The TBS Sunday Theatre drama "Diamonds in the Sea (Umi ni Nemuru Diamond)" (Sundays at 9pm) starring actor Kamiki Ryunosuke will start at 9pm on October 20th. It is a story of love, friendship and family spanning 70 years, set in Hashima Island, Nagasaki Prefecture, which developed through coal mining from the beginning of the Meiji era to the postwar high economic growth period, and in modern-day Tokyo. It is a notable work by the team behind the dramas "Unnatural" and "MIU404" and the movie "The Last Mile", with screenwriter Nogi Akiko, director Tsukahara Ayuko, and producer Arai Junko. The four main cast members who play the past parts, including Kamiki Ryunosuke, who plays two roles, Saito Takumi, Sugisaki Hana, and Tsuchiya Tao, spoke about the story.
The story depicts the postwar reconstruction period to the high economic growth period, "an era when there was nothing but dreams and was full of vitality", and the modern era, "an era when at first glance there seems to be everything but young people cannot have dreams". Kamiki plays two roles: the bright and straightforward Teppei, who was born and raised in a coal miner's family on Hashima Island, and Reo, a modern-day host.
◇Kamiki Ryunosuke, who gently leads everyone, is like the sun.
--Kamiki, this is your first time starring in a Sunday Theatre production. How did you feel when you received the offer?
Kamiki: When I heard about the role, I was happy, but also felt pressured, wondering if I was the right person for it. When I appeared in "Shudan Saseshin!!" (2019), I was looking up to my senior, Fukuyama Masaharu, and I had a strong impression that Fukuyama was motivating us, so I imagined the role to be played by someone with a lot of experience. So I wondered if I was the right person for the role...
Saito: I'm sorry to say this, but when did you start your career...?
Kamiki: Since I was 2 years old... (laughs). I was worried about whether I would have the strength to lead everyone, but the support of all the kind people has given me strength instead.
--What do you all think of the leader of the troupe?
Sugisaki: He's incredibly kind.
Saito: That's true. He's like the sun.
Tsuchiya: On the other hand, Saito, who plays Teppei's older brother Shinpei, is like the moon, partly because of the shadow he carries.
--Saito, how did you feel about playing the role of Kamiki's older brother?
Saito: We'd worked together before on another drama, but halfway through we started to ignore the script and just filmed a dialogue, and it felt like we were having a session. I was looking forward to working with him again this time. That time I played the role of an underwear thief...
Kamiki: That's right. I played the role of a detective (laughs). I went from being the one cornering him during the interrogation to playing his brother. I think Saito is an older brother who will accept anything, so I feel reassured that he'll watch over me kindly even if I make a mistake.
--Sugisaki, Tsuchiya, what do you think of Kamiki?
Sugisaki: This is my seventh time working with Kamiki, and it's been about 10 years since I first met him. Kamiki-san is still the same kindhearted person he was back then, and I really admire his considerate attitude towards those around him.
Tsuchiya: I've been watching the works Kamiki-san has starred in since I was little. When he's acting, he switches on, but when the director calls cut, he shows us his bright and playful side, which really cheers us up. Now that everyone's grown up, we tend to stay quiet on set, but Kamiki overturns that in a good way (laughs).
--This is the first time Kamiki-san has taken on a dual role.
Kamiki: Yes. It's still the same, but the ideal situation would be for people to think of me as two different people. I've been thinking about the differences between the two roles of Hashima Teppei and the modern-day Reo, and I'm working hard in consultation with the director so that the differences can be conveyed to the viewers.
--Has anyone here met Kamiki-san, who plays Reo?
Kamiki: Sugisaki-san came to the set once.
Sugisaki: That's right. He was like a completely different person! I was like, "What's wrong, Teppei?" (laughs).
Kamiki: Since I'm playing a host, I greeted him with a bit of a frivolous "Hana-chan!" (laughs).
◇Everyone was excited by the skill of the great senior Kunimura Jun
--Please tell us more about the roles played by Saito, Sugisaki, and Tsuchiya.
Saito: Teppei's older brother, Shinpei, is a person who lives with faith in something that resides on Hashima while carrying the burden of what happened in that era and what remains of it. When Teppei returns to the island, the wattage of Hashima's brightness increases, and I'm trying to portray the gradation of light that shines not only on me but also on my family.
Sugisaki: Asako is Teppei's childhood friend, and she has always secretly had a crush on him, but is also frustrated that she can't put it into words. She is a person with a rich heart who stops in her tracks when she sees something beautiful, even though she spends her busy days as the restaurant's poster girl. There were no plants on Hashima Island, so flowers were very precious, but I managed to gather a few flowers and display them in my workplace, and I treasure them. In order to have that same feeling within myself, I actually live by arranging a single flower at home.
Tsuchiya Yuriko is also a childhood friend of Teppei and Asako. She seems like a bright, free-spirited character who strives to be a new type of woman, but she is carrying a lot of things on her shoulders... But she is a girl who doesn't show it.
--Please tell us about an episode with your co-star.
Kamiki: Miyamoto Nobuko, who plays Izumi, is kind and powerful, and she really helps me. After rehearsals are over, she consults me with a look full of expectation and hope, asking me, "Reo, what should we do?" and "Okay, I'll try this!", hoping that we might come across something interesting.
Saito: Miyamoto's appearance during the reading was also impressive. Readings tend to be a matter of following the words of the script, but Miyamoto was staring at Kamiki the whole time, and I was thrilled to see her taking things in with her heart.
I have a lot of scenes with Kunimura Jun, who plays my father, Ippei. Kunimura has a genius technique where he can position the camera exactly where he wants his face to be, and we named it "KUNIMURA," which sounds like a gymnastics technique.
Kamiki: There was a scene where we were filming from a distance in a place with lots of pillars, but it was a place where you couldn't really tell where the camera was from when Kunimura was walking. We could only film from limited gaps, but he stopped exactly where the camera would show him during the actual shoot.
Saito: That's right. What's more, the camera position had changed from rehearsal, and Kunimura wasn't informed of this. But even so, he got it right during the actual shoot, and I thought, "KUNIMURA! Gold medal!"
Kamiki: There it is! That's very artistic! (laughs). When I told Kunimura about it, he said, "I'm so happy that it's become the name of a technique!"
--The production team for this film is said to be the strongest team that has produced many masterpieces. What is your impression of them?
Kamiki: When the film was announced, the articles all said "the strongest team," and for a moment I was worried about whether I could keep up with the three of them. But I felt relieved that I had a team that everyone recognized so highly. Nogi (Akiko)'s words, Tsukahara (Ayuko)'s acting hurdles, and Arai (Junko)'s eyes as she looked at the cast made me want to follow them even if I had to crawl. In reality, everyone is very friendly!
Sugisaki: Nogi's script vividly brings to mind the powerful people who live on Hashima. I felt encouragement and blessings for people to live side by side. This is the first time I've worked with Tsukahara and Arai since "Midnight Ferris Wheel" (2013). I'm approaching filming with a sense of nostalgia, knowing that if you keep working steadily, such happy reunions await you.
--Finally, in line with the drama's title, please tell us your "diamonds sleeping in your hearts."
Kamiki: The "diamonds" sleeping in my heart are... "fun." In fact, they might not even be sleeping! I just choose whatever I think is fun. Even during actual filming, I want to try a lot of different things, so I don't take the safe route when it comes to acting. But that's more natural for everyday movements. Also, when I thought it would be fun, I suddenly threw a sock at Kunimura (laughs).
Sugisaki: You did!
Kamiki: Before filming, I told Kunimura, "My sock might fly into your face," and he said, "No problem! Welcome!" Surprisingly, I was able to throw it where I aimed during the actual filming.
Saito: Throwing a sock at the face, that's "KAMIKI" (laughs).
Kamiki: That kind of fun direction is my "diamond"!
Sugisaki: My "diamond" is Tao-chan! When I auditioned for the morning drama series, Tao-chan was the heroine of the morning drama. I was nervously waiting for my turn, and Tao-chan happened to be passing by and said, "Hana, is this an audition? You can do it! You'll be fine!" It gave me so much courage, and it's still a precious memory to me.
Tsuchiya: Thank you! Hana means a lot to me, and even if I can't meet her, I always watch any show she's in. I love her acting, of course, but also her acting as a person.
Kamiki: You two are always together on set!
Tsuchiya: In the story, our characters don't get along, but I think that because we like each other, there are parts where we end up misunderstanding each other. I hope you'll pay attention to the relationship between the two of them.
Saito: My heart was cleansed by their conversation, so I think that's enough. (laughs) My "diamonds" are Kunimura-san and Sawamura Ikki-san, who plays Tatsuo. He's a great senior, and I've learned so much from him. For this film, I heard that Sawamura cut his own hair, so I decided to cut my own hair too. I'm pretty sure there were no hairdressers on Hashima at the time who could do modern cuts. However, I couldn't cut the sides properly, so they ended up looking like a mushroom, so I had the makeup artist cut just the sides on set (laughs).
