Zenkichi made a living by performing "Utsushi-E" to entertain the common people in early 19th century Japan.

Young Shihio once unsuccessfully auditioned for a film role. She has long since buried her dream of becoming an actress when, seven years later, she surprisingly gets a second chance. The director of yesteryear has not forgotten her and now desperately wants to cast her in his new film. What does he see in the young woman? A talent for acting? A vulnerable soul? Something true? Shihio's everyday life is marked by routine. Lonely, she lives with or rather next to her boyfriend in a small flat. Who is she anyway? What is her true self? Or is she merely a vessel into which the director can pour his idea of her?

Seita is a musician living in Tokyo who is facing a severe creative block. He disappears, and his sister, Azumi, a young deaf girl, finds him in the mountain house where they spent their childhood. Isolated, he tries to get back to composing and begins recording birdsong for inspiration. The two brothers start living together there. Azumi's presence, movements and sounds, which initially irritate Seita, help to unlock the boy's creativity over time. However, the artist becomes bothered again when Taichi, Azumi's boyfriend, decides to pay a visit.