The Passenger
François Rotger
Naoki Sando, a Yakusa chief, has taken the young Kohji under his wing. One day he discovers that his daughter and Kojhi are madly in love, so he rebuffs Kohji and sends him away. Years later, Kohji learns that Tanner, Sando's former partner, has taken off to Montreal with the rabbit race winnings belonging to the Japanese Mafia. Sando feels threatened by the Yakusa chiefs who want to retrieve their money and asks Kohji to track down Tanner. Hoping to get back in the family's favor, Kohji takes off in his pursuit...
With : Yusuke Iseya, Gabrielle Lazure, François Trottier, Kumi Kaneko, Yosuke Natsuki, Ryo Kase, Veroushka Knoge
Screenplay : François Rotger
Image : Georges Lechaptois
Sound : Dana Farzanehpour, Olivier Dô Hùu
Music : Dan Levy, Irina Lazareanou
Editing : Nathalie Langlade, Julie Decondé
Screenplay : François Rotger
Image : Georges Lechaptois
Sound : Dana Farzanehpour, Olivier Dô Hùu
Music : Dan Levy, Irina Lazareanou
Editing : Nathalie Langlade, Julie Decondé
Production : Les Films à un Dollar, Tom Dercourt // 82 boulevard Ornano, 75018 Paris, France // Tel : +33 1 55 79 04 04 / Fax : +33 1 55 79 01 00 // Email : info@undollar.com
Co-production : River Films (Japon), Aviva Communications (Canada), Les Films de l'Isle (Canada)
Distribution: Shellac // 84 boulevard Ornano, 75018 Paris, France // Tel : +33 1 42 55 07 84 // Email : shellac@altern.org
International sales: Wild Bunch
Co-production : River Films (Japon), Aviva Communications (Canada), Les Films de l'Isle (Canada)
Distribution: Shellac // 84 boulevard Ornano, 75018 Paris, France // Tel : +33 1 42 55 07 84 // Email : shellac@altern.org
International sales: Wild Bunch
François Rotger was born in 1963. He studied at the National School of Decorative Arts and the Fine Arts Academy in Paris. In 1987, he began working as a journalist in New York and in 1990 as a photographer for magazine such as The Face in London. He exhibited his photos in Seoul and Tokyo between 1995 and 1999 then started directing video clips for French singers in 2000. He also made two short films: 74 km avec elle in2003 and Jan in 2004. The Passenger, filmed during the winter of 2004-2005 in Canada and Japan, is his first feature film. "It started with a personal story about a friend of mine. He was from Japan, his mother was French, and we lived practically next door. [...] I saw him in London for a couple days ten years later. He needed somewhere to stay; he was "mission for his father" so he could return home to Haneda, Japan. I never knew what his "mission" was or why it was so important for him to find his father. And I never got to find out because he disappeared from one day to the next. So I thought I'd invent his story. The film has an open ending, it gives my lost friend a chance."