The screening of “Black OX” was held on November 23 (Sat) from 16:30 p.m. at NTT CRED Hall No.1. The film depicts a hunter facing the fast-paced changes of the times, who meets an ox and together they cultivate the land, and how he looks at nature and himself. The film is the first feature-length film in Japan to use 70mm film in some parts, and music by Ryuichi SAKAMOTO was used in the film.

After the screening, a talk-show by Director Tetsuichiro TSUTA was held. The interviewer was Kimura MICHITA, a freelance personality.

This film was shot over a long period of time, with the project starting eight years ago and filming began in 2022. He recalls that there were many hardships involved. Director TSUTA explained the impetus for making the film, saying, “I had the chance to take care of cows for a week and gradually became attracted to them.” He began to think about filming cows as a subject for his black-and-white film, and while searching for documents related to cows, he came across the “Ten Cow Drawings,” which inspired this film.

The film was shot in Tokushima Prefecture, the director's hometown, Shikoku, and Taiwan. He was particularly particular about the structure of the house where the main character, a man and his ox live, as well as the surrounding environment. He said he was “very honored” to have Kyoko HEYA, the representative of the Hiroshima International Film Festival, participate in the art for this film.

During the talk show, a question-and-answer session was also held with the audience who had seen the film. When asked about the episode of the ox, Director TSUTA talked about the character of Fukuyo (ox), saying that she was a quiet and good-natured girl. He also mentioned the scene where the man and the ox are plowing together as the scene that he is most attached to. He said that this scene was the first thing that came to his mind when he was making the film. Director TSUTA carefully answered each of the audience's comments and questions. The time passed slowly as the audience enjoyed the various interpretations that came out of a single film.

In closing, the director said, “I hope this film will remain in everyone's memory.” The talk show ended with thunderous applause from the audience.