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Romantic drama starring Toni Collette as Sandy, an archetypal Australian woman: ambitious, strong and confident. When her business partner asks her to play tour guide to a prospective new client, Japanese businessman Hiromitsu (Gotaro Tsunashima), Sandy is reluctant - and her guest's uncommunicative manner and sexist remarks don't help to break the ice. But events lead to the mismatched couple being stranded together in a remote part of the outback for a night, and an unusual and intense relationship begins to unfold that changes both their lives forever.

This romantic drama stars Toni Collette as Sandy, a high-strung Australian geologist assigned to escort Japanese businessman Hirotmitsu (Gotaro Tsunashima) on a tour through the outback. Ostensibly he's there to visit the various mines his company co-owns, but his real motives are mysterious and soon he is urging her to drive deep into the middle of the Pilabra Desert. A mutual dislike for one another, enhanced by vast cultural differences keep them at arm's length at first, but when their jeep gets mired in sand in the middle of nowhere, their fight for survival leads them towards a deep human connection. They find themselves falling in love as they drift aimlessly amidst the desolate beauty of the area, but soon comes a sudden, unexpected shock.Written by Alison Tilson and directed by Sue Brooks, JAPANESE STORY explores the distances between cultures, people, and the vast emptiness of Australia's interior regions. Yet even the spectacular desert scenery can't compete with Collette's complex stunner of a performance. Suntanned, tender, gutsy and raw, she plumbs frighteningly real depths of emotion and vulnerability. Tsunashima is also excellent, bringing simplicity and grace to an enigmatic role.