"THU JAPAN 2023" Director Chie Hayakawa: The fun of "directing" revealed through acting [CINEMORE ACADEMY Vol.33]

The creative* event " THU 2024 " will be held in Tróia, Portugal from September 30th to October 5th, 2024. This year, animation artist Masanobu Hiraoka, The Game director Goichi Suda, lead concept artist Entei Ryu of Kojima Productions, and The Game designer/photographer Liam Wong will be taking the stage from Japan to hold talks and workshops. ( https://www.instagram.com/thu_japan/ )

And exactly one year ago, from September 20th to 23rd, 2023, "THU JAPAN 2023 (#THUJAPAN)" was held in Kaga City, Ishikawa Prefecture, as the first creative retreat event to arrive in Japan.

The CINEMORE editorial team, which participated in "THU JAPAN 2023," interviewed four of the many instructors who are well-versed in film. This time, we bring you the final installment, an interview with Hayakawa Chie, director of " PLAN 75 " (22). Hayakawa's "Storytelling Manual" at "THU JAPAN 2023" was an acting workshop led by professional actors. What does it mean for a director to "direct" actors? During the workshop, we were able to witness the moment when acting and a story are born.

Workshop: Storytelling

This interactive session will allow participants to discover storytelling techniques through an acting workshop led by professional actors. Together, we will use our imaginations to explore how emotions change and the connection between emotions and storytelling through the physical expression of acting.

*Please note that this workshop will continue to be held in the future, so we will not go into details about the content in this article.

Index

• Storytelling and Acting Workshops
• What is "direction"?
• The fun of directing revealed through acting

Storytelling and Acting Workshops

Q: This is your first time participating in "THU JAPAN." How was it?

Hayakawa: I had heard about the event beforehand, but I couldn't imagine what it would be like. When I actually participated, I was able to hear from creative people who are close to me, yet so far away, and it was very inspiring. I usually only have contact with the film industry, so I was able to come into contact with new ideas, such as manga, animation, food, and crafts, and it felt like I had my senses stimulated in many different ways.

Q: What did you think of the THU JAPAN 2023 initiative and the "Storytelling" retreat?

Hayakawa: When I first heard about THU, I heard that many animation and CG creators would be participating, so I thought it might be a bit outside my field. However, if the theme was "storytelling," I thought maybe I could do something. I'm glad that I was approached to take part in this theme episode.

It's difficult to talk about in a lecture, but it might be possible to get the audience involved in something like a workshop. So, when I told the staff about the contents of a workshop I had previously held, they said, "That sounds interesting!" So, let's give it a try.

Q: Was the format of that workshop the same as this one?

Hayakawa: That's true. However, this was the first time we'd performed in such a public setting, so we didn't know if it would work until we actually tried it. It all depends on the actors' abilities, and this time we also had to translate into English. It seemed fun, but I wondered if we could do it properly... I was very anxious, and was skeptical until I tried it.

Q: I was surprised to see how various stories were born from the two actors' skits, from the audience to the actors. It seemed as though Director Hayakawa himself was also discovering new realizations and creating new stories.

Hayakawa: That's exactly right. It's always interesting to discover that. I always enjoy it.

What is "direction"?