Actor and model Shiori Akita stars in the film "Planet Love Song" (directed by Hideyuki Tokigawa), which was released nationwide on June 13th and stars Ryosuke Sota. We asked her about the film, which has themes of "prayer for peace" and "thoughts for the future" and is set mainly in modern-day Hiroshima, and her thoughts now that she has graduated from university.
◇ Heroine in "Planet Love Song" also tries her hand at acting in English
The film is set in modern-day Hiroshima, 80 years after the end of the war, and tells a mysterious story of an encounter between American tourists and young Hiroshima residents, where the past and present intersect. Akita plays Ayaka, the heroine and childhood friend of the protagonist Mochi (played by Sota).
Akita also tried his hand at acting in English in scenes with John (Chase Ziegler), a mysterious American tourist visiting Hiroshima.
"I listened to recordings of my English lines and memorized them, including the meaning of the words. But when I was acting, I couldn't hear what John was saying very well...I was like, 'Huh, has he gotten that far already?' When I was reading the script, I thought I understood it properly and memorized it, but when I was on set, I sometimes couldn't hear it properly. There were times when I didn't know when I should react, and that was difficult."
Akita's acting in the film is so natural that you would never notice any of the hardships she endured. What impression did she have of the heroine, Ayaka?
"Ayaka is a girl who is single-minded and straightforward in pursuing what she wants to do. There were some similarities between me and her, so rather than trying to come up with a special way to prepare for the role, I simply tried to play Ayaka, who just pursues what she wants to do. Thanks to Sota-san, who plays Mochi, being friendly and talking to me a lot outside of filming, the atmosphere of childhood friends was created naturally, and I think I was able to really surrender myself to the situation and play Ayaka."
◇ Thinking back to 80 years ago: "I hope you will cherish the time after watching it"
Naturally, watching this film made me think about the war 80 years ago and the dropping of the atomic bomb.
"Originally, all I knew was what I'd learned in school, so after it was decided that I would be appearing, I studied it again on my own and visited the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum, carefully reading the explanations for each item. There were things used by the victims of the bomb, burnt clothes, a child's tricycle, and so on, and it was very distressing, but I'd never before studied history by imagining the lives and feelings of those who lived in that era, so this time was an opportunity to face history more deeply."
The film depicts the beautiful modern Hiroshima and even features delicious Hiroshima-style okonomiyaki. Filming took place in March of last year, and on days off, Akita enjoyed strolling around the city and sampling the local cuisine. "I think this is a film that will make you want to go to Hiroshima. Director Tokigawa is from Hiroshima, and I think his strong love for his hometown really comes through in the film," he said.
He also said, "I think the time you spend watching this movie is very important, but I also want people to cherish the time after watching it."
"There are parts of the film that ask the question, what can we do from now on? I don't want people to just leave it at that after watching it, but to take the time to think about what they can do for the future. I think the film is one that inevitably makes you think that way, so I hope that this message gets across to everyone."
◇What I gained from university life: From now on, I want to "act more from my own perspective"
Akita has been active as an exclusive model for magazines since her teens, and has appeared in films and dramas as an actor, including the heroine role in "Planet Love Song." One of the origins of her acting career was six years ago in the popular drama "3-nen A-gumi: Ima kara Mina wa, Hitojichi Desu" (Nippon TV). At the time, she was the youngest student, but now she is 22 years old, and this spring she will reach a turning point by graduating from university, which she chose because she thought it was "a life experience and something I should do to make an option for the future."
"I knew I wanted to act in the future when I was in my third year of high school, but I wasn't ready to commit myself to being an actor. I was worried about whether I could make a living from this, so I decided to go to university. I studied business administration, so I learned about money and other things that will be useful in life, and it was a great time. I also learned about language that I don't normally use by exchanging e-mails with my teachers, and I gained social knowledge and think that I have become a better person. I don't think I'll ever be so overwhelmed with assignments again, so when I think about the time I spent writing my graduation thesis on the computer between filming, I want to praise myself for being able to work so hard (laughs)."
By the way, Akita-san revealed that he wrote his graduation thesis on "the influence of one's own psychological state on acting." He also said that "I often don't remember clearly the performances when I was able to get into the role well," perhaps because of the deep immersion he felt, but now that he is "working all the time," what are his thoughts on this?
"Until now, I have taken advantage of the fact that I was a student, so now that I'm a full-time actor, I have to take things more seriously. I have more free time now, so I think it's important to use it to work on my roles. In the future, I want to act with more individuality and express myself more, so I want to act more using the emotions that come from within me, and I hope to become an actress who can make use of the moments that naturally arise."
