Documentary sheds light on Chinese helping Japanese 'war orphans'

A Japan-China co-produced documentary, The Nameless Child, directed by renowned Japanese filmmaker Ryo Takeuchi, has been screened in Japan since Nov 7 and will continue its screen run until Nov 20 during the 2025 China Documentary Festival in Japan.

This documentary focuses on Japanese "war orphans" left behind in China after World War II, presenting their life experiences and gratitude toward their Chinese adoptive parents.

During the final days of the Chinese People's War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression (1931-45), thousands of children left behind by fleeing Japanese families were adopted and cared for by locals in northeastern China.

After China and Japan established diplomatic relations in the 1970s, many of these war orphans returned to Japan, but life back home proved challenging. Having spent their formative years in China, they struggled to adapt — many could not speak Japanese, which made it difficult to integrate into society, and as a result, a large number relied on government subsidies to make a living.

Speaking at a preview screening on Thursday, Takeuchi said he frequently saw news reports about Japanese orphans when he was a child. In recent years, he discovered that many issues surrounding this group remain unresolved, motivating him to document their stories.

Over the past two years, the documentary team interviewed more than 100 surviving orphans and their families.

Takeuchi said it was a pity that they were unable to interview the Chinese adoptive parents, as most of them have already passed away due to age.

"Raising enemy children under such extreme circumstances is truly remarkable," he said, "I hope to convey the kindness and spirit of the Chinese people to Japanese audiences."

The documentary's main subject, Mariko Kamijo, the child of one of the surviving orphans, currently runs a nursing institution called Isshoen, providing care and services for elderly orphans.

After watching the documentary, she reflected on the lasting impact of war, noting that it takes generations to heal such wounds. She hopes that the film will help people fully appreciate the value of peace.

Chinese Ambassador to Japan Wu Jianghao emphasized the importance of remembering history and cherishing the hard-won peace, and jointly shaping a positive future for China-Japan relations.

Zhao Jie, president of the Documentary Committee of China Federation of Radio and Television Associations, called the film a reflection of the "community of shared human destiny". He noted that the reunions depicted in the documentary were particularly moving and underscored the importance of treasuring peace.

This year's documentary festival will be held in Tokyo's cinemas, screening 10 documentaries covering urban governance, ecology, rural revitalization, cultural exchange, and youth development. The festival aims to showcase contemporary China from multiple perspectives and promote cultural exchange between the two countries.

Japanese actress and filmmaker Megumi, serving as the documentary festival ambassador, expressed her enthusiasm for the screenings and highlighted the importance of Japan-China collaboration in film production.

As the chair of the festival committee, Takeuchi remarked at the opening ceremony that China's film industry has developed rapidly and that the selected documentaries reflect contemporary China. He also noted that choosing this year's 10 documentaries from roughly 500 produced over the past five years was no easy task.

Takeuchi, originally from Chiba Prefecture near Tokyo, first visited China in 2010 to produce the three-part documentary A Journey to the Yangtze River for Japan's NHK. Fascinated by Chinese society, he has been living in Nanjing, Jiangsu province, since 2013.

Together with his wife Zhao Ping, a Nanjing native, he co-founded a production company and has created several documentaries presenting China from a foreign perspective, including The Reason I Live Here (2015) and Long Time No See, Wuhan (2020).

His documentary The Yangtze River has received acclaim in both China and Japan for its engaging and authentic portrayal of Chinese life, winning the Best Documentary Award at the 21st China Movie Channel Media Focus Unit, an industry honor established in 2004 by China's leading movie broadcaster.

"Many Japanese still hold outdated impressions of China, thinking it is dirty, polluted, or dangerous. These stereotypes persist, but they do not reflect reality. Even if I explain with words, they cannot fully understand. It is only through video that people can truly see China as it really is today," he added.