A wealthy Asian couple - he Chinese, wife Keiko, a Japanese - arrive in Paper Moon Bay, an isolated town on the west coast of Canada, for a respite. Theirs is an emotionally distant marriage, due in large part to his chronic infidelity of which she is aware. To fill that emotional void in her life, she meditates through doing origami. That emotional void is strengthened when he abandons her in town, especially as life in Paper Moon Bay in all aspects is totally foreign to her. She wants to leave herself to head back to the comforts of Tokyo and her support network, but finds that leaving is not as easy it was arriving. She attracts the attention of most in the town, who see her solely as the foreigner they don't understand. But one person who sees in her at least as a temporary answer to his own problems is Vern, the local police officer. He too is in an unsatisfying marriage to Lucy, their problems largely regarding their sex life. Vern begins a sexual relationship with Keiko to fill that void in his life. One other person attracted to Keiko is 19-year-old Hart, who wants more than anything to escape the repressive life in Paper Moon Bay, especially in getting away from his alcoholic fisherman father, Bill. Keiko's resulting relationship with Hart is more an emotional one based on her need for a true friend, although he would like it to be so much more.