The Written Face was directed and written by Daniel Schmid in 1995, as a co-production with Japan. This screening marks its UK première and will be presented in a new 4K restoration in collaboration with Cinémathèque Suisse and introduced by curator Yuriko Hamaguchi as part of her graduation film season and in association with the National Film and Television School.
The film offers an insight into the Japanese Kabuki star, Tamasaburo Bando. Japanese with English subtitles.

Opening Night: 1 November at 6:30pm ICA
UK Premiere: The Written Face + Introduction

Book now: https://ica.art/films/in-the-realm-of-acting-uk-premiere-the-written-face directly through the ICA.

A fantastical exploration of performance, The Written Face drifts through the twilight between reality and dreams, drawing out the artistic philosophies of kabuki star Bando Tamasaburo V and other legends such as Haruko Sugimura, Kazuo Ohno, Han Takehara, and Tsutakiyokomatsu Asaji, captured with Schmid’s singular aesthetic vision.

Daniel Schmid on The Written Face (translated from the brochure published in Japan at the film’s original release in 1995): “This film is not a documentary. It is fiction. I am trying to create a story about twilight, in other words, a film about film. I have witnessed the miracle that is Bando Tamasaburo many times. Yet I do not wish to unravel that mystery, that secret. This work is a film made with the secret that is Bando Tamasaburo, a film made with the secret that is Japan.”

The UK premiere of The Written Face screens as part of In the Realm of Acting: Performance On and Off Screen, presented in a new 4K restoration in collaboration with Cinémathèque suisse.

Screening at the ICA. Book now: https://ica.art/films/in-the-realm-of-acting-uk-premiere-the-written-face directly through the ICA.