A homecoming and a difficult relationship with food
Tsutsui’s character, Mizuki, returns to the place she once left. Sincere but awkward, she lacks confidence and finds it difficult to express her feelings. Her relationships with people and food become part of how she changes.
In comments accompanying the announcement, Tsutsui recalls feeling comfortable in Satte’s peaceful atmosphere and especially remembers seeing the cherry trees in full bloom. She invites viewers to follow Mizuki’s development through those connections.
Niitsu plays Mei, a junior-high-school student who finds eating difficult but tries to engage seriously with food. Nakae’s character runs a cafe in Satte while watching over her daughter.
Niitsu’s release comments recall local rice, flowering cherry avenues and exchanges with residents. She highlights the characters’ discovery of the pleasure and meaning of eating through the people they encounter.
Ono anchors those intersecting stories as a registered dietitian working in a junior-high-school setting, listening to different voices as she encounters different approaches to eating and living.
Created for Satte’s 40th municipal anniversary, which fell on October 1, 2026, the film is the fifth installment of Bokura no Recipe Zukan, a series about regional food and people. Kinema Junpo Kikaku / Eiga 24 Ku handles planning and production.
Locations include the Satte Gongendo cherry blossom embankment, which the city describes as having approximately 1,000 Somei-yoshino cherry trees alongside fields of rapeseed flowers.
Residents contributed more than scenery. The project invited suggestions for filming locations and new local recipes, alongside screenwriting and acting workshops. According to the city, 658 people applied to appear as extras, and 57 residents took part, ranging from first-grade elementary-school pupils to an 82-year-old. Student volunteers also supported the professional crew with equipment and clapperboard work.
Two directors behind the overlapping voices
Urara Matsubayashi, whose directorial debut was Blue Imagine, wrote the screenplay and co-directs with Manila-born filmmaker Princess Ampol. The announcement identifies this as the series’ first co-directing arrangement.
The title’s musical reference connects with the story: polyphony brings independent voices together, reflecting the different perspectives the film follows through Satte.
Film details
- Title: Sakura Polyphony
- Principal cast: Karin Ono, Ayame Tsutsui and Chise Niitsu
- Also appearing: Yuri Nakae
- Directors: Urara Matsubayashi and Princess Ampol
- Screenplay: Urara Matsubayashi
- Planning and production: Kinema Junpo Kikaku / Eiga 24 Ku
- Filming location: Satte, Saitama Prefecture
- Planned theatrical release: Spring 2027
An exact theatrical opening date has not been announced. Further project information is available on the official Satte City film website.
Film scene photograph, title graphic and six publicity portraits supplied by Satte City via PR TIMES.
Source: Satte City via PR TIMES
