The Films from the Basement: "Akeji, the Breath of the Mountain", a film by Mélanie Schann and Corentin Leconte

Akeji Sumiyoshi has made Japanese peaks his sanctuary and his canvas. Far from the urban bustle, this painter lives as a hermit alongside his wife Asako, following a daily choreography dictated by the cycles of the earth. On Saturday, April 11, 2026, the Claude Lévi-Strauss Library will screen the documentary by Mélanie Schann and Corentin Leconte dedicated to this singular man. For 72 minutes, the film follows this extraordinary existence where every gesture, from preparing the pigments to caring for the animals, becomes a sacred act. This screening reveals a world inhabited by the spirits of the forest, where time seems to have stopped. This cinematic encounter highlights a radical way of life and artistic creation imbued with the raw power of the mountains, offering a fascinating counterpoint to frenetic modernity.