Perfect Days (2023) – NCTA Online Movie Study

Curl up for two hours and step into the daily life of Hirayama, a Tokyo public-toilet cleaner whose routine becomes a meditation on attention, solitude, and meaning. Nominated for Best International Feature at the 2024 Academy Awards, Perfect Days (2023) invites viewers into a carefully observed world shaped by work, habit, and quiet discipline. Along the way, we see Hirayama’s devotion to photography, literature, and music, as well as the subtle human connections that emerge in the margins of his days.

Join NCTA seminar leader Tese Wintz Neighbor for a guided discussion of the film, which follows Hirayama over three weeks as he wakes early, drives his aging van through the city, tends to small tasks, and notices light, shadow, and change. Through his steady gaze, Perfect Days explores what it means to live deliberately and to find dignity in ordinary labor.

• • Starts:
  • March 16, 2026
• • Ends:
  • March 18, 2026
• • Time Detail:
  • 4-6pm (PT)
• • Learning Format:
  • Online
• • Type of Course:
  • Book & Film Groups
• • Offered to:
  • All States
• • Registration and Info:

  • Participants will be assigned to one of the following sessions, with the possibility of switching if needed:

    Group 1: Monday, March 16, 4:00–6:00 PM (Pacific Time)
    Group 2: Wednesday, March 18, 4:00–6:00 PM (Pacific Time)

    This movie club will be held on Zoom. Participants are expected to watch the film in advance, complete a short assignment, and take part in a two-hour discussion with their video camera on.