“Since I was born and raised in Brazil, Christianity was a strong part of everyday life there, which is very different to Japan of course, where religion is not at all a part of daily life. Christianity features in many of my titles as I feel the theme of religion is very interesting. The main theme though, of loneliness, is very much a part of daily life in Japan, where we have a very aging population, but I guess [Grateful Dead] also being a genre film makes it easier for younger audiences to watch.”