A Tender Place (Yawaraka na hou)

Design student Kasumi has married her employer in Tokyo, the manager of a design workshop, and has had a two-year affair with one of his clients. She and her unsuspecting husband are vacationing in Hokkaido with her ex-lover and his wife when Yuka, their five-year-old daughter disappears without a trace. Distraught, Kasumi won’t let go of the idea that Yuka is somewhere alive and safe. She returns to the spot every year, hoping to find a clue. Meanwhile her marriage nearly collapses. On the fifth anniversary of the disappearance, her seemingly hopeless quest in Hokkaido is shadowed by a detective, Utsumi, who has his own ominous reasons for wanting to be involved … (Catalogue International Film Festival Rotterdam, 2002)