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

The subject “we” erased our own worries.

Q: Aya Watanabe wrote about Director Sudo, saying, ``He has an outstanding ability to see through the latent beauty of his subjects and bring them out to their full potential.'' I think this is the greatest compliment for a film director whose job is to direct and move people, but how has the director himself interacted with the people around him?

Sudo: If I have one special skill, it's finding out what that person is best at. It may be that he used his special skills in casting and staffing and was successful. For example, Nakazaki-kun, who plays Yoshioka, has a great voice, so if you take the time to make him look mysterious, you'll be drawn into the character. Or, as I mentioned earlier, this is what I like about Mr. Toyama.I find out the charm of that person in my own way.

Akira Kigoshi, who plays Miko, doesn't have much experience as an actor yet, but I met her when she happened to be filming a music video. It's really interesting to be able to play a role and bring out the charm behind her without people noticing. The same goes for Ms. Watanabe, even though she writes the script normally, she draws out things she has never written before. I guess I like that kind of work.

This time, I asked a friend from high school to be in charge of the production department (the department in charge of all preparations, including progress on set and budget management). When we were playing soccer together, he would take the initiative to retrieve the ball that had gone somewhere, or when we were drinking with everyone at home, he would be washing the dishes before we knew it. I'm a person who can easily do things like that. I used to belittle myself for not being able to study, but that was not the case at all. In fact, I asked him to work in the production department this time, in order to make the most of his charm. By doing so, you will be able to act as an unsung hero and witness the moment when he shines more attractively than anyone else and earns everyone's respect. It feels good for both of us, doesn't it?

© 2021 “Backlight” FILM

As for the costume department, this time I went to a friend at a secondhand clothing store rather than a professional stylist. I wondered what would happen if someone who was very knowledgeable about clothes seriously worked on costumes for a movie, and I know he has great talent, but I wonder what would happen if he announced his talent to the world. It's like collecting all the information and making it into a movie.

Q: I think being a film director is a special job. Painters, novelists, and composers basically create their own worlds by themselves, one by one, but with movies, it's hard to do that. At first glance, building your own world and directing a large group of people seem to be polar opposites, but a film director is the one who balances both.

Sudo: What I learned a lot this time was that the worries I had been dealing with alone disappeared the moment I changed the subject to "we." Up until now, I had been burdened with a lot of personal worries and felt stuck, thinking that I wouldn't succeed as an actor or that I wasn't able to express myself well, but in the end, that was because I was trying to enjoy happiness on my own. and.

If you only carry your own worries, you will never be happy, but by bringing out the charm in others and allowing them to enjoy happiness, you can actually become happier yourself. I realized that for the first time after filming the movie. So from my point of view, the movie ``Backlight'' is the result of a deep belief in talented people.

Now that individualism is on the rise, I would like to expand this way of thinking. Doing something for others actually makes me happier.

Doubt what is fixed