The Shape of Absence

Through intimate interviews and immersing visual storytelling, this short documentary explores how two towns: Navalacruz & Fujiyoshida—each with their unique customs—are now coming to terms with the loss of their defining cultural touchstones. Some of their rituals, once passed down through generations, are increasingly neglected or forgotten by the coming generations who no longer see the relevance in a rapidly globalizing world. In a world increasingly defined by technological advancement and transience, what does it mean to hold on to the past?

These are the stories behind the pillars of a community, and at the heart of this project lies the symbolic question: Are all traditions important to keep or not? Do rituals, which are often perceived as pointless or superfluous, become vehicles for maintaining historical consciousness and continuity? In the process of tracing these disappearing customs, the project aims to reflect on the wider implications of cultural erasure—asking whether we, as a global community, are at risk of losing the very things that once defined us or if progress means to inevitably leave parts of ourselves behind.