Based on the director's new film "Whispering Star," due for release on May 14, film director Sono Sion's first solo museum exhibition, "Whispering Star," will be held at the Watari Museum of Contemporary Art in Jingumae, Tokyo, from April 3 to July 10.

"Whispering Star" is the first production of Shion Productions, founded in 2013, and was filmed faithfully recreating the 555 storyboards Sono Sion drew in an apartment room 25 years ago. The story's protagonist is an android played by Sono Sion's wife, actress Megumi Kagurazaka. This tranquil, monochrome sci-fi film depicts an android traveling through the vast universe aboard a retro Showa-era spaceship, delivering mementos for humans who have been declared extinct.

This solo exhibition will feature an installation piece that captures images that could not be fully depicted in the film. The exhibition will also feature all 555 storyboards and props used in the film, as well as new works from Sono's 1990s street performance "Tokyo Gagaga" and the resulting "Loyal Dog Hachiko Project." On the 2nd, the day before the opening, a talk event was held featuring Sono, the museum's curator Koichi Watari, and Chim↑Pom's Ellie and Ryuta Ushiro. Prior to this exhibition, the same exhibition was held last year at Chim↑Pom's Koenji gallery "Garter." Watari explained the background of the exhibition, saying, "I was impressed by Sono's art, which expresses itself freely and without any artifice, and I approached him, which led to the realization of this exhibition." Sono commented on his own work, "The 555 storyboards on display on the fourth floor contain all of the films I envision for the future. About 60% of them were used in this new work, 'Whispering Star.'" "I decided to return to my roots after being swept up in the commercial world (compared to my past), and so I made Whispering Star into an independent film. It's a screenplay I wrote 25 years ago, so I didn't really want anyone to see it (laughs)," he revealed. Also, "Whispering Star," a collection of works and exhibition catalogue that condenses the unique world of Sono Sion's films and solo exhibitions and captures his extraordinary charm, will be released in late April. In addition to over 20,000 words of original writing and poetry, the catalogue includes artistic stills and storyboards from the film, new work from the "Hachiko Project," and voices from local residents living in temporary housing in Tomioka, Minamisoma, and Namie, Fukushima Prefecture, who participated as extras. The film will be screened at Shinjuku Cinema Qualite and other cinemas from May 14th. Also scheduled for release around the same time is "Sion Sono: A Creature," a documentary film based on a year of extensive research and directed by Arata Oshima, who followed Sono Sion in "Jonetsu Tairiku."
【Event Information】
"Sono Sion Exhibition: Whispering Star"
Venue: Watari Museum of Contemporary Art
Address: 3-7-6 Jingumae, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo
Dates: April 3rd - July 10th
Hours: 11:00 - 19:00 (extended until 21:00 every Wednesday)
Closed: Mondays
Admission: Adults 1,000 yen, Students (under 25) 800 yen, Elementary and junior high school students 500 yen, Those 70 and over 700 yen