Midnight Swan

Nagisa is a trans woman. She grew up in Hiroshima as a boy and now lives in Shinjuku, Tokyo, working the nightclubs. After an incident, a distant relative of middle school age, Ichika, is put in her care; the girl has been neglected by her mother Saori. Nagisa is cold and hard with her at first, and then something else forms between them. When Ichika turns out to have a gift at the school ballet club, the film opens out onto dance and identity. Written and directed by Eiji Uchida, it was named picture of the year at the 44th Japan Academy Film Prize, where Tsuyoshi Kusanagi also won best actor. Casting an actor who is not trans in the part drew criticism.