It was summer when a stranger from Tokyo arrived at “Iya”, where the riches of nature still abound. This young man, named Kudo, was willing to live his new, self-sufficient life. He was exhausted by city life, and believed this beautiful land would give him some rest. On the contrary, the reality was not as easy as he thought. There was a confliction between a local construction company and a group of nature conservationists. Farmers are trying to save their harvests from harmful animals such as deer and monkeys. People are fighting for their own purposes: to get their job, to save the environment, or to survive.
One day, Kudo met Grandpa and a girl Haruna lives in the heart of the mountains. It was far away from any human habitations. No electricity, no gas, there was nothing but the nature. Their modest and humble life went by slow, and seemed eternal as if time stops.
Every morning, Grandpa climbs up the mountain to go to the little shrine to offer Omiki (sake) to the mountain god. Haruna goes to high school an hour away from home, and after that, helps Grandpa to plow his field. Feeling his heart gradually gets healed, Kudo thought that he finally found what he was looking for in their calm life. Soon Kudo started trying to transform a piece of wasteland into his own field.
Winter came. Snowstorm rages and wild beasts waste the fields even worse. Although Kudo has become used to the life in Iya, nature was harsh and he was too weak. Kudo despaired of himself, realized he would not be able to live without modern conveniences that he used to have in Tokyo.
On the other hand, a group of nature conservationists made their protest much stronger. “Save Iya! Save Iya!” Their voice echoed through the hills. But they too realized their movement was unsuccessful in the end.
Grandpa starts loosing his health, but he never stops climbing mountains whatever Haruna says. Haruna’s mind was clouded with anxiety that her life with Grandpa would no longer continue. And suddenly, without saying anything, Grandpa disappeared and never came back.
It was hard for Haruna to understand the loss of Grandpa but she also knew it was time to leave her home and live her own life. She decided to move to Tokyo to continue to college, and there she started working on an invention to get back her life in Iya with Grandpa.
7 years later, in Tokyo, Haruna received a letter from her childhood friend from Iya saying that she wants Haruna to see her baby. Haruna hardly remember about Iya and even about Grandpa. The only thing connected Haruna and Iya was her invention she was working on but it ended up in failure and disappointment. But somehow, this letter led her mind to Iya again.
Soon after, she was on the bus driving through the mountains of Iya. And what she saw there was Kudo looks just like Grandpa.
Tetsuichiro Tsuta was born on June 29, 1984, in a Japanese small town in the mountains. The town was famous for baseball team; however, he spent all his time playing soccer game. He then entered Tokyo Polytechnic University to study filmmaking. He found it very interesting to use 16mm and Black & White film. His first feature film “Islands of Dreams” was taken in 16mm, Black & White negative; he has done every process such as developing and printing all by himself inventing his own methods. This film with impressive visual that is reminiscent of golden age of films had received good reputations at film festivals. 
