Yukari is a 27-year-old who loves the anthropomorphic yakiniku manga "Meet is Mine," but is unable to love herself. Faced with the reality that her fellow otaku of the same generation are leaving the world of their hobbies one after another due to marriage and childbirth, she feels anxious and impatient about her life of work and hobby alone, and starts her marriage activity. However, she fails miserably at a blind date party she attends and ends up drunk on the streets of Kabukicho. She is rescued by a beautiful cabaret girl named Rai. Through her encounter with Rai, Yukari gradually expands her world by getting acquainted and involved with various people, including a host who wants to be loved, a writer with a sharp tongue, and a bar master who is close to the town.
PROFILE
Born in Tokyo in 1997. She won many film awards including the Best Supporting Actress Award and the Best New Actor Award at the 40th Japan Academy Awards for her role in the film, "Love So Hot It Makes Your Water Boil. She later won the Best Leading Actress Award at the 47th Japan Academy Awards and the Best Leading Actress Award in the Acting Category at the 78th Mainichi Film Awards for the film "Ichiko," which was released in 2023. She has appeared in NHK's television series "Ochoyan" (20-21), the TV drama "Unmet" (20-21), and "A Diary of a Brain Surgeon" (2023).
Diary of a Brain Surgeon" (24), and the films "Whales at 52 Hertz" (24), "Kuchinai Sakura" (24), and "Kataragatari Sekai" (25).
Official HP
PROFILE
Born in Saitama, Japan in 2006, he has appeared in many music videos by Mr.children, Official Bearded Man-dism, Vaundy, etc. In 2023, he made his drama debut in NETFLIX's "Maiko-san-chi no manai-san" and in the same year appeared in the movies "Chihiro-san" and "Ice Cream Fever". She has also appeared in the TV drama "We Still Don't Know the School Rules of That Star" and the films "I Still Want to Dream" (24) and "Hanamanma" (25), etc. In 2026, she will be seen in "Anoko at the Last Station" and other films.
Instagram:@kotona_minami
Official HP
It is played out because it is ungraspable.
When I hear that a film is about "living", I tend to take it seriously, but this film makes me think about it, and at the same time, I feel the warmth of the film, which is both powerful and tender. You have been working with director Matsui since "Hana Sugisaki's Rest", and this time you were also involved in the screenplay. How did you communicate with him?
Sugisaki: Director Matsui, co-writer Sakitaka Kuniyoshi, producer Kazumi Fukase, and producer Hirona Shiraishi prepared a wonderful script that was packed into a 2-hour movie, and I was deeply impressed. As one who was moved by the original story, I also exchanged opinions with everyone about where to draw the line between what Yukari thinks and what she says. For example, when and to what extent Yukari would express her feelings at the moment she felt that she did not want Rai to go away. We explored such detailed nuances and timing.
- The performance of Yukari's passion for her fugue guesses had a high resolution and showed a respect that was not mere monomania. Did you have any person you used as a reference or something you were aware of?
Sugisaki: We actually talked to some of the fujoshi and staff members shared their researched materials with us. while valuing Yukari's love of BL, we also wanted to be careful about how she perceives the boundaries drawn between others and what kind of view of life and death she has, and we wanted to be careful about these aspects of her life. I wanted to value how she lived her life while being careful about these aspects.
- How did you feel when you first read the script?
South: I genuinely wanted to be a part of this world. I was drawn to Rai because I could relate to her words more than the impact of her title as a cabaret girl, and because I had never read the story before, I was excited just imagining the film version.
- Rai is a character with a rare death wish, and when it gets serious, it becomes too heavy, but on the other hand, it cannot be too light. Were you conscious of any particular aspects in playing Rai?
South: I was really thinking about that balance before we started filming. The director told me that I would be fine as I showed in the audition, but I was worried because I had no experience. But in the end, I did not leave myself to the director's words, and I am glad that I believed in them.
- Minami-san, how did you feel when you first joined the Matsui group?
(The two of them grinning while glancing sideways at Director Matsui's face)
South: It was really a site with this kind of atmosphere (laughs).
Sugisaki: Yes, it is.
South: I was grateful to be allowed to work freely, and there were many moments of relief when he would say something straight to me like, "That was good. The director often reacted in a boyish, slightly over-the-top way, and I got the sense that he was able to convey to me, without being told in words, that the picture was well shot.
- I could feel the congenial mood of the scene at the current rally. I think there are two types of actors: the type that expands from empathy and the type that can see the form as they perform.
Sugisaki: I feel that it is easier to approach a role if I look for the parts of the character that do not deal well with others and society. It was three years ago when I was offered this work, and at that time I felt a strong sympathy for Yukari, as if she was not a stranger to me. I had many encounters and experiences since then, and my view of life and death was changing a bit, but I was again overwhelmed by Yukari's strength to step into other people's lives, even if it meant jumping over boundaries. I am not saying that this is good or bad, but I still cannot dislike that part of Yukari.
South: To be honest, I could not grasp what Rai was thinking until the very end. But I thought that if I had a firm grasp, it would be different. But there were parts that I could sympathize with, so I felt that I was able to use that as a clue to quickly get close to the role.
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