The Film That Propelled Koreeda Onto the World Stage

This is Part II of my Koreeda film commentary.

Aside from After Life (Wonderful Life is the title of the Japanese release), the other Koreeda film that really grabbed my attention and devoured it was 2004's "Dare mo Shiranai" ("Nobody Knows"). I watched this film on DVD, and I remember my reasons for renting it was: a) This is from the guy who made "After Life", and b) This film features the youngest Cannes Best Actor in the history of the Film Festival.

I think most people learned of Koreeda from this film. Even though his other films were highly regarded in the western world as well ("Maborosi", and "Distance" for example), "Nobody Knows" really put the spotlight on Koreeda.

And it should command that sort of attention. It is a beautiful film inspired by the ugly side of humanity -- "Nobody Knows" was created from a true story of children abandoned by their mother and left to care for themselves with little money or support. (See this link for more information: Nobody Knows on Wikipedia) The film follows four children, no older than 13, as they lived in a hidden world (their mother never registered them at birth, and landlords generally disliked young, rowdy children, they were forced to hide from their... well, non-existence).

The oldest son Akira (played by 2004 Cannes Best Actor Yuuya Yagira, age 14 at the time) took on the responsibility of caring for his three younger siblings (Kyoko, Shigeru, and Yuki) on the little money that their mother left behind. They quickly ran out of money and food. There were many moments when Akira looked helplessly down the street, pondering where and how to get the next meal for his siblings. In frustration, and to hold onto what little link to humanity he owns, Akira hung out with the wrong crowd and lost not only money, friendships, but also dignity and respect. To conclude, the film was dark, sad, and downright depressing.

However, "Nobody Knows" is possibly my favorite Koreeda film because not very many movies make me cry, but this is one of them. I can relate on so many levels. My parents were hardly there during my childhood and that really forces a kid to grow up quickly, especially when you have younger siblings to watch out for. When I watched this film my heart broke for the kids, and I was also reminded of the times when there was nobody to help me out and I had to just suck it up and make life work.

On Saturday 8/22/09, Koreeda attended the 6pm screening of "Nobody Knows" and spoke with us a bit afterwards. Here are some of the facts I have gathered during the session:

> Koreeda said that he dislikes commenting on the true story. He stated that the film was inspired by the actual events but a lot of it was fictional. Koreeda does not want people to think, and therefore never uses, the words "based on a true story". "Nobody Knows" should be viewed as a work of fiction.

> From the little he did say about the actual incident, the neighbors of the children were blamed at the time the event happened (late 1980s) for not doing anything about the kids. Koreeda said that this is a tough situation because when he lived by himself in an apartment he didn't know his neighbors. Therefore even if he himself had lived right next door to the kids he wouldn't have known until it was too late. (I completely agree with this)

> This film took 15 years to make because Koreeda couldn't raise any funding for it.

> Koreeda said that he knew he had to make a film on the subject when he saw reports of the actual event on the news.

> Koreeda stated that child neglect was not as big a problem during the late 1980s as it is now. He said that therefore Japanese today can relate to/understand the film better.

> Regarding how he envisioned the film, he said that he didn't really have anything solid planned. He stated that he could see certain elements, such as the suitcases that the children arrived in. He said that he always knew that there would be suitcases, and that he knew that Yuki would come in and leave in a suitcase. He then worked from these ideas to flesh out the movie sequences.

> Koreeda said that he felt like the film needed a certain type of music, so he went and hunt down 5 ukelele players to compose music for the film. He said it couldn't be guitar music, had to be ukelele. (note: The group Gontiti usually composes for Koreeda films)

> The film was shot chronologically (as opposed to spliced shots that most modern films are created from). The story was written as the film was shot. For example, Koreeda wrote the screenplay for Spring, which they shot during Spring. During the shooting he would write Summer's scenes, and so forth. He said this is because it's better to base the next scenes on what he had just shot. (it's easier for him to work with this way).

> The apartment was built specifically for the film. As the story progresses the apartment became dirtier and messier. Koreeda said that the set designers were... the children. He told the kids that their job is to mess up the room. The child actors happily complied because "they couldn't do this in their own houses". The apartment was occupied by the film's assistant producer prior to filming.

> All the child actors in the film were not professional actors. They were local children who auditioned and were selected. Koreeda said that he cast the children based on instinct and whether he felt like he could/wanted to work with them. He had them placed into several playgroups and observed how they played, behaved, ate, and generally interacted with each other.

> Koreeda said that the casting of Shigeru was controversial among his staff. The actor for Shigeru (Hiei Kimura) was like a "fireball that exploded" during audition. Staff were betting that he won't last through the entire shoot. Koreeda took a risk in casting Hiei in the role of Shigeru. (but it seemed to have worked out well!)

> The children had no scripted dialogues. Koreeda whispered their lines to them in their ears. "such as: 'Today we're going to eat soba noodles'" and he let the children run with that. (Which really showcases Yuuya Yagira's acting talent since he was improvising his scenes).

> The actress who played the Mother, YOU (pronounced yuu), was not a professional actress prior to this film. Koreeda seemed to want a cast of non-professionals. (FYI, YOU was a singer prior to this. She also appears in "Still Walking"). Koreeda said that he heard that YOU doesn't like to memorize lines, so he cast her and proceeded to whisper her lines in her ear like he did with the children.


[SPOILER ALERT!!!] Don't say I didn't warn you...


> The girl who played Yuki in the film (Momoko Shimizu, who is soooo cute by the way!), she was 5 years old at the time. Koreeda said that he spoke with Momoko's mother before filming and asked for her permission to allow Momoko to act in a scene where Yuki died. Her mother said it's okay because Momoko had recently attended her grandparent's funeral and knows a little about what death is. Koreeda told Momoko to just don't move and don't breathe for that scene. Momoko seemed to have made it through the scene fine.

Koreeda stated that he had to avert his eyes during Yuki's death scene [at Saturday's screening]. He said that he has since became a father and if he was a father when he shot the film, he would've shot Yuki's death scene in a different way. [Becoming a father really changed his perspective]

Koreeda said that he's not quite sure if Momoko really grasped the concept of death, as later, after the filming wrapped, Momoko came up to him and said "Let's make 'Nobody Knows 2' !!!" [The audience laughed hysterically at this comment]



[END SPOILER WARNING]




"Nobody Knows" is a very touching film, and I really liked the way Koreeda explores humanity and clears away some of the rose-colored lenses obscuring social reality. If you have a chance to watch this film, I would urge you to do so. Please feel free to share your thoughts on this blog.

Here are a few pictures of Koreeda at the event. The woman next to him is the awesome Linda Hoaglund, who was born in Kyoto, Japan and speaks fluent Japanese and English. Linda translated for Koreeda during both nights. For more information on Linda and her amazing list of accomplishments, see this link: Linda Hoaglund.




Koreeda answering a question from the audience.














End of Q&A session. Koreeda made his final comments about "Nobody Knows" and thanked the audience for coming.











Koreeda stayed behind for a little bit to sign autographs and answer more questions one-on-one... even though he had a 5:30am flight to catch the next morning back to Tokyo!