Japan Documentary Film Award: The Yoshida-Ryo Dormitory

This years winner of the Japan Documentary Film Award, Fujikawa Keizo’s The Yoshida Ryo Dormitory, traces the past, present, and futre of Japan’s oldest student dormitory, a unique place that fosters community governance and anarchic living. As the university pushes for eviction on the grounds that the building is deteriorating, the residents strive to protect a way of life built around dialogue. The film quietly appeals to the value of shared spaces—where people come together, face one another, and speak openly—something increasingly lost in today’s society. The screening will include a discussion with director Fujikawa after the film.