Naoya Fujita‘s ambitious short film “Long-Term Coffe Break” tries to condense a complex love story in a 30 minute timeframe. Successful businesswoman Yuko, played by Mina Fujii (“The Nighthawk’s First Love” 2021), meets the actor Naoki, played by Hiroki Sano (“F is for Future” 2021), during her lunch break at a cafe. They argue about coffee and Naoki reveals that he moves from someone’s house to another since he cannot afford an accomodation of his own. Despite his failures, he is not willing to quit acting. Yuko is somehow attracted by this leisurely lifestyle and one year later, they are a married couple.
“Long-Term Coffee Break” is screening at Japan Society as part of The Female Gaze: Women Filmmakers from Japan Cuts and Beyong Program
Director Naoya Fujita presents well-crafted sequences of bombshells created by professional cinematography and intriguing acting. Dialogues evolving about relationships, death, and happiness in life are mesmerizing and written in a realistic manner. On the downside, the script fails to link the different scenes in a harmonious flow. Maybe caused by the format of a short film, some story elements evoke the impression of overhastiness and would find more intensity in a full-length movie.
The plot offers a lot of food for thought and tackles hot topics like abortion and adultery. Besides the romantic aspects, there are also bitter moments that conclude in a nice pointed finale. Hokkaido-born director Naoya Fujita has already proven his talent with his first short “Stay”, which won the Best Picture at Skip City International D-Cinema Festival in 2020. “Long-Term Coffee Break” is less radical and a bit darker, but continues to spin Fujita’s own distinctive style.
Looking at both films, one can only hope to see a full-feature film in the near future that can bring together the best of his previous shorts and push even further to entertain the audience with the director’s taste for drama and humor.
