Film

Oshaberi Na Shashinkan (Conversations at the Photo Studio)

Eastern Hokkaido area

This film takes place in Shikaoi Town in the north of the Tokachi Plain. Small-town photo studio Mikuni Photo Studio has been open for more than 100 years. When Kantaro Mikuni (Isao Hashizume), the third-generation owner, passes away, the studio is taken over by Yuji Matsubara (Takeo Nakahara), the widower of Kantaro's daughter Keiko (Chikako Kaku), who died two years earlier. Yuji moves in with Mai (Yuna Yamaki), a girl Kantaro was fostering. Suddenly, Yuji sees Kantaro and Keiko's ghosts. Set against the magnificent nature of Shikaoi Town, this fantasy drama about a man, a girl, and two ghosts will touch your heart.

© Oshaberi Na Shashinkan

Year released: 2024

Starring: Takeo Nakahara, Yuna Yamaki, Chikako Kaku, Isao Hashizume, etc.

Director: Yoshiyuki Fuji

Screenwriter: Yukari Mori, Yoshiyuki Fuji

Distributor: CINEMEDIA

STAMP SPOT!

Fukuhara-Sanso Lodge

This mountain lodge is located by the northbound route from the Shikaoi Town center to Kanno Onsen, a hot spring village off the beaten track. The lodge appears in a number of scenes in the film, including one where Yuji takes family photos of the people in the town to fulfill Kantaro's dream: Kantaro wanted to make an album of everyone in town before he died, but did not finish his project. There's a walking track through a garden with features such as a waterfall and pond, which is open from early to mid-October when the leaves change color. The colorful foliage makes for a stunning spot for a photo.

Address: Opposite Shikaoi Shizen Land, Kitaurimaku, Shikaoi Town, Kato District, Hokkaido 081-0344

Phone: 0156-66-1010 (Fukuhara Memorial Museum)

Access: Around 40 minutes by car from JR Shintoku Station
Around 1 hour and 10 minutes by car from JR Obihiro Station

Open hours: 9:00am - 4:00pm

Open period: Mid-September - mid-October

Closed: Open every day throughout the opening period

Admission: Free

Notes: -