Juliana and Masato – Synopsis

Juliana lives a simple life with her parents near the beach in Brazil, content with a carefree life of surf, sun, and sand.She doesn’t wear a watch, doesn’t have a phone, nor need for much money.

However when she fends some bullies away from Masato, an awkward Japanese boy, her life begins to change;  Masato claims to be competing in an upcoming and grand MMA Tournament taking place near her town. She soon learns however that his invitation was a mistake, but Masato won’t take no for an answer – he dons a Japanese pro-wrestling mask and challenges an ‘alternate’ fighter on the spot. Masato wins by sheer fluke, winning the hearts of the fans and promoters, and becomes the new ‘alternate’ fighter for the tournament.

Juliana’s curiosity grows as she discovers that Masato knows nothing about fighting at all, but professes that a mystical White Light is divinely guiding him. And when a local tournament competitor receives a freak training injury, Masato is indeed entered as one of the main fighters in the tournament.

Juliana begins to have strange dreams and visions that are somehow connected to Masato and the White Light, but they are confusing and don’t make sense yet to her. Yet as romance blooms, Juliana’s own life begins to crumble;  she is fired from her job, her Dad’s surf shop is being threatened by debt collectors, and a local shaman accuses Masato of making a deal with the spirits, placing a curse on them all. Dad’s money problems become more dire, and Masato begins to have accidents, his energy and confidence fading.

Juliana is torn; half of her wants to help her parents with their money and debt problems, yet the other half of her is irresistibly drawn to Masato and her visions. She thus makes a string of wrong decisions that end up making a mess on both sides that lead to a break-up. Juliana tries to ignore it and focus on being more responsible, but Juliana cannot shake the visions. She learns that Masato is not the only competitor displaying paranormal powers, and the tournament begins to take on magical proportions. Juliana turns to her Mom for wisdom, and learns the truth of her strange visions, and how they are all part of a much bigger saga that spans over many lifetimes.

Juliana convinces her Dad to wake up to these revelations, confronts the Shaman to lift the curse, and runs to aid Masato in the final fight.