Kira Dane and Katelyn Rebelo’s MIZUKO (WATER CHILD) Shares A New Way To Grieve After Having An Abortion

Kira Dane and Katelyn Rebelo’s documentary short Mizuko (Water Child) provides a comforting way to grieve after having an abortion

This extraordinary animation has received prestigious awards including Special Jury Recognition for Short Documentary Competition at SXSW Film Festival 2020 and Special Jury Mention for Short Documentary Competition at IDFA 2019. Water Child (Mizuko) will be screening online as part of Palm Springs International ShortFest and AFI Docs.

Inspired by a Buddhist ritual to grieve abortions, a Japanese-American woman reevaluates what it means to end her own pregnancy.

Co-Director and writer Kira Dane is a half-Japanese filmmaker from New York who is currently based in Nara, Japan. Having been shaped by two extremely different cultures, Kira is most interested in telling stories that dig for nuance in the overlooked corners of topics. In 2019 she was named a fellow of the Sundance Ignite Program and is an active member of the Brooklyn Filmmakers Collective. Dane co-directed the short animated documentary Mizuko, which was supported by Tribeca Institute’s If/Then Short Documentary Program and also supported with a Sundance Ignite Fellow’s grant from Sundance Institute.

Co-director Katelyn Rebelo is a filmmaker based in Brooklyn. Katelyn holds a BFA from NYU Tisch School of the Arts with a major in Film & Television and minor in Social & Cultural Analysis. Her work sits at the intersection of documentary & experimental film, often exploring stories that reimagine concepts of femininity, politics, and personal freedom. She co-directed, animated, and shot Mizuko and is currently the Spring 2020 Womxn Filmmaker Fellow at Jacob Burns Film Center.

Mizuko (Water Child) Trailer from Kira Dane on Vimeo.

Mizuko has already screened at 5 high profile film festivals including SXSW Film Festival 2020 and Atlanta Film Festival 2020. It will be screening online as part of the Champs Elysées Film Festival in June.