WHAT OTHERS ARE SAYING
FILM REVIEWS
「とても考えさせられる動画でした。ゲームのようにともやさんの人生を見ることができたので、暗い気持ちだけではなく、前向きな明るい気持ちでも見ることができました。トラウマを抱えている子どもがそのトラウマを乗り越えて新しい自分として人生を歩むということはとても大変なことであること、そうするためには周りの大人のサポートが必要なことが改めて分かりました。ともやさんの実体験やその時どう思ったか、これからどうするのかを聞いて、私自身もこれから頑張ろうと思うことができました。」
— Chiharu Ota (JAPAN)
“I thought that this movie would be difficult for children to understand thematically. However, this movie was made entirely with a game motif, so I felt that it was easy for children to watch. I thought that this movie should be watched by people who have had painful experiences in the past. Also, the message at the end of this movie is meant not only for the welfare specialists and the people who work in the facility but also for the rest of us in society. It was a really great movie. I would like many people, including children, to see it.”
— Akane Ito (JAPAN)
「とても衝撃的な動画でした。児童相談所で過ごしている子どもたちが心の底に抱えている傷は治せるものではないから、その傷をどのように癒し、その傷を持っている子どもたちが大人になっていく時にどのようなサポートが必要なのかを考えるきっかけになりました。」
— Mayu Ishizaki (JAPAN)
“I screened My Invincible Compass for my university students this week! I really had no idea what they would think-- on Monday they read one of my publications and I have given them context about my research before. They were really moved! My Ph.D. advisee, who is my TA and doesn't do anything connected to child welfare etc, texted me afterward to say "As a total outsider, I really love this film. It made me really understand the gravity (and omg difficulty) of your fieldwork despite knowing about it for years. Bravo!" The students really liked the video game interface bit, and they thought the fairy tale was a really compelling way to convey the overall messages.””
— K.G. (U.S.A.)
「全体的に強く印象に残りました。子どもから大人になっても、幼い頃の記憶を引きずってしまっていたり、他の人との違いがあったりして、社会生活が難しくなってしまうこともあるのだと分かりました。必要な支援が継続して行われること、またその支援が支援者だけが行うのではなく、社会全体で意識していくことが必要だと思いました。」
— Kokoha Suzuki（JAPAN）
“One aspect I enjoyed in the film is that they used a lot of drawings to explain the film and I think they did that to make it easier for the children to understand. For example, when they had the drawings of kids and they asked each child what they wanted to be when they grew up I thought that was a great touch.”
— Anonymous (U.S.A.)
「内容は重たく考えさせられるものでしたが、ゲームの世界をモチーフにした背景や音楽とのミスマッチが見づらさを消していて、児童養護や虐待等を学んでない人にも見やすい作品だと思いました。親に育てられなかった過去と震災と虐待と養護施設と社会での生きづらさなど想像できないほど多くの困難が重なる人がいることを知り、専門的に学ぶことも必要ですが、多くをカバーできるようにする必要があると感じました。」
— Mayu Yamada
“Miller’s inspirational film regarding the childcare system associated with mental health in Japan captures its audience through vivid video game animation contrasted with a somber yet riveting live-action story. By sharing this story with the analogy of dragons, Miller's message becomes accessible to younger ages, especially when paired with exciting, colorful animations. During the film, he also makes a commentary about how ineffective the current child-care system is in helping children with their mental health. Miller's overall message was the need to pay attention to and treat mental health, especially in children, and how we can work towards a better system together.”
— Anonymous (U.S.A.)
「映画の内容は強く印象に残るものでしたが、それをゲーム風にすることで少し見やすくなるのかなとおもいました。ゲームのレベルが進むごとにともやさんの状況も進んでいくのでよく理解できました。このような作品から、虐待のことや養護のことをさらに知ることができ、これらのことを経験した子どもたちをどう支えていくのかが重要になると考えさせられました。」
— Riko M. (JAPAN)
“Reflecting on the My Invincible Compass film screening: I thought the film overall offered a unique insight into the "now what?" question once children are brought into and raised in institutional care and what happens once they leave.”
— Anonymous (U.S.A.)
「ともやさんの子どもの頃のことがゲームを進めていくのとリンクしていて、ともやさんの状況や気持ちが想像しやすかったし、このような状況にある子どもについてよく知らない人が観ても理解しやすいと感じました。」
— Moe K. (JAPAN）
“I have just watched the film. After watching the film, I just wanted to say thank you for completing the film. It was very impressive and made me cry. My parents divorced and I was adopted by my aunt's family. I was very lucky because my adopted parents loved me very much. But there are many children who are not lucky. Now I would like to do something to support these children in the future. Thank you for letting me know what is important in my life.”
— N.S. (JAPAN)
「自分の過去を振り返って考えることで、心の傷を癒やすことができるという言葉が印象に残りました。震災や虐待など生きづらかった過去を振り返るのは辛いことなので、その人が過去のトラウマから解放され、将来に向かって前向きに生きていくことができるように、支援者が支えていくことが大切だと思いました。生きづらさを感じる理由は人それぞれなので、その人に寄り添って、その人を取り巻く環境やその人の過去を一緒に振り返って乗り越え方を考えていくことを大切にしたいと思いました。」
— Yumemi T. (JAPAN)
“The most impressive part of this film for me was the presentation. By using the animation and the video game graphics, the producers made the film style in line with the story's subjects. Choosing to tell the story with the visuals of a video game presented a light-hearted approach to a severe problem. The style also helped keep me interested. Documentary-style movies seem to fall into the same monotonous monotone, making them dull. The presentation style for my invincible compass kept me checked in. There was always something on-screen to keep you interested in the film's progression. The chapters of the fantasy book presented, or the hearts you received for passing a level, always maintained the movie's pace and created an artificial reward for attention.”
— Anonymous (U.S.A.)
トラウマを抱えている子どもたちに寄り添い支援をしていくことの大切さを実感しました。 心を閉ざした子どもたちにとって、再び希望を持って生きていくことは簡単なことではないと思いますが、子どもたちが様々な経験ができるような環境を作り、常に子どもたちに真摯に向き合っていくことが必要だと感じました。また、私たちが暮らす地域にはどのような団体があり、子どもたちのためにどのような活動をしているのか、これからもっと知っていきたいと思いました。
— Yuna M. (JAPAN)
“The film My Invincible Compass was extremely personal and thought-provoking. To gain an in-depth look into a story of an individual over his life and the highs and lows that he faced was extremely interesting, especially when relating it to the child welfare system. This sense of community was also interesting as it portrayed something purely Japanese (Nihonjinron), the idea that Japanese people take care of each other over the government welfare systems. This was seen with the notes at the end where it says that the child welfare system does not fall on the government but rather on everyone in the community. Altogether this film gave great insight into child welfare systems.”
— Anonymous (U.S.A.)
「映画を通して、子どものために活動している団体や企業が沢山あることを知りました。そのような取り組みがあることを知る人が増えたら良いなと思います。そしてもっと社会の人たちに子どもが抱える問題に目を向けてもらいたいです。」
— M.K. (JAPAN)
“Overall the film screening was very eye-opening. It's one thing to read about an issue, but to see an individual struggle through it is something completely different and hammered home the issue for me. The child welfare system isn't something that I've heard too much about when talking about japan, usually, it's about the older population. However it would appear that children suffer just as much if not more, and as such the subject needs to be explored more. I think that the film's use of graphics and animations is simply brilliant for trying to explain anything to children let alone something like the issues it tackles.”
— Anonymous (U.S.A.)
明るい音楽と映像と子どもたちの虐待などによってできた心の傷とのギャップが印象的でした。映画の途中である子どもが、怖いものは何という質問に対して、「ぱぱ」と答えていて衝撃的だったし、悲しい気持ちになりました。また、親からの虐待を受けたことはその後の人生において精神的に大きな影響があるということを忘れずにいたいです。映画にでてきたたともやさんは親からの虐待を周囲にばれないように過ごしていました。虐待を受けていても、小学生の頃の彼のように声を上げられずに苦しんでいる子どもがいると思いました。助けを必要としている状況にある子が親にとらわれずに自分の声をあげられるような、支援がもっと必要だと思いました。
— Y.K. (JAPAN)
I appreciated the focus on the actual feelings of the children going through the system rather than a bunch of graphs and numbers that could have taken away from the impact of the narrative. Overall it was very well done and I feel that it stands out among other documentary-style films that are trying to tell a similar story, and strangely enough, could be viewed by a younger audience even though the subject matter can be a bit dark.
— Anonymous (U.S.A.)
「過去に起きた虐待による心の傷は消えず、将来ずっと抱えながら生きていくことになってしまう。それくらい辛い過去を多くの人にさらけ出すことはともやさんにとってとても難しいことだったのではないかと思った。しかし、映画を通して多くの人に発信することにによって今まであまり虐待に目を向けていなかったり、児童養護施設に入る子どもの様子を見たことがない(テレビや新聞を通して)ような人に対して、知る機会になるのでないかと思った。この映画の終わり際で言ってたように、私たちはそのような子どもたちに何か出来る支援を探すことだけが大切なのではなく、そのように苦しい環境にある子どもたちがいるということを忘れずにいることが何よりも大切であるということを覚えておきたいと思った。また、虐待を受けながらも少しずつ前へ前へと進んでいくともやさんの姿に心を打たれた。私もともやさんのような強い心を持って生きていきたいと思った。」
— Maho T. (JAPAN)
“The film My Invincible Compass is a beautifully executed film on the effect of the child welfare system on children, and how the children themselves learn to navigate their world. The audience gets to see how the kids interact with the world in their imaginations and in their everyday lives. It appeals to a wide audience, even if you aren't in these institutions, if you've experienced childhood trauma there is something so soothing and so comforting in knowing that these kids are also learning how to live in their world and make the most of it, despite everything they've been through.”
— Anonymous (U.S.A.)
「虐待を経験している人のリアルな心情が段階的に描かれていて、とても勉強になったし前向きになっていく主人公に勇気をもらえました。日々を過ごしていく中で嫌なことがあると、どうしてもその事しか見えなくなってしまって負の感情に陥っていってしまいがちだけど、世界はもっと大きく広がっていて様々な出会いがあり、その出会いの中で自分自身も変わっていけることを忘れてはならないなと思いました。また、子どもにとってはどんな形であれ親は親なので離れたくないと思ってしまうだろうし、あまり幸せでない道を歩んでいてもそれに気が付けないでいる可能性も考えられると思います。支援を必要としている子に手を差し伸べるのはもちろんのこと、自分はもっと愛情を受けて育っていいのだと、生活状況のせいで気付けないでいる子にも手助けできる人間になりたいと思いました。」
— Mayu K (JAPAN)
“There are a lot of things to improve, but My Invincible Compass takes what could have been researched and instead shows us the people who are living through it. Rather than numbers or 40-page papers, the film turns it into a piece of media that brings humanity back to the kids and the adults who have been through this, and tells us how they want to be seen.”
— Anonymous (U.S.A.)
“The movie and children's book "My Invincible Compass" is a story about children growing up without their parents. This story uses a lot of metaphors to get its points across. In "level two" of the story the children are in the woods and they build tree houses and have fun. During this level, they also discovered the bravery they had within themselves. This level reminded me of the time that I went to wilderness therapy.”
— Anonymous (U.S.A.)
“Most children aren't going to pay attention to their teacher let alone raw information about child welfare, something they may not have a full grasp on yet. So presenting life as stages of levels in a game is smart and certainly explains it better than how I ever was told. So overall I think trying to teach anyone about this subject is difficult, let alone children. So trying to format this subject in a manner this is consumable to children is quite impressive.”
— Anonymous (U.S.A.)
"My Invincible Compass" does a remarkable job of discussing the lives and troubles faced by children in institutional care through a video game format. This film posed the question of what children in institutional care in Japan go through at various stages of life and under different circumstances. The heavy symbolism in this video game analogy is very effective at painting a broad picture of the lives of those who grow up in this system. It is for this reason that I would say that the film accomplishes what it sets out to do; shining a light on these children’s lives.”
— Anonymous (U.S.A.)
“The passion behind this project and the motivation for giving these kids exposure is so immense you can feel it through every second of the documentary. I enjoyed how the documentary sort of developed from telling Tomoya’s own story to then connecting it to the stories of the children and how they all face similar problems.”
— Anonymous (U.S.A.)
“The most compelling part of the documentary I feel is the journey that Tomoya goes through while he is in institutional care. The documentary does a great job at portraying the traumas he has from this process and how many children are going through the same thing. Showing these struggles does an amazing job of spreading awareness and showing that these children desperately need the support and love.”
— Anonymous (U.S.A.)
“I think all of the metaphors they use are very child friendly and help kids relate to these topics by using video games and toys as representations of real life. They are taught to slay these dragons and monsters before they grow up so that they can live a happy life. The film's goal is to empower children and support them throughout their childhood and help them prepare for their future. The specific way we can support these children is by spreading awareness through this movie It was a really beautiful movie.”
— Anonymous (U.S.A.)