For the last few years, Osaka Asian Film Festival has been screening MOOSIC LAB films. These works are the result of the pairing together of up-and-coming directors, actors, actresses, and musical performers into a unit to create a movie. The final products are almost always idiosyncratic in some way since they are the results of the combined talents of whoever has been grouped together. This year’s entry was POP!, a quirky drama featuring dry comedy and existential angst. It plays on the unique combination of director Masashi Komura (小村昌士), lead actress Rina Ono (小野莉奈), and DJ/producer Aru-2.
Rina Ono takes the lead role of Rin Kashiwakura, a 19-year-old who is on the cusp of turning 20, the official age of becoming an adult. With the approach of such a momentous occasion in her life one would expect excitement but what she feels is frustration and confusion as she struggles to understand how she fits in with others and the world at large, and just what she wants to do. An early dream of becoming an actress has become side-tracked and she works part-time as an official mascot on a struggling local TV charity program and part-time at a remote mountainside car park where nothing much happens. An encounter with a mad bomber leaving explosive packages around town gives her some impetus to move forward.
This description may seem full of random elements but they are deliberate and filmed in such a way by Masashi Komura that they form a collage of situations that form the entry point into Rin’s existential crisis – nothing seems to join together story-wise, long sequences happen in empty locations, and scenes can be devoid of propulsive action and sound and time. At its centre is a strong yet reticent performance from Rina Ono who keeps our attention. Overlaying everything is the downtempo lo-fi musical tracks of of Aru-2. Its lazy beats, samples, and various audio imperfections are indicative of both what a person Rin’s age might listen to and also how she feels. When combined, at times, this experience is frustrating, tiring, and confusing but there is also a lot of humour and heart as Rin struggles to make sense of things. These myriad of emotions reminded me of what I felt in my own adolescence. In short, the film had successfully made me feel Rin’s existential crisis as she tries to pull herself out of her stagnant life and move forward like the adults around her. The final result is a truly unique film (my review).
I wasn’t the only one, it seems. The film won the Grand Prix and Rina Ono also nabbed the Best Actress Award at the MOOSIC LAB awards, thus showing that quality of the film. Director Masashi Komura kindly agreed to take part in an interview to explain how the different elements of the film match up and he furnished many interesting answers.
A relatively new filmmaker, Komura has worked on a number of projects including co-writing the screenplay for The Man Who Was Eaten, which was featured at Osaka Asian Film Festival 2016, writing and directing the 2017 film LEO, and appearing in Ken Ninomiya’s The Matsumoto Tribe (2017). Komura talked more about POP!, how the project came together, his inspirations, his approach to manipulating time, and working with Aru-2 and gifting his sound to audiences.
This interview was done with the massive help of Takako Pocklington, who translated between English and Japanese to help bring director Komura’s answers to the page.
The Japanese-language interview is followed by the English.
Japanese
MOOSIC LABグランプリ受賞おめでとうございます
『POP!』のアイデアはどんな風にうまれたのですか？
企画が始まった当初から主演は小野莉奈さんだと決まっていて、撮影当時１９歳だった小野さんと同じ、１９歳の女性を描こうと思いました。ただそうは言っても、僕が１９歳の女性に対して中々共感が得られず、すぐには思いつきませんでした。そこで周りの女性に「１９歳の時なにを思っていたか？」と聞いてみると、一人の方から「二十歳になると終わると思っていた」というのを聞いて、面白いなと思ったんです。二十歳、すなわち成人を迎えることに対してネガティブな感情を持っていることが僕にとっては新鮮で、その一言が物語のキッカケになっています。
POP!』にはとても風変わりな雰囲気があります。物語は彷徨い、緊張したムードがあちこちに散りばめられ、でも苦悩の感情が一貫して描かれてる。この物語を書くにあたって、常に心がけてられたことは何ですか？
コーエン兄弟の『シリアスマン』という映画を参考にしました。僕の大好きな映画なんですが、当時劇場で観たときは「すごく面白かったけど口で説明できない」という印象だったんです。ただその印象が強烈に残っていて、今回の『ＰＯＰ！』もそういう映画にしたいなと思い、あらためて『シリアスマン』を何度か見返しました。それで気付いたことは、あれだけ変な映画だと思っていたのに見事に三幕構成で作られていたということです。なので三幕構成は意識して物語は書きました。成功しているかは分かりませんが…。
小野莉奈さんは人気上昇中の女優さんですね。どうして彼女を起用されたのですか？ またこの役柄を演じるにあたって、どのような指導、準備をされたのでしょうか？
小野さんが俳優デビューしたドラマがあるのですが、僕もそれに出演していたんです。少しの共演だったのですが、そのことに縁を感じて、勝手ながら今回は僕の長編映画デビューに出演してもらおうと小野さんにしました。
実際の小野さんがかなりユニークな魅力の持ち主なので、その魅力が滲み出るようなキャラクター作りは意識しました。ただ気を付けたことは、キャラクター自体をユニークにしすぎると返って小野さんの魅力が出ないんじゃないかと思ったので、あえて演じる柏倉リンは薄い印象のキャラクターにしました。
駐車場での仕事とチャリティ番組の仕事、リンの職業には大きな違いがありますよね。主人公の職業に、この全く異なる二つの職場を選んだのは何故ですか？
まずチャリティ番組は、僕自身のチャリティに対する違和感からできた設定です。その違和感の中で主人公のリンは彷徨ってほしいなと思いました。番組の雰囲気は愉快だけど、よく見ると変だぞ、と。ただチャリティという言葉の手前、誰も変なことには突っ込めない。そういう状況を作りたかったんです。
駐車場は、いくつか理由があるのですが、まず設定上リンはあまり他の人たちの目に触れない生活を送らなければならないこと。そのために全くと言っていいほどの人気のない駐車場で働いています。
それと今回は車を重要なモチーフにしていて、大人たちは車に乗っているが、１９歳のリンは車を駐車する＝停滞している場所で働いている、という立場を表現しました。
あとは、駐車場バイトって映画で観たことないし撮影も出来そうだな、という打算的な発想です。
チャリティ番組でのコスチュームは非常にインパクトがあります。マンガチックで可愛い、でも着にくそうです。あのデザインのアイデアはどこから湧いてきたのですか？あのコスチュームに何か意図があるのでしょうか？
コスチュームも一目で分かるぐらい変なものにしたくて、あのような衣装とカツラにしました。リンが着せられている、やらされているというのを表現したかったんです。
ただ現場では思った以上に小野さんにあの衣装が似合っていて、意図が伝わらないんじゃないかと心配になりました。公開後に観た人から「着せられている感が伝わった」と聞いたのでかなり安心しました。
街のあちこちに爆弾を仕掛けるという、あの常軌を逸した爆弾男の登場は、ちょっと突飛な感じがしました。彼の存在で何を伝えたかったのですか？
まずはおっしゃる通り突飛なものを出したかったんです。それは映画においても突飛で、物語のリンにとっても突飛なものを求めていました。女優になりたいが、本心でやっているわけではないチャリティ番組に出演しているリンとは正反対の、とにかくやりたいからやっている彼を出現させることで、リンの何かを動かすキッカケにしたかったんです。
監督は俳優としての経験をお持ちですよね。そして「食べられる男」の脚本の共同制作者でもあります。今回、長編映画を製作されてみて、どんな風に感じられましたか？
今回長編映画を制作したうえで、あらためて映画は時間芸術だと感じました。それは特に編集段階で感じたことです。映画館ではその映画の時間と強制的に向き合うことになります。それをダイレクトにコントロールできる編集の作業は、いろいろと考えることが多かったです。なので『POP！』を作ってから、映画を観る際に体感時間を意識するようになりました。映画の体感時間は、これからの映画制作の重要な気付きになったと思います
過去のプロジェクトから身につけられた技法・手法で『POP!』にも使用されたものは、どう言ったものですか？
技法というより精神的な部分が大きいです。とにかく作り上げること。そのために強い気持ちを持って映画に取り組むこと。この当たり前のことが、制作段階の様々な状況のなかで折れてしまいそうになる。その中でいかに自分を保って決断をしていくか。泥臭いですが、映画監督とはそういう人だと思います。それは僕が今まで関わった監督たちがそのような強心臓を持った人ばかりだったので気付けたことでした。
この映画のサウンドトラックを担当したAru-2は、音楽プロデューサー兼DJですね。この映画を作る前からAru-2の事はご存知だったのですか？ 何故、Aru-2にサウンドトラックを依頼されたのか、またその音楽を、映画の中でどんなふうに使用されたのか、お話頂けますか？
僕が元々Aru-2のファンだったのが一番の理由です。Aru-2のオリジナリティがあってどこか哀愁漂うビートがすごく好きで、初めてビートライブで実際のAru-2を見たときに、そのパフォーマンスにも感動しました。なによりそのライブ会場に、すごく素敵な空気が流れていたんです。その空気感を映画館に持ち込みたかったというのがあります。
劇中の狙いとしては、Aru-2の哀愁あるビートと、それとはミスマッチな物語が重なった時に起こる可笑しさ、でした。大げさに言うと、変な世界観を作りたかったんです。
その中で、主人公のリンが新たな世界に進んでいくという最後のシーンでは、Aru-2のビートが「なにがあっても大丈夫」というような肯定してくれていて、その意味が強く伝えられるシーンになったと思います。
この映画を製作するのにあたって、コロナの影響をどんな風に受けたかお話して頂けますか？
撮影前の脚本を仕上げる時期が一度目の緊急事態宣言下だったので、ずっと自宅とその圏内で生活しながら脚本と向き合ってました。この先どうなるかわからない状況だったので、大きな影響ではないですが少なからずその気分は物語に反映されている気がします。たぶんこの時期に制作された映画で、超絶ピースフルな映画は無いんじゃないでしょうか。
MOOSIC LABは映画製作者とミュージシャンがコラボするユニークな機会ですよね。MOOSIC LABと協働することの利点について教えてください。
そのミュージシャンのファンの方、『POP！』だとAru-2のファンの方達に映画が届くというのが一番嬉しいです。尚且つMOOSIC LABは劇場で映画を上映してくれるということです。劇場の環境でしか感じれない低音や音の鳴りがあって、その環境でAru-2のビートを堪能してもらいたくて作った映画でもあるので、是非劇場に観に来てほしいです。
English
Congratulations on the success of POP! At the MOOSIC LAB awards.
Where did the idea of POP! come from?
Rina Ono was already cast to play the lead role from the beginning of the pre-production stage. With her in place, I decided to portray a woman who is 19 years old because Ono-san was 19 at the time. Although I came up with the idea of the character, I found it hard to relate to a 19-year-old woman and couldn’t picture what they are like. So I asked the women around me about what they thought when they were 19. One of them gave me an interesting answer, saying that “I thought it would be over when I reached 20.” It was an eye-opener that she had such a negative feeling about becoming 20, reaching the legal age of adulthood (in Japan). This story started from her words.
POP! has a very unique atmosphere. It felt as if the story drifted and the tension was diffused with so many different locations and storylines but it really captures the feelings of angst. What did you bear in mind when you wrote the story?
I was inspired by A Serious Man (2009) by the Coen brothers. It is my favourite film. However, I had an ambiguous feeling for this film when I saw it the first time in the cinema. I had the impression that it was “superb but unexplainable.”. The film lingered in my mind and I wanted to make POP! into a similar kind of film. I re-watched A Serious Man several times then I realised that the film fits perfectly into a three-act structure, even though it is a strange film. So, I wrote the story whilst bearing the three-act structure in mind. I am not sure if I managed to achieve it though…
Rina Ono is a rising actress. Why did you cast her and how did you prepare her for the role?
I co-starred with Ono-san in her debut drama. We worked together briefly there, but I felt some connection with her, so I asked her to appear in my feature film debut.
Ono-san has a rather unique charm, so I tried to create a character that could exude her charms. I was also concerned that it wouldn’t have brought out her charms fully if the character itself was too unique. Therefore, I deliberately depict Rin with a subdued bearing.
There is a big contrast between Rin’s work at the car park and her work on the charity programme. Why did you select those two as workplaces for the main character?
The idea of the charity programme came from my own feeling of uneasiness when it comes to charity. I wanted Rin to wander around with that feeling of “uneasiness” in such a setting. There is a cheerful atmosphere in her charity programme, but something awkward when you look at it carefully. However, because of the word “charity,” nobody can poke into the strangeness. I wanted to create that kind of situation.
There are several reasons why I chose the work at the car park. At first, Rin’s life should be unnoticeable to the public, which is why she works at the deserted car park.
Secondly, cars are a significant motif in the film. I wanted to depict 19-year-old Rin’s existential state through her job at the car park. She parks cars and works at a stationary place while adults get in cars (and are in motion).
And the last is a prudential reason, which I had hardly seen a car park job in films and also I thought it seemed easier to shoot at such a location.
The charity costume has a very memorable look. Very cartoony and cute but it looks difficult to wear. Where did the design idea come from and what did you want to convey with it?
I wanted to make the costume striking so I used that dress and wig. I intended to convey the nuance that Rin was made to dress like that or that she was forced. However, the costume unexpectedly suited Ono-san when she put them on at the shoot. I was worried that I might fail to convey my intention because Ono-san looks so good in the costume. Therefore, I was relieved when I heard audience members saying that they could get the sense of her being forced to dress in that costume.
The Mad Bomber planting bombs around town was a bit of a wild concept. What did you want to convey with him?
As you said, I wanted to insert something eccentric, both for the film and for Rin. The bomber is the polar opposite of Rin, who wants to be an actress but unwillingly works for the charity programme. The appearance of the bomber, who does whatever he wants to, presents a stimulus to Rin.
You have acting experience and also co-wrote the screenplay for The Man Who Was Eaten. How did you find making a feature film?
In making this feature film, I have realised once again that film is a temporal art form. I realised it, especially at the post-production stage. You are forced to face the (moments of) time recorded on film in the cinema. The editing process enabled me to control it (time) directly and also to think about all sorts of things. I have now become conscious about the physical sensation of time while watching a film since I made POP!. Being aware of a physical sensation time is an important discovery for me to continue filmmaking in future.
What skills did you learn on previous projects that you used on POP!?
I would say that I learned a mentality (mental stamina) rather than a skill. Completing a film means that you need to have strong commitment and determination. You will find this simple aim hard to achieve and feel discouraged under all the difficulties encountered during the production process. A film director is supposed to be person who can keep him/herself going and make decisions. I learned it from the directors whom I have worked with and those who have a strong mentality.
Aru-2 is a music producer/DJ who makes the soundtrack for the film. Had you heard of Aru-2 before making the film? How did you decide to work with Aru-2 and implement the music in the film?
The main reason for my decision to collaborate with Aru-2 is that I am a fan of Aru-2. I like Aru-2’s originality and his melancholic beats very much. I was moved by Aru-2’s performance when I saw him for the first time when I went to the Beat Live. Above all, there was an amazing atmosphere at the live venue. I wanted to bring that atmosphere into cinemas. With this film, I aimed to create a humorous vibe when the story is mismatched with the melancholic beat by Aru-2. Frankly speaking, I just wanted to create a weird perspective. In the final scene where Rin sets off to “a new world”, the sound of the Aru-2’s beat is affirming like “you will be fine, whatever happens.” I think the scene managed to convey the message.
Can you talk about how Covid-19 has impacted your film?
It was under the Covid-19 state of emergency when I was finishing off the script prior to the shoot, so I was staring at the script at home all time. I think my mood might have been reflected in there because the situation of the future was uncertain. I assume that there aren’t any happy-go-lucky films that were made during the time.
MOOSIC LAB is a unique set-up in how it pairs filmmakers and musicians together. Can you talk about some of the benefits of working with MOOSIC LAB?
What makes me happy is that Aru-2 fans have chances to see POP!. MOOSIC LAB will show the film in cinemas. There are some bass sounds or beats that you would enjoy only in the environment of cinemas. I made this film also aiming for the audience to enjoy Aru-2’s beats.
So please go and see the film in cinemas.
Genkinahito 