Latest news with #Hamaguchi
Yahoo
06-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
‘Drive My Car' Director Ryusuke Hamaguchi to Make His Next Film ‘All of a Sudden' in Paris With Virginie Efira, Tao Okamoto (EXCLUSIVE)
Yahoo is using AI to generate takeaways from this article. This means the info may not always match what's in the article. Reporting mistakes helps us improve the experience. Yahoo is using AI to generate takeaways from this article. This means the info may not always match what's in the article. Reporting mistakes helps us improve the experience. Yahoo is using AI to generate takeaways from this article. This means the info may not always match what's in the article. Reporting mistakes helps us improve the experience. Generate Key Takeaways 'Drive My Car's Oscar-winning director Ryusuke Hamaguchi is set to make his next film, 'All of a Sudden,' in Paris with a glamorous female duo led by Virginie Efira ('Benedetta') and Tao Okamoto ('The Wolverine'). Hamaguchi, who is currently in Paris preparing for the movie, penned the script with Léa Le Dimna, loosely inspired by a collection of real-life exchanged letters published in the book 'You and I – The Illness Suddenly Get Worse,' by Makiko Miyano and Maho Isono. More from Variety 'All of a Sudden' is produced by David Gauquié, Julien Deris, Jean-Luc Ormières, Renan Artukmaç at Paris-based Cinefrance Studios; Hiroko Matsuda, Kosuke Oshida, Yuji Sadai at Japan's Office Shirous & Bitters End; Bettina Brokemper at Germany's Heimat Film; and Joseph Rouschop at Belgium's Tarantula. Diaphana, who handled Hamaguchi's last three movies, will release 'All of a Sudden' in France, while Bitters End will distribute it in Japan. Cinefrance International is handling world sales outside of Asia which is represented by Bitters End. The two companies will unveil the project to buyers at the Cannes Film Market. Hamaguchi broke through the international scene in a major way in 2022, after garnering four Oscar nominations for 'Drive My Car,' including best director and adapted screenplay, as well as Japan's first ever for best picture, and won for best international feature. Since then, he directed 'Evil Does Not Exist' which premiered at Venice and won the Silver Lion and the Fipresci prize, and the experimental silent piece 'Gift.' 'After 'Drive My Car,' I received various offers and this was the only one that caught my attention at that time because I was so deeply moved by the correspondence between these two women,' said Hamaguchi during an interview, alongside Gauquié, Ormières and Artukmaç, at the offices of Cinefrance in Paris. In the book 'You and I — The Illness Suddenly Get Worse,' which was brought to Hamaguchi by Matsuda from Office Shirous, a philosopher and an anthropologist are exchanging letters discussing their thoughts on chance and risk, and their relationship develops into something more personal when the philosopher's health suddenly deteriorates. 'Death becomes a subject they discuss and exchange a lot about, and gradually, it becomes an encounter between two souls,' says Hamaguchi, who ultimately decided to transpose the story in France, and turn the epistolary relationship into a real one between two women, a Japanese theater director and French director of a nursing home. The film will shoot mainly in Paris. 'I'd like to show a Paris that's a little different from the clichés we might have about the city,' says Hamaguchi. 'I'm starting to discover some places that aren't touristy. So I think that will give a slightly different view of Paris than usual,' he continued. 'All of the Sudden' will mark Hamaguchi's first collaboration with Gauquié at Cinefrance, whom he met in 2022 during one of his trips to Japan once the country had reopened its borders after the pandemic. 'I had been eager to meet (Hamaguchi) for some time because I love his work so we sat at a café in Shibuya and instead of discussing a specific project, we talked about French cinema in general,' Gauquié says. The producer said he noticed Hamaguchi was French cinema buff and 'expressed (their) clear intention to produce (his) next feature.' 'French cinema has always been an important inspiration for me but also for many other Japanese people and Japanese filmmakers. Chabrol, of course, but to a larger extent the Nouvelle Vague,' says Hamaguchi, who also cited 'Rohmer, Rivette, Godard, Truffaut, obviously, and even before them Grémillon, Becker, Renoir and Bresson.' He's currently 'trying desperately to learn French,' he says, adding that 'much of my vision as a filmmaker is also based on French cinema.' Hamaguchi and Gauquié were also connected through Kiyoshi Kurosawa who made his 2024 thriller 'Serpent's Path' with Cinefrance. 'Knowing that David (Gauquié) had worked with Kiyoshi Kurosawa, who is one of my teachers, it was as if the stars were aligned for us to work on this project together,' says Hamaguchi. When they started developing the project, Hamaguchi explains that they thought about what could create this bridge between France and Japan, and came up with a treatment approach called 'humanitude.' 'It's French method that was imported in Japan and is now practiced in several venues there, and puts the human dimension at the heart of the treatment care, for the integrity of each human being.' The concept of 'humanitude' is applied to other fields, including the film world. Speaking of the cast, Hamaguchi says he's known Virginie Efira 'mainly through the films she made with Paul Verhoeven, particularly 'Benedetta.'' 'When I found out I was going to be able to work with her, I was really eager and happy,' he continued. As for Okamoto, he saw her in James Mangold's 'Wolverine' and noted she 'also started a career in Japan.' 'They are both really talented actresses,' pointed out Hamaguchi. For the last two years, the Japanese filmmaker has been traveling to France to develop his project and even hosted a workshop with French actors to see how they work. 'It's an approach I've never seen before, but I found it very interesting,' Gauquié said. The film is co-production between France, Belgium, Germany and Japan. 'Ryusuke (Hamaguchi) is a very unique filmmaker who is extremely skilled at writing dialogues,' said Sadai at Japan's Office Shirous & Bitters End. 'His scripts and mise en scene make him stand out of all other directors in Japan,' Sadai continued. 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The Mainichi
01-05-2025
- Politics
- The Mainichi
Japan opposition party submits selective surname bill for married couples
TOKYO -- The Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan (CDP) submitted a bill April 30 to revise the Civil Code to introduce a selective surname system for married Japanese couples. The fellow opposition Democratic Party for the People (DPFP) and Nippon Ishin (the Japan Innovation Party) have also announced plans to submit separate bills. The opposition parties hope to see the legislation passed during the current Diet session, possibly spurring discussions among parties after the Golden Week holiday period, but there are still gaps between their proposals. The CDP's bill is based on a 1996 proposal by the Legislative Council of the Ministry of Justice. It stipulates that the surname of children -- a focal point of the separate surname issue -- will be decided when couples get married. In 2022, a bill jointly submitted by the CDP, the DPFP, the Japanese Communist Party and others had stated that the surname of children would be "decided at birth" in consideration of circumstances faced by each couple. DPFP leader Yuichiro Tamaki and others, however, have raised concerns about the possibility of siblings having different surnames. The CDP therefore aims to gain understanding from the DPFP and other parties by upholding the Legislative Council's 1996 proposal to mandate that children's surnames be decided when their parents marry. DPFP policy chief Makoto Hamaguchi, meanwhile, announced April 30 the party plans to submit its own bill during the current Diet session. He told reporters in the Diet, "We are aiming to introduce (a selective surname system), but given that there are various opinions (within the party), we need to reach a consensus." The party is poised to begin consultations to draft the bill after the Golden Week holidays. According to several senior DPFP officials, the party decided to submit a bill to the Diet during a party board meeting on April 28. While some party members have insisted expanding the use of maiden names instead of introducing a separate surname system, Hamaguchi stated, "I don't think those voices are large within the party." He suggested that the proposal to expand the use of maiden names is "not included" in the separate surname system advocated in the party's campaign pledge for the House of Representatives election last fall. Hamaguchi revealed that the DPFP bill is expected to be different from the CDP's. Nippon Ishin Secretary-General Ryohei Iwatani also suggested on April 30 that the party is set to submit a bill after the Golden Week holidays to legislate the use of maiden names as common names for business and other occasions. Kiyomi Tsujimoto, head of the CDP's headquarters for the realization of selective surnames for married couples, told reporters following the party's submission of its own bill to the House of Representatives, "This is one of the reforms that have long gone unrealized. I hope the Diet will deliberate on the issue of whether to continue to force people to decide whether to use common or different surnames, or allow them to select their surnames at their own will."
Yahoo
28-01-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Japan Opposition Party to Block Budget Without Bigger Tax Deal
(Bloomberg) -- Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba's government risks rejection of its annual budget if it doesn't concede more ground to a small opposition party seeking a larger tax-free allowance, according to the party's policy chief. What Happened to Hanging Out on the Street? Vienna Embraces Heat Pumps to Ditch Russian Gas Texas HOA Charged With Discrimination for Banning Section 8 Renters Budapest Mayor Aims to Block Orban's Plans to Build 'Mini Dubai' Billionaire Developer Caruso Slams LA Leadership Over Wildfires The Democratic Party for the People will continue to push for a ceiling on tax-free income to be lifted to ¥1.78 million ($11,500) and will not accept the ruling coalition's current proposal, DPP policy chief Makoto Hamaguchi said. He also largely ruled out a possible ramped-up government offer cited in a local media report. 'I don't think we can agree to that,' Hamaguchi said in an interview when asked whether the DPP will give the ruling bloc the additional votes it needs to pass the budget if the tax-free ceiling is bumped up to ¥1.5 million without a commitment to keep raising the allowance or an agreement to scrap a gasoline tax. Ishiba needs to secure passage of the annual budget to demonstrate he can run policy effectively with his minority coalition and shore up his leadership of the ruling party ahead of a summer election. The DPP has enough members in the lower house of parliament to ensure Ishiba's coalition can push the budget through. Budget difficulties have spelled trouble for minority governments around the world in recent months, contributing to the falls of Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and French Premier Michel Barnier and the impeachment of South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol after he declared a short-lived martial law. While Ishiba's coalition secured support from the DPP over an earlier spending package, ongoing talks stalled in December. The prime minister's Liberal Democratic Party and its Komeito partner decided to lift the tax-free ceiling to ¥1.23 million from ¥1.03 million in December without a nod from the DPP. The opposition party has continued to argue that the ceiling must keep going up. 'It's not about settling it at a particular level,' Hamaguchi said. 'We need to continue striving to raise the ceiling to ¥1.78 million.' Raising the ceiling to ¥1.23 million would cut annual tax receipts by up to ¥700 billion, a far lower figure than the ¥8 trillion or so of lost revenue if the allowance is raised to the DPP's target, according to the government. Giving more ground to the DPP would further complicate the government's efforts to balance its budget books in the upcoming fiscal year and rein in its huge debt burden, while potentially eroding support for Ishiba within his own party. Japan's government debt load is projected at 249% of gross domestic product this year. With the DPP refusing to accept the ¥1.23 million proposal, the ruling LDP and Komeito are also negotiating with a larger opposition group, the Japan Innovation Party, as they seek to expand their options. In return for its support, the Japan Innovation Party wants the government to make school education free for all students, another costly option. A higher tax-free ceiling and free education would worsen the nation's fiscal situation further at a time when it's getting more expensive for the government to issue debt to fund spending measures. Last week, the Bank of Japan raised the benchmark interest rate to the highest level since 2008 and signaled further hikes to come. Hamaguchi said the timing of the BOJ's rate hike seemed too early. He thought the central bank should have waited for the conclusion of annual wage talks in March. 'It would have been better if they made that call when we could be sure that wages aren't falling behind inflation,' Hamaguchi said. What Trump's Tech Billionaires Are Buying Forget Factories, Small US Towns Want Buc-ee's Gas Stations The CDC Won't Give the Public a Full Picture of Fertility Treatment Risks Elon Musk's Inaugural Highs (and Lows) How Kendrick Lamar Turned Beef With Drake Into Music Superstardom ©2025 Bloomberg L.P.
