Numakage Public Pool (2026)

For more than fifty years, an unassuming swimming pool in a Tokyo suburb—lovingly nicknamed "the ocean"—served as a sanctuary of wellness, happiness, and kinship for senior swimmers, local families, and the neighborhood's gay community. Now, as the wrecking ball of urban redevelopment looms, the impending demolition sends a tidal wave of sorrow through the loyal patrons who found solace within its walls. Through raw and intimate storytelling, this profoundly touching documentary delves into a grief that transcends mortality, mourning instead the loss of place, memory, and personal identity. Structured around the five stages of loss, director Ota crafts a meditative and universal reflection on the bittersweet act of farewell—not merely to concrete and tile, but to a life-giving hub of connection, recovery, and communal belonging.