We all love big, far-reaching stories, in many shapes and forms. Either big space operas with gigantic casts and many factions to lose yourself in, or melodramas with intricate webs of drama and relationships, or big, bookish fantasy epics where the lore and history of the world could fill thousands and thousands of pages.

Such gigantic works are a marvel in itself, and if one finds the perfect one, be it Lord of the Rings, Game of Thrones or Legend of the Galactic Heroes, or whatever world rings true with you personally, you will have something that may accompany you for a long time, with a lot of content to look forward to.

However, there is a merit in the short form too, something that may get overlooked in a fast world with long-running series or franchises: It’s the standalone short film – little pieces of media that will easily get lost or underappreciated in the popular consciousness.

The beauty of short films is that they can bring an idea, a feeling or moment to perfection. Condense something into its purest form, so that it will reach its goal in a short amount of time, with careful planning, framing and narration. And depending on the topic, the look or simply the presentation alone can touch you deeper than any long-form piece of medium.

For me, one of these is Someone’s Gaze (“Dareka no Manazashi”) by director Makoto Shinkai.

Someone’s Gaze is the story of Aachan and her family, to be more precise, her father. Her life is not going too well, she gets scholded by her boss at work, the stress is taking over her life, and on top of that, her parents are now calling to ask how things are going. She lies on her phone, exhausted from her day, saying that she has no time for a dinner with her father, because she is still at work.

As it turns out, her father is lying too. 

As they both exchange light small talk of “everything going fine”, we see that her father’s life has not been going swell either. His office work is equally rough, his wife is away too often as she seems to work abroad, and on top of that, the family cat is getting old, little Mii-chan is not the bouncy kitten she once was. Behind the friendly soft words of both of them, sadness lingers.

Essentially, as I cannot tell too much about the short film without completely spoiling it, it is a story of growth, progress and going forward, and what all of that involves. One cannot go forward without change, and it is impossible to go back in life. And all of this is told through the lens of a child growing up, from Aachan’s point of view and from her father’s.

As beautiful as childhood can be, it has to end one day. Parents cannot watch over their children forever, and kids want their own freedom with time. This grows into full independence from your parents, a wonderful and scary feeling all in one. Freedom also means responsibility for one self, with all the good and bad. The other way around, a parent a must learn to let go, but still be supportive without being overbearing or clingy. All of these feelings, these two different situations and worldviews must be in balance, and the way to balance is a long and hard one.

The natural way of growing as a family and then growing apart, yet staying together, is fascinating, sad, and essential.

Someone’s Gaze uses strong, memorable imagery and excellently crafted montages to show the life of this family, from Aachan being a little child, to her being a young woman,  passing all the stations in life where one struggles and succeeds: elementary school, high school, moving out, studying, and getting your first job.

And so, time passes.

Director Makaoto Shinkai has recently gotten a lot of attention, as his last film your name. (“Kimi no Na wa.”, 2016), became the highest-grossing animated and Japanese film in history, earning critical acclaim and immense financial success, and making him a house-hold name even outside the anime world. With J.J. Abrams’ remake on the horizon too, his name will continue to carry weight and popularity. And his works are beloved by many, for their smooth and breathtaking animation, gentle and realistic colour schemes, and emotional stories.

I myself have sadly never been a great fan of his works, as they often missed the emotional impact they should have had, as I was missing strong characterisations and the power to hold every scene together in one concise big way. If you like Shinkai, please do not worry, I am in the minority. His works are beloved by many, and I can certainly see why: He tells big stories with even bigger visuals, and what he achieves visually with animation is simply unmatched.

And yet, Shinkai, to me, was always a director of “moments”. His films don’t always hold together, but if he wants to hit, he hits, with iconic imagery and shots. He is far better in presenting ideas and impacts in a single concentrated point than he is at painting characters and telling long stories.

Thus, I think, he is perfect at telling short films.

While none of his longer films have resonated with me, his short works (everything under 10 minutes) all have had a great impression on me, be it commercials, promotion videos, or, as we see here, short films. If Shinkai takes one idea and goes through with it, creating one “moment” as a standalone that does not need to tie itself to anything, he can reach fantastic heights.

And Someone’s Gaze is the culmination of Shinkai for me, the perfect sweet spot of emotionality, nostalgia and progress showing the pain and joy of growing up. Such a universal theme, a concept that will be forever ingrained in humanity and that will continue in the future, is delivered in just a few minutes – and it hits all of the marks.

Someone’s Gaze was released alongside the very popular Garden of Words, it ran as a short film before the other one in cinemas, and is often found on the same home release too.

And yet, I have never really seen someone talk about this little film next to the big popular one, and I feel that it needs some more love and attention. It is a personal, small film that may not resonate with everyone, but make sure you don’t miss this tiny gem by Shinkai that will only take 6 minutes of your precious time.

The End.

Someone’s Gaze can be found on Youtube, and it starts about 30 seconds in.

Sources: Wikipedia entries on Makoto Shinkai, your name., and Someone’s Gaze.