Mio Akiyoshi is appearing in the drama series "Private Banker" (TV Asahi, Thursdays 9pm) starring actor Karasawa Toshiaki. She has been playing Suzuki Honami's daughter since the first episode aired on January 9th. "At first I was nervous because of the speed of the set and the number of staff," she revealed, but she has a competitive personality and a strong gaze. "I think I have a lot of perseverance, so I'd like to take advantage of my resilience and competitive side and get more and more work," Akiyoshi said in our interview.
◇Acting is difficult after all.
Akiyoshi was born on January 31, 2006, and is 18 years old and from Miyazaki Prefecture. Last year, she won the grand prize at the audition "bijoux AUDITION 2024" hosted by the talent agency "bijoux" and entered the entertainment industry.
"Private Banker" is an original story that focuses on the "private banker", a professional financial adviser who advises the wealthy on asset management and formation. Serina Iida, who plays the role, is the daughter of Kumiko Iida (played by Suzuki), the second-generation president of "Dango no Tsurumatsu". In the first episode, there was a scene where she followed the main character Koichi Anno (played by Karasawa) to the rooftop of a building and shouted at the top of her voice to stop the suicide of her mother, who had been the victim of an investment fraud.
"I rarely speak loudly in my everyday life, so I struggled to express my emotions all at once. It was my first experience, and I realized that acting is really difficult."
After finishing filming the first episode, I felt a sense of regret that I could have done more.
"The big names have amazing voices. It's as if every word comes from their stomachs, and they have a very clear voice. But I couldn't do that at all, and even with the guidance of the director, this was the part I struggled with the most."
At the same time, he also finds acting enjoyable.
"It's fun to delve deeper into the role outside of the script, as well as to make the role my own and express it, and the special feeling of being able to express something that only I can do, plus the feeling of my own growth. I'd like to try my hand at action in the future. My favorite movie is 'Leon,' and it's the movie that had the biggest influence on me, so I'd like to try playing an assassin at least once. It's something that wouldn't happen in the real world, and something I can only experience in this job, so I'd like to try it."
Although Akiyoshi is aware that she still lacks experience and ability, her eyes light up as she says, "I hope to become an actress who can play a variety of roles in the future."
"I think people who have a consistent sense of self even outside of their acting are wonderful, so in that sense I want to be told that I have character."
◇My personality is "competitive"...
This spring marks one year since winning the Grand Prix at "bijoux AUDITION 2024."
"Right now, I want to try everything within my reach and build up my skills. In the process, I want to find a dream or goal that makes me think, 'This is it!'"
Akiyoshi says that he has a competitive personality and is not as cool as he looks. He analyzes himself, saying, "I cry quite a lot, but I think I recover quickly. But I don't show my emotions very much, I keep them to myself."
"I think I have a lot of perseverance, so I'm going to use my resilience and competitive side to not get upset, and not get mad if I fail an audition, but just keep moving forward and get more jobs."
Perhaps it's a sign of her competitive nature, but her eyes are also very attractive...
"I think my eyes are my charm point. People around me often tell me that I have powerful eyes, but sometimes they also say they're scary (laughs), so I hope I can make use of that in my acting work."
Akiyoshi-san is scheduled to appear in "Private Banker" in the future. First of all, we will be keeping an eye on his performance in the show.
