Published
Tue, Aug 29, 2023, 20:00
- Opus is the composer's farewell concert film.
Ryuichi Sakamoto will be delivering one last concert through his forthcoming film, Opus.
Premiering on September 5th at the Venice Film Festival, Opus will include the late composer playing 20 of his productions on the piano. Opus will showcase the likes of The Wuthering Heights (1992), Ichimei – Small Happiness (2011) and a new arrangement for the 1978 Yellow Magic Orchestra track "Tong Poo"—all of which have never been performed as solo piano pieces.
The Neo Sora-directed picture was produced by Sakomoto's wife and manager Norika Sora, Albert Tholen, Aiko Masubuchi and Eric Nyari, as well as Jeremy Thomas as executive producer.
Sakomoto was diagnosed with oropharyngeal cancer in 2014 and in the final years of his life, he could no longer perform live. Opus was filmed in his final months. He passed away this past March after his battle with the disease.
"The project was conceived as a way to record my performances–while I was still able to perform–in a way that is worth preserving for the future," Sakomoto said in a post-humous statement given to Deadline, who also provided an exclusive teaser for the movie. "I played every piece at home which we recorded on an iPhone to construct the overall composition of the concert that will express the progression of time from morning into night. Everything was meticulously storyboarded so that the camera positions and the lighting changed significantly with each song."
He added: "I went into the shoot a little nervous, thinking this might be my last chance to share my performance with everyone in this way. We recorded a few songs a day with a lot of care... In some sense, while thinking of this as my last opportunity to perform, I also felt that I was able to break new grounds. Simply playing a few songs a day with a lot of concentration was all I could muster at this point in my life. Perhaps due to the exertion, I felt utterly hollow afterwards, and my condition worsened for about a month. Even so, I feel relieved that I was able to record before my death—a performance that I was satisfied with."
Watch Opus's exclusive teaser and revisit our feature on Sakomoto's extraordinary career.
Photo: Berlin International Film Festival