Four Japanese orphans team up to form a rock band in We Are Little Zombies directed by Makoto Nagahisa that World Premiere at the 2019 Sundance Film Festival, and won the World Cinema Dramatic Special Jury Award for Originality. The film which also won a Crystal Bear – Special Mention at Berlin International Film Festival hits virtual cinemas and live cinemas and VOD July 10th. We Are Little Zombies stars Keita Ninomiya, Mondo Okumura, Satoshi Mizuno, and Sena Nakajima.

When four young orphans – Hikari, Ikuko, Ishi, and Takemura – first meet, their parents’ bodies are being turned into dust, like fine Parmesan atop a plate of spaghetti Bolognese, and yet none of them can shed a tear. They are like zombies; devoid of all emotion. With no family, no future, no dreams, and no way to move forward, the young teens decide that the first level of this new existence involves salvaging a gaming console, an old electric bass, and a charred wok from their former homes—just enough to start a band-and then conquer the world. Tragedy, comedy, music, social criticism, and teenage angst are all subsumed in this eccentric cinematic tsunami.

Director and screenwriter Makoto Nagahisa directed films and music videos while working at a major ad agency as a commercial planner. In 2017, he wrote and directed the short film And So We Put Goldfish in the Pool, and was the first Japanese to win the Short Film Grand Jury Prize at the 33rd Sundance Film Festival. This is his first full-length feature film.

“I staked everything in my life on We Are Little Zombies. The film is like a music festival featuring all my favorite actors, musicians, and artists. It may be a bit hectic, but I hope it can touch the heart of at least one troubled person who might be crouching in a dark room, alone, looking for help. I, myself, cried several times at the preview screening. I can’t wait for everyone to see it.”