The pottery industry is a familiar one to me, and when I was a child, there were more than 100 kilns in my town.
The red color of the patterns painted by hand was distinctive and famous throughout the country.
Recently, demand has shifted to economically produced, inexpensive, simple pottery, and sales have declined, causing the decay of both the craft and the city.
I created "Finding My Color" to tell a story about this tragic situation. We look into today's society from the perspective of the pure young girl who loves to paint. Society has become more rational and convenient, but has it lost its human affluence?
With this in mind, I created this film.

2003 Armchair theory short film
 

Synopsis : 

This movie is based on Arita porcelain and its kiln.
Yui, a 14-year-old girl, lives as a single-parent family with her father Nobuo and her grandmother.
Painting pictures with various colors is the only way for Yui to be herself. She never opens up to her father or friends in her day-to-day life.
Then one day, she meets Miki, a pottery painter, and empathizes with Miki's work. By coincidence, Miki and her father start dating, and Yui's life changes. While Miki also struggles with whether to paint classic pieces or new and unique designs of her own, she is influenced by the purity of Yui's love for color.
The two become close through their creative work. Miki is unsure whether to choose a classic or a new design for a piece she is applying to a public exhibition. Yui recommends that Miki apply with a new design that is uniquely Miki's. However, Miki, for her own self-preservation, submits a classic piece.
Yui feels lost for Miki and hurt by her betrayal. Then she carries out a plan and an incident occurs. This leads Yui to see the dirty side of adults one after another. Yui is deprived of a world covered in vivid colors. She finds answers within herself, comes to a resolution, and moves on with her life.