"Backlight" Director Ren Sudo A world that is too divided and its sense of crisis [Director's Interview Vol.127]

From Aya Watanabe's script to director Ren Sudo

Q: When you actually direct a project yourself, you need to embody your vision. How did you proceed in that area?

Sudo: That was really difficult. Mr. Watanabe's scripts are composed of sentences that seem to have pictures interwoven with them, so the pictures themselves come to mind right away, but I was a little concerned about filming them as they were. By the way, the first image I had in mind was Hong Sang-soo's film-like images of blurred daily life shot with fixed point fixation.

Anyway, the script is ``adult'' and I personally like that ``adult feel,'' but I thought a lot about how far it would reach when it was turned into a movie. For that reason, I tried to completely change the image I had when I first read it, and began creating images. I think I had a perspective on how to break down this script.

Q: Director Maeda of " Wonder Wall " said that Mr. Watanabe's script was like a storyboard.

Sudo: That's right. Normally, I think people start writing scripts by creating a story, but Mr. Watanabe probably incorporates the images into the script. I can already see the picture, and I'm writing it into a script. Because the script is so visual, the quality does not deteriorate even when it is made into a movie or drama.

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I had a lot of people read this script, and they all said, ``The pictures come to mind.'' That's a little frustrating. At first, I thought there was no need for me to direct the movie if I could imagine it after reading the script, so at first I wanted to make a movie that was completely different from what everyone else had in mind.

From the initial balance of 99% Watanabe Aya and 1% Sudo Ren, there was a fierce battle within me as to how far I could take it as a director's work. It was extremely difficult for me to find my own meaning in this script, and there was a time when I would just read the script, walk around the riverbank, and ask myself, ``What in the world am I going to film with this script?''

Q: Were there any requests for revisions to the script?

Sudo: It was a wonderful literary work as it was, but I asked for some moments that were a little more understandable. What was actually added were the scene where Yoshioka chases away the delinquents, the scene where Fumie takes care of the angels, and the scene where Fumie watches Akira jump off.

Q: I see, that part was added. Please tell us the specific reason.

Sudo: I wanted a moment where Yoshioka looked cool, something that would make it clear that Akira admires Yoshioka, and I also wanted to give a little more insight into Fumie's personality. Regarding the jumping scene, I think it would be better if there was a scene where Fumie looks at Akira. That's a suggestion from Mr. Watanabe.

Akira and Miko had a strong presence from the first draft, so I think I probably wanted to understand Fumie and Yoshioka better.

``Backlight'' may be Fumie's movie.