The Cats of Gokogu Shrine
The ancient small Gokogu Shrine is the observatory of the complex relationship between people and nature. A chronicle of the inconvenient truth on how even nature doesn’t fit our civilised life.
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The Cats of Gokogu Shrine, the newest film from observational documentary auteur Kazuhiro Soda, was filmed in a shrine called Gokogu located Japan’s Ushimado, in the Seto Inland Sea. Director Kazuhiro Soda had learned of Ushimado, also known as the cat shrine for its dozens of stray cats, while filming Oyster Factory (2015) and Inland Sea (2018). Though the cats and residents of this island live in relative peace and harmony, Ushimado is not without controversies. While some believe that the cats living at the shrine can have a positive effect on tourism, others state that the cats may be negatively affect hygiene and create more garbage. As such, the city of Setouchi begins neutering cats, possibly ending the presences of cats in the Gokogu shrine. The last scene which shows residents carefully burying dead cats and new kitten strays being left on the island makes one think again about the coexistence of human and nature. (CHUN Jinsu)
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ASIAN SHADOWS⎜maria@chineseshadows.com
SODA Kazuhiro
