In the Asadora drama series "Anpan " (NHK General TV, Monday to Saturday 8:00 AM and others), starring Mio Imada, Motoki Omori of " Mrs. Green Apple " plays the role of Takuya Ise . We spoke to him about his thoughts on playing the role, which is modeled after the composer Izumi Tasuku, who has created many famous songs such as the classic "Te no Hira wo Taiyou ni."
◇ "Music colors people's hearts" - Sympathy for Izumi Takumi
Takuya Ise, played by Omori, has composed numerous music for commercials, movies, television, and radio plays. He also has a passion for musicals, composing over 15,000 songs in his lifetime. He was in charge of the music for the musical "Look Up at the Stars in the Night Sky," for which he was responsible, and when Takashi Yanai(Takumi Kitamura) was tasked with creating the stage art, Ise Takuya was tasked with composing the song "Te no Hira wo Taiyou ni," for which Takashi wrote the lyrics.
Omori, who was active as the vocalist of Mrs. Green Apple and has worked in a wide range of fields from songwriting to production, releasing numerous hit songs, what was it about Izumi Tatan, the model for her character, that she sympathized with?
"I read Izumi-sensei's autobiography and listened to his work. Music is something that colors people's hearts, and is nothing more than a form of entertainment, but still... I felt a sense of empathy in the way he puts his soul into it, and pours all kinds of feelings into it. I aspire to be like that too, so it's quite presumptuous to say that we are similar in some ways, but that's what I felt. The way he simply tries to brighten people's hearts with music is something I also strongly believe that 'that's how it should be.'"
This year, Omori made his first film appearance and first leading role in the movie "#TruthIsAnshou." In "Anpan," he will play Takuya Ise from the age of 18 to his 50s, and when he first appears, he appears in a school uniform. "This is the first time I've portrayed a wide range of ages, and I've been baptized by a Asadora," he revealed.
"However, his straightforward personality remains the same no matter how old he gets, and he is a very greedy and hungry person, so I don't want to change that forward-leaning attitude. He has been married several times, but the length of his relationships never overlapped, and he is someone who loves people very purely and straightforwardly. This may also be true of his view of love, and I'm sure he faces Takashi with a straightforward heart. I'm playing the role hoping that he doesn't lose his edge as he gets older."
◇Pay attention to the piano playing and singing scenes!
There is also a scene in the play where he plays the piano. Omori himself explains his skills by saying, "I sometimes write songs on the piano, but I'm not a pianist. It's a technique that is based on the premise that I won't be playing in front of others."
"I only had a week between when I heard I would be playing and when filming began, so I asked them to prepare a piano for me in the dressing rooms of my other jobs, like filming commercials and recordings, and I tried to use it whenever I had even 20 seconds to spare, and practiced as much as I could. I was a little worried that people might think, 'That's not a big deal considering he makes his living as a composer,' but from what I'd seen in the documents, it seems that Izumi-san was also self-taught, so I thought, 'OK, I can do this!' I conveniently assumed that he was playing the piano with his own form and at his own pace, and I played with a look on my face that said it was all true to history (laughs)."
Furthermore, the film will also feature scenes of Takuya singing, and Omori explains, "I think the basic premise is that Takuya is not a player, so I thought it would be unrealistic if he responded quickly to singing. I think people do hesitate a little when they sing, so I wanted to make sure to capture that nuance."
"Mrs.'s songs are in a really high key, but when I sang as Takuya, I kept the key as low as possible so that the Mrs. vibe wouldn't come across, so I was probably conscious of working to tone it down. Miho Nakazono's script said 'sing', and I was like, 'Good job, Nakazono-san!' (laughs). It's really funny, and I understand the point of me singing, but I thought that if the singing scene became a noticeable hook, it would get in the way of the film. I talked about that with the director and Takumi-kun, and we wanted to portray it in a very delicate way."
How will Takuya Ise, played by Omori, move the story forward? Also, how will he portray Takuya in the piano playing and singing scenes? We can't take our eyes off the future developments.
