The Birth of Saké

Perhaps we are too used to the bombardment of 30-second clips on social media, the internet or TV that we forget for something to dazzle us beyond our own experience, there are weeks, months and years of work necessary to make great art, great performance and, in this case, great sake.

Like the documentary on hermetic life, Into Great Silence, the Birth of Sake, in brilliant images and a pace that insists you shut up and slow down, gently splays out that journey in the setting of a traditional brewery in northern Japan.

The beautiful cinematography unfolds the daily grind towards such rare greatness and reveals the sacrifices that goes hand-in-hand with success. Through the daily efforts of the brewery workers we witness a dedication, a work ethnic and an art that defies the "get-rich-quick" mentality eroding our world.

For something to truly become exceptional we must give all of our heart and soul. The Birth of Sake does not shy away from the reality that sacrifices are real and irreversible. Still, the documentary is proof that only that kind of effort produces results which transcend the mundane, the cheap, and the mass produced.