Making the film

I started thinking about making a film on the Fukushima Disaster after I finished my previous film Inside the Garbage of the World. In 2014, I met former Japan Times journalist Yoichi Shimatsu and conducted an interview in Thailand with him. I realized that the matter was much bigger than it seems, and a lot has been hidden both from the Japanese people and the world.

Ultimately, we went to Japan and did a lot of filming there, I was worried about getting caught by the police as they were watching the whereabouts of filmmakers like me and of course journalist Yoichi. At one point, we came across a dump which, according to Yoichi, was used to collect heavy water; a police car was hiding not too far away. So we felt like we were under continuous scrutiny from the authorities. As a first-timer in Japan, I found it a very interesting place, although I was struck by the quietness and secrecy surrounding Sendai and Fukushima.

There are some pieces of information that are not in the film. This includes the measurements that we took of the railroad in Tokyo, where trainloads of Fukushima Debris were sent to be burned. The radiation level in different parts of the railroad and near the island was 4 to 5 times the background level. I have also decided not to include some pieces of information in the film for security reasons. However, the raw interview of each person is available here on the home page.

The production occurred in Thailand, Japan, British Columbia, USA Hawaii, the Marshall Islands, Ukraine, Australia, China, USA California, and Vanuatu.