Mystery bus tour in the movie "About a Place in the Kinki Region" - "Too scary"

An experiential mystery bus tour for "About a Place in the Kinki Region" (directed by Shiraishi Koji, released on August 8th), a live-action mystery film based on Sekin-san's popular novel, was held in Tokyo on the 29th. At the end of the tour, at the movie theater "United Cinema Toyosu" (Koto Ward, Tokyo), the film's lead actors, Miho Kanno and Akaso Eiji, made a surprise appearance. The participants were surprised to see the two of them sitting among the audience when their blindfolds were removed.

Only those who can locate the meeting point, "a certain place in Tokyo," based on the "mysterious documents" published on the official website and social media are allowed to participate in this tour. After locating the starting point, Tokyo Tower, participants board the bus blindfolded and are transported to another "certain place in Tokyo," where they are transported to a terrifying world, surrounded by ominous announcements, mysterious calls like "Heyyy," the smell of incense wafting from nowhere, and the appearance of the missing girl who also appears in the film.

When the participants removed their blindfolds, they found themselves in the audience seats of United Cinema Toyosu. When they realized that Kanno and Akaso were sitting among the other participants, exclamations of surprise rang out through the venue. The two quietly crept into the audience and secretly took commemorative photos with the audience. In front of the excited audience, Kanno said with a big smile, "You were probably surprised when the flash went off while I was wearing an eye mask. We were actually taking photos!", and Akaso said with a big smile, "We were very careful when taking photos, even sneaking in signs. You'll be amazed when you see the photos uploaded later!"

The two also experienced the terrifying experience of a bus tour beforehand. Kanno said, "It was my first time doing something like this. I also experienced the bus tour and it was extremely scary, like, 'That's so scary, lol!' (laughs). As everyone experienced, I think it was an event that really expanded the worldview of the movie. I hope it will become a good memory." Akaso shared with the participants emotions that only those who experienced it can understand, saying, "The bus tour was extremely scary! Our vision was blocked, and I think there was a constant feeling of unease, not knowing what was going to happen, so I think everyone was really tired."

Regarding the puzzle-solving requirement for participating in the tour, Kanno said, "They gave us hints, but it was too difficult!", while Akaso lamented, "I have no idea. It's the hardest for me!" Regarding the film, Kanno said, "There are many mysteries, and it's exhilarating to see the puzzles come together. I think it's great to watch while wondering where that 'certain place' is. Things that were left out in the original novel appear in the film, so I think you can see things in a different way in the film." Akaso also spoke passionately about the appeal of the film, saying, "At first, even while I was acting, I was full of questions, but as they gradually came together, it felt good, but at the same time, a sense of unease emerged, so there were moments when I got scared while acting." After the event, the participants enjoyed the film.

The film is directed by Shiraishi, who has worked on films such as "Noroi" (2005), "Sadako vs. Kayako" (2016), and "Sayuri" (2024), and the original author, Sekin, who is a big fan of the director and has been influenced by him, is also participating as a scriptwriter.

An editor of an occult magazine suddenly goes missing... Until just before his disappearance, he had been researching something, scraping together various pieces of information, including investigative documents from unsolved cases, feature articles about mysterious phenomena, and shelved notes from previous interviews. While searching for him, fellow editor Ozawa and writer Chihiro discover that all of these events took place in "a certain place in the Kinki region." This is a new type of "location mystery" that explores why incidents occur in certain places.