“Once you decide something’s meaningless, it becomes meaningless.”

Initially a screenplay written by Japanese High School student Nakata Yumeka, Swimming in a Sand Pool highlights the connection built between four high school students spending their Saturday sweeping sand from the bottom of an empty swimming pool. For two, it’s punishment for skipping P.E. class, and for the other two, as a way to connect to their beloved sport, swimming. What do these individuals have in common? On the surface, it seems like nothing but disdain for the task at hand. As the film progresses, however, it becomes clear to the viewer that they all long for something in their personal lives that seems unachievable – a hope for connection and acceptance of discovered identity woven into the fabric of their individual experiences. 

The film opens with Miku – a shy and elusive dancer who dreams of performing outside of the gender normative expectations put in front of her – and Chizuru – an outspoken high-performance swimmer terrified that her incredibly athletic male classmates will outshine her work. Joining them are Kokoro – a young woman with a sole focus on her looks and the perception she puts out into the male-focused world around her – and Yui – a kind-hearted fellow swim team member eager to support her classmates and find connection with the people around her. Together, they spend the day discovering what matters to both their personal life and collectively, and how they can help push one another through their fears of the world around them.

This hilarious and wholesome coming-of-age classic explores questions of self-acceptance, identity, and ambition stuck in the four walls of the empty school pool. It makes you laugh, cry, and question how the daily experiences within our communities help support our individual goals and the power of being together.