About this season
Stories about people, stories about life. Intimate portraits of people from around Japan, each leading diverse lives while enriching lives of others.
Episodes (2)
1. School of Hope: Ogijima, Seto Inland Sea
Aired 25 October 2015 • 50 min
Facing steady decline through aging and depopulation, one Japanese island community chose to tackle the risk of disappearance by reopening its only school. We follow the progress over the project's first year, and see children return fun and purpose to the lives of the island's elderly residents. Changes in the community as a whole are mirrored by the fortunes of one young family striving to make a success of their move from the mainland and embrace the charms of island living.
2. The Sky We Share - Friendship at the End of an Osaka Runway
Aired 27 December 2015 • 30 min
Southeast of Osaka Airport runs a river embankment where airplanes swoop less than 100 meters overhead. Sleek, thundering jets that pass with a rush of wind make for a heart-pounding sight. Regulars come every day to this spot: a man fighting cancer; a woman who lost custody of her children as she suffered depression; people with complex troubles. As they look up at the sky together watching the planes, they form a community that gives them the courage to move forward in their lives.