Having received his education at Yokohama National University, Shunji Iwai started out in the entertainment industry by directing music videos and television dramas, including the likes of Maria, Lunatic Love and Fireworks, for which he received the award for Best Newcomer from the Japanese Director's Association. He eventually moved onto larger things with his short film Undo (1994), later followed by the hit Suwarôteiru (1996) starring Japanese pop singer, Chara. As his career progressed, he received even more award s, especially for his films Love Letter (1995) and Riri Shushu no subete (2001) (All About Lily Chou-Chou). Shunji Iwai resides in Japan.
In 2008 he served on the World Dramatic Competition Jury for the Sundance Film Festival.
Hiroko Watanabe's fiancé Itsuki died two years earlier in a mountain climbing accident. While looking through his high school yearbook, Hiroko in a fit of grief decides to write a letter to him using his old school address. Surprisingly she receives a reply, not from the dead Itsuki, but from a woman with the same name whom had known Hiroko's fiancé in school. A relationship develops between the two women as they continue to exchange letters and share memories of the dead Itsuki.