Ryūichi Sakamoto „OPUS“ – Filmpremiere

Shortly before the theatrical release, we are showing the premiere of the documentary Opus (J 2023 - 103') in cooperation with Rapid Eye Movies and Real Fiction Filmverleih.

As a composer and electro pioneer, Ryūichi Sakamoto (The Revenant) left his mark on the music world. In March 2023, the artist died as a result of cancer. The musician had already been so weakened in previous years that he was no longer able to perform in front of an audience. Soon, however, fans will be able to see Ryuichi Sakamoto on stage for the last time, as his final live performance will be released as a film. Sakamoto had himself filmed for his final performance under the title Opus. The footage was shot in December 2022, when the pianist mobilized his last strength alone on stage and without an audience to capture his skills for posterity. Sakamoto's son Neo Sora directed the film and planned the performance down to the smallest detail together with his father. A crew of almost 30 people helped to capture the performance in images and sound.

In a posthumously released statement Sakamoto said of Opus: "The project was conceived as a way to record my performance - while I was still able to - in a way that was worth capturing for the future. We rented the 509 Studio at the NHK Broadcast Center [Japan's only public broadcaster - editor's note] for the recording, which I think is the place with the best acoustics in Japan."

Sakamoto's final performance includes the oeuvre of the last 20 years that he has performed on the piano. Of course, compositions from his creative period as a film composer can also be heard, such as from "The Last Emporer", for which he received an Oscar in 1988. "Since this was my last opportunity to play live, I felt it should also be groundbreaking," Sakamoto added in his posthumous note. "Just playing a few songs with full concentration was all I could manage at that point in my life. Probably due to the effort, I felt completely drained afterwards and my condition worsened for about a month. Nevertheless, I felt relieved that I was able to make the recording before I died - a performance I was satisfied with."