in association with Kino Lorber. A scene from BLIND WILLOW, SLEEPING WOMAN. A Zeitgeist Films release in association with Kino Lorber.
A scene from BLIND WILLOW, SLEEPING WOMAN. A Zeitgeist Films release in association with Kino Lorber. A scene from BLIND WILLOW, SLEEPING WOMAN. A Zeitgeist Films release in association with Kino Lorber.
A scene from BLIND WILLOW, SLEEPING WOMAN. A Zeitgeist Films release in association with Kino Lorber. A scene from BLIND WILLOW, SLEEPING WOMAN. A Zeitgeist Films release in association with Kino Lorber.
A scene from BLIND WILLOW, SLEEPING WOMAN. A Zeitgeist Films release in association with Kino Lorber. A scene from BLIND WILLOW, SLEEPING WOMAN. A Zeitgeist Films release in association with Kino Lorber.
A scene from BLIND WILLOW, SLEEPING WOMAN. A Zeitgeist Films release in association with Kino Lorber. A scene from BLIND WILLOW, SLEEPING WOMAN. A Zeitgeist Films release in association with Kino Lorber.
A scene from BLIND WILLOW, SLEEPING WOMAN. A Zeitgeist Films release in association with Kino Lorber. A scene from BLIND WILLOW, SLEEPING WOMAN. A Zeitgeist Films release in association with Kino Lorber.

Trailer

Playdates

Venue City State Date
Austin Film Society Austin TX MAY 26 - JUNE 8
Music Box Theatre Chicago IL JUNE 2 - 8
AFI Silver Theatre Silver Spring MD JUNE 2-8 ONE WEEK ONLY!
Cleveland Cinemathque Cleveland OH JUNE 8 & 9 ONLY
Living Room Theatres - Portland Portland OR JUNE 9 - 15
Upstate Films (Saugerties) Saugerties NY JUNE 18, 21 & 22 ONLY!
Webster University Film Series Webster Groves MO JUNE 23 - 25!
Museum of Fine Arts, Houston Houston TX JUNE 30 - JULY 2 ONLY!
Bryn Mawr Film Institute Bryn Mawr PA JULY 12 ONLY!
Detroit Institute of Arts Detroit MI AUGUST 4 & 5