Japan’s Cloud11 Studios, France’s Les Films du Sillon and Saidam Baryl Ltd have joined forces. In Hong Kong. Almost therea new feature project by Sakha director Stepan Burnashev. This collaboration was unveiled on the sidelines of the Cannes Film Festival at the Marché du Film.
The partnership brings together producers from Japan, France and Sakha, a Russian republic also known as Yakutia, on what is described as an “intimate, character-driven road movie” that is currently in development and is positioned as an international artistic feature with cross-cultural reach. The script and production are scheduled to be completed in 2027.
Burnashev became a major voice in the Sakha film scene with his earlier features Aita, Our winter, Black ice and Shed.
Its events take place in Japan, Almost there It follows “an unexpected meeting between a Japanese man and a man from the Sakha Republic, who, despite their vastly different backgrounds, find themselves in a similar emotional state,” according to the project description. “Both are unable to let go of their past and embark on a journey toward a place where they hope to finally encounter it. Their chance encounter gradually evolves into a shared journey, where emotional distance gives way to an increasingly profound human connection. As they get closer to their destination, the journey itself begins to change them – and the very reasons that brought them there begin to transform.
Designed to combine “cultural specificity with global resonance,” the project explores themes such as memory and isolation. Burnashev also said that the film will delve into “male weakness, inner conflict and what often remains unspoken.”
To provide lightness and humour, the film is also set to feature cultural misunderstandings and comedic moments, while the Japanese landscape is set to add an “almost meditative quality”, according to the producers. “Instead of pushing toward heaviness, the film approaches its characters with openness and compassion, allowing intimacy and human connection to gradually emerge.”
Producers are Hiroyuki Yoshihara of Cloud11 Studios, Emmanuel Vosselhon of Les Films du Sillon, and Saidam Baryl of Burnashev. They are currently focusing on further development and financing Almost there.
“Almost there “It’s a restrained but emotionally intense masculine drama,” Burnashev said. “It’s a story about two men who seem very different on the surface, but both carry something they’ve never learned how to express. They come from very different worlds, but they share a sense of isolation and an unspoken inner conflict that allows them to get to know each other beyond language or culture. As their journey unfolds, they begin to understand each other on a deeply human level — a connection that transcends boundaries and gives the film universal resonance. One of them hides behind action, confidence, and a habit of moving on.” Always one step ahead, while the other lives in silence, hesitation and the weight of unresolved things.
Yoshihara said of the project: “What attracted us to it was its confidence. The film does not try to overstate itself. It trusts rhythm, character and silence, and this gives it a strong cinematic identity. We believe that this kind of precision can be transmitted internationally.”
“We were stunned by the film’s emotional accuracy and quiet power. Like War,” Fosselhon said. [by Russia in Ukraine] As it rages on, Sakha culture increasingly reaches beyond its borders and builds new connections with the East. One can only applaud the director’s determination to continue creating while the forces of destruction are at work.
