Japan's local elections in April featured a record number of female candidates. Ranked 116th out of 146 countries in the Global Gender Gap Index, Japan is now changing at the grass-roots level. We spent three months following two candidates: a woman in Ibaraki Prefecture busy raising children while campaigning on social media, and a single parent in Nagasaki Prefecture gathering local support. This documentary offers a rare glimpse of a local election system that has changed very little in decades, and what two women bring to that challenging reality. Will our two candidates win?

2023 THE AGE OF REGIONALISM VIDEO FESTIVAL Grand Prix