Dementia Plot: 30 Vertical Shorts Become 111-Minute Feature

Director Ueda Shinichiro has expanded a 30-episode social media series into a 111-minute feature film titled 'Earthlings in Love.' The project is currently screening in the Nippon Cinema Now section of the 39th Tokyo International Film Festival.

The narrative centers on Shinpei, a director diagnosed with young-onset dementia. To preserve his fading memories, he attempts to complete a movie project he started with friends during his teenage years. Ueda stated the story explores the gap between personal recollection and recorded history, inspired by his own conversations with former schoolmates who remembered shared events differently.

The original series consisted of 30 vertical microdramas, totaling 76 minutes. Audience reactions online prompted the team to develop the material for theatrical release. The feature version includes restored shots and dialogue from the digital cut, as well as newly filmed scenes. Ueda removed cliffhanger endings that were designed to drive daily viewer engagement.

Ueda noted that the vertical format restricts group shots but allows him to hide information outside the frame. He revealed that some symptoms of dementia limit a person's vision, which he found linked to the visual constraints. He also used the format to leave space for viewer imagination by revealing details from different angles later in the film.

The director explained that online audiences swipe away from slow pacing, whereas theater audiences remain seated for two hours. This difference allowed him to emphasize acting performances in the feature cut. He compared the production timeline to social media, noting that a short idea can be shot and released in a single day, while a feature requires at least 12 months.

Ueda believes both formats will continue to exist. He sees the market for vertical shorts growing, but he views cinemas as a unique ritual where people put away their phones to sit together. He described theaters as a sacred place, similar to a church, where a collective experience works in a way no other medium can replicate.