Kanichiro look.2

In the NHK historical drama “The 13 Lords of the Shogun,” actor Kanichiro-san plays the role of Kogyo who assassinates Minamoto No Sanetomo. His bold performance left an impression on many viewers. The road to building his career was fraught with battles with himself. He spoke candidly to me about his relationship with his father and fellow actor Koichi Sato, and episodes in his life that were turning points in his career as an actor.

He decided on living the life of an actor when he was 18. His intentions came to fruition gradually.
“There wasn’t a major motive behind my decision to pursue acting. I think it was more that I needed time to figure out what kind of person I wanted to be and what kinds of people I prefer. And it was when I was 18 that I became resolved. I believe the answer came to me after repeated trial and error, similar to my fashion sense.”

In this 7th year of his acting career, he says he changed his approach to the act. His role in the film “Okiku and the World” released in April was one of these turning points.

“I stopped creating characters in the roles I portray. While there are differing views on this, I feel that even if you completely inhabit the skin of a character, the human nature of the actor will come through no matter what. I was making an effort thus far to build characters, but in recent years I place primary importance on the emotions I receive from a character and the expressions that flow out from there. While I always put my all into my work, a recent film on which I felt I wanted to put my best foot forward was “Okiku and the World.” Everyone including the staff were all people I can respect, and I resolved on this film to become such an actor who can hold his head up high to such people.”

Kanichiro-san’s father is Koichi Sato-san, a versatile actor who can play anything from a lead to a support. I asked him about his relationship with him as a father and as a fellow actor.

“When I worked with him on a film we didn’t talk about the work in particular. Even if we don’t talk about the work, we understand each other well as we are family. Perhaps it is because we are family. We understand how to think about a certain scene, how to move, and what we are thinking, so it is quite an extraordinary feeling.”

He also appears in the new Kitano Takeshi film “Kubi” that is slated for a November opening. The sense of tension on the set was nothing that he had experienced before, and was an invaluable experience that roused Kanichiro-san’s spirit.
“There are many people who want to appear even as an extra in a Kitano Takeshi film, and I was one of them. I didn’t imagine I would appear in one of his films, and I simply thought of giving it my all. Takeshi-san’s way of filming is to take one shot without rehearsals. The set would be enveloped in tension including actors and staff, and I also was tense and don’t recall what kind of performance I gave. That kind of experience was a first for me.”

The Look this time is a top and bottom grey colored hoody and pants combined with a beige long-sleeved coat. I asked him about his impressions on the relaxed expression of this ensemble costume.

“This ensemble that combines a casual top and bottom with a coat is something that I dress in myself so it felt very familiar to me. But my own sneakers are quite simple, so these volumy sneakers are a new one!”

After the shoot, Kanichiro-san changed into his street clothes and on his feet he wore…Onitsuka Tiger sneakers! What is the lowdown on these pair of shoes?

“A few weeks ago, a friend gave me a pair of these Onitsuka Tiger sneakers for my birthday! I was surprised because this photo shoot was on my schedule. It may be opportune. It is a basic model and quite comfortable. I would like to add to my collection in the future!”

→For Look 1, I asked Kanichiro-san about his fashion sense.

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Direction : Shinsuke Nozaka
Photo, Movie: Masato Moriyama (TRIVAL)
Stylist : Masataka Hattori
Hair & Make up : Hirokazu Endo（OTA）
Text : Saki Shibata