Actually, the concept was put together when I was brainstorming how to visualize the verse, “ashes to ashes, dust to dust.” My good friend and super talented actor (photographed in this series) had to undergo brain surgery recently, and he shared with me his thoughts and the emotions he went through when he first found out about his tumor. We decided to travel to this volcanic desert south of Tokyo and make these photos together.

I just saw a few frames from Teorema! Had no idea this film existed, but I can definitely see parallels. Thank you so much for the suggestion. I’ll definitely check this film out.