The seaside city of Kaitan is not a happy place the shipyard is downsizing due to poor economic conditions, and the city's residents are about to face another harsh northern winter Sketches of Kaitan City offers five of the many stories concurrently happening in this city - A shipyard worker who has lost his job and can't afford to take care of his younger sister an old woman who refuses to give up her home for redevelopment facing forced eviction, a planetarium owner whose relationship with his family is quickly deteriorating, a young owner of a gas cylinder company with plenty to be frustrated about, and a streetcar driver whose only son refuses to visit him on a trip home from Tokyo. These characters may not seem like they have much to celebrate about on this New Year's Eve, but they each discover their own way to continue their lives.