Hiroki Tôchi

A masked ninja stalks the streets. Who is this mysterious figure?

When a self-obsessed novelist (Jason Schwartzman) has problems with his novel and his girlfriend (Elisabeth Moss), he seeks refuge in his mentor's cottage where the peace and quiet allow him to focus on his favorite subject - himself. Anger rages in Philip as he awaits the publication of his second novel. He feels pushed out of his adopted home city by the constant crowds and noise, a deteriorating relationship with his photographer girlfriend Ashley, and his own indifference to promoting the novel. When Philip's idol Ike Zimmerman offers his isolated summer home as a refuge, he finally gets the peace and quiet to focus on his favorite subject: himself. —Production Philip Lewis Friedman is a young, New York City-based novelist with a modicum of fame within literary circles. He is an angry, self-absorbed and condescending man who has decided to burn bridges with specific people in his life for unfulfilled promises and dreams, those people on which he places complete blame. With other people such as his live-in girlfriend Ashley Kane, a photographer, he is slowly pushing them away, especially whenever they don't fit into what is happening in his life at any given time. Awaiting the official release of his second novel "Obidant", Philip learns that the advanced critical buzz is not good, which is a problem if only because he has already spent the advances he received when he was writing it. As such, he has to find other sources of income, he still not willing to do something he does not want just for money. At this time, he is befriended by fellow novelist Ike Zimmerman, who was successful and prolific as a young man, but who has not written or had anything published in years as he moves into his senior life. Ike becomes his mentor, offering him advice, his country retreat as a place to write, and assistance in getting a short term creative writing teaching position at Lambert College upstate. Philip, therefore, is physically separated from Ashley while he stays at the country retreat and while he is teaching at the college. In his time away from Ashley, Philip may get a glimpse into his future if he continues on this path. And in her time away from Philip, Ashley may decide if their separation should be permanent, especially as she has invested much of her own energies to Philip and his life. —Huggo

Filmed during a rehearsal and performance of Beethoven's Quartet in B Flat Major, Opus 130, "The Juilliard String Quartet: Keeping Beethoven Contemporary" is an exciting portrait that explores the creation and history of the famed Quartet, offering a glimpse inside the world of its four current members. Founded in 1946 by Juilliard School president William Schuman and violinist Robert Mann, with the intent of pursuing the brilliant musicianship of the classical genre, the Quartet continued well beyond its original membership, bringing the music along into a new era. Opening up their dialogue to us, the members of the Quartet, Joseph Lin, Joel Krosnick, Ronald Copes and Samuel Rhodes, speak in detail about the string quartet as a musical genre, its vibrant history, and the significant contributions of Beethoven. —Micheal Blackwood Productions