Overstay humanizes the daunting topic of the "global economy" by telling
the personal stories of six different young men and women as they negotiate work and family responsibilties while abroad in Japan. Kaneko is a filmmaker pure and simple. Tokyo and its people, locals and immigrants alike, come alive in this film of exquisite textures, colors, and compositions. The flashing neon of a pachinko parlour, commuters with faces framed by the red of a subway window, a man reaching down to pet a dog, all these sights and more make Overstay that rare documentary that combines aesthetic sophistication with astute analysis. The layered soundtrack incorporates music from around the world, also reflecting the complexity of the issues at hand. This is a smart, empathetic, and stylish film about an ever-growing population: the foreign migrant worker.

Janet Walker
Associate Professor
Film Studies Department
University of California, Santa Barbara
and Co-Editor of the forthcoming book,
Feminism and Documentary

Overstay addresses global issues of labor migration from an intimate and humanistic perspective. Excellent material for discussion and teaching in labor studies, race and ethnic relations, gender, and diasporic Asian Studies.

Great--the best doc I've seen in the past ten years.

Russell Leong
Editor, Amerasia Journal
University of California, Los Angeles