Social system has changed (in Japan)…but people’s thoughts, attitudes toward ex-convicts have not to same degree: NISHIKAWA Miwa

INTERVIEW: NISHIKAWA Miwa, Director, Under The Open Sky (すばらしき世界), the Japanese film being screened virtually at the Japanese Film Festival Online 2022 Feb 14-27, 2022.

ACN NEWS On Feb 18, 2022

Japanese Film Festival Online 2022

How were you inspired by the novel that this film is based on?

Mr. Ryuzo Saki’s novel, Mibuncho (tr. “Inmate Files”), is written like a documentary about an actual murderer’s life after his release from prison. I encountered this novel around 30 years after its publication and was surprised at how rigorous the adventure is for someone to go back to a “normal life” once they step off the path. The social system has changed in the past 30 years, but people’s thoughts and attitudes toward ex-convicts have not to the same degree. Do we live in a society that gives us a second chance at life? I feel that everybody in Japan harbors an unspoken anxiety and suffocation by an unforgiving world.

You conducted exhaustive research and took four years to write the screenplay.

It’s my first time making a film based on a story written by another author and also about a real person, which is a huge responsibility as the director. I meticulously researched not only the man who Mikami is based on but also the lives of ex-convicts after their release as well as the world of the modern yakuza in order to convincingly adapt the social background of 30 years ago into today’s environment. Through all my research, I was finally able to create the backbone of the movie with a story that’s different from the novel.

Why did you title the film Subarashiki Sekai (tr. “Wonderful World,” the original Japanese title)?

I had a lot of trouble deciding on the title. They told me Mibuncho wouldn’t sell (lol). I came up with various titles including ones that describe Mikami, but this is a story about the world and society as told through a man called Mikami. The title is ironic, and the story depicts the difficulties of living in a society with all its traps and deceptions. Nonetheless, there are beautiful moments and connections in life and in the world. I chose this title for its broadness of encompassing both the good and the bad.

What were your thoughts about the star, Mr. Koji Yakusho, as you were filming him?

I’ve been a huge fan of Mr. Yakusho since my teens. He was like an insurmountable mountain that took me by awe, and he still is. I think he’s an actor who makes every effort to integrate himself and the character he’s playing in each movie. I don’t think he and Mikami have much in common personality-wise, but I’m sure he studied and analyzed Mikami’s character to great lengths on his own instead of asking me about it. However, he came to me for detailed instructions about how to deliver his lines before we started the shooting. Mikami speaks in a mixture of standard Japanese and his hometown dialect of Fukuoka, which displays his roots and human nature with all its strengths and weaknesses. Mr. Yakusho thoroughly scrutinized Mikami’s speech pattern.

In Snapshot: Under the Open Sky (すばらしき世界)

GENRE: Drama (Crime & social reformation)

CAST: YAKUSHO Koji, NAKANO Taiga, ROKKAKU Seiji, NAGASAWA Masami

DIRECTOR: NISHIKAWA Miwa

WRITERS: NISHIKAWA Miwa, RYUZO Saki (Novel Mibunchо)

SCREENPLAY: NISHIKAWA Miwa

RELEASED: Year 2021 in Japan

RUNNING TIME: 02hr 06min (126 minutes)

SCREENING (Online) @: Japanese Film Festival Online 2022 (Feb 14-27)

ORGANISOR: The Japan Foundation, New Delhi

AUDIENCE WARNING: Contains violence and drug use

DIALOGUES: Japanese

SUBTITLES: English

But that’s it. From there, he relied solely on the screenplay and worked diligently on his own to infuse Mikami’s characteristics, beliefs, and gestures down to the smallest details into his acting. I never asked him to, but he must have practiced the scene 100 times by himself before walking onto the set. When the set was ready for filming, Mikami was already there.

All we had to do was roll the cameras. He had free rein in his acting no matter who was in the scene or what happened in it. Without having to say a word, his flawless, day-to-day performance showed us his deep commitment to filmmaking. Everybody in the crew felt the joy of having Mr. Yakusho as a member of the team and was naturally motivated to set the stage for him. It was pure magic.

It was your first time working with Mr. Norimichi Kasamatsu, director of photography.

Mr. Kasamatsu has a brilliant way of adding style and flavor to a scene. He has this ability to give mysterious darkness and sensuality to the male characters. Director Sang-il Lee once told me how Mr. Kasamatsu would be great for the stories that I write. But I couldn’t ask Mr. Kasamatsu to work with me for the longest time because I admired him too much.

It was three or four years ago that I thought I’d ask him, given the opportunity to shoot a film with a solid theme that befits his talent. And this film is one that indeed portrays a distinctive, appealing male character.

How will this film be classified in your filmography?

The Long Excuse is more or less based on my own experiences about being a writer and creator with nobody to turn to, a life without children, and my personal thoughts in general. A story based on me at that point in time. With this film, I think I’ve entered a new phase. I now have the urge to portray society and the era and am shifting away from personal stories. That being said, I may have new personal stories to tell based on my experiences in the coming 10 or 20 years.

About the Director:

NISHIKAWA Miwa was first discovered by film director Hirokazu Kore-eda (“Shoplifters”), working with him from “AFTER LIFE (1999).” After working with many veteran directors, she made her directorial debut with “WILD BERRIES” (2003). Her second film, “SWAY” (2006), was acclaimed at Cannes’ Director’s Fortnight, and her third film, “DEAR DOCTOR” (2009), also enjoyed great success at the box-office in Japan, winning various awards, including Best Screenplay Award at the 2010 Annual Japan Academy Prize. Her fourth film, “DREAMS FOR SALE” (2012), had its world premiere at Toronto International Film Festival. Her novel “THE LONG EXCUSE,” nominated for the Naoki Literature Prize (2015) for the second time, was adapted into a movie with Nishikawa as director (2016). She has been writing original stories for her feature films which also earned her literary prizes. The latest film “Under the Open Sky” is her first feature based on the novel “Mibuncho” written by SAKI Ryuzo.