In 2005, Kenji Uchida, then an unknown young director, won four prizes at the Cannes Film Festival for his second feature, "Unmei Ja Nai Hito (A Stranger of Mine)."
His film, about an ordinary guy and gal who have been dumped by their respective lovers and end up together through an extraordinary chain of events, was entertainment, not art, which made it an unlikely selection for the prestigious Cannes Critics' Week section, let alone award winner.
The Japanese media, which had been focusing on Uchida's better-known colleagues at the fest, was caught off guard by his success.