Shunji Iwai: ‘I'm envious of Korean content that combines movies and comics’

Director Shunji Iwai, 60, started his interview at a cafe in Seoul on Wednesday by expressing his gratitude to Korean fans. He came to Korea with his latest movie, ‘Kirie's Song,’ which was released on November 1. He is widely loved by Korean fans for his films such as ‘All About Lily Shu Shu’ (2015) and ‘Hana and Alice’ (2015), as well as ‘Love Letter’ (2005), which became popular with the line "Ogenkidesuka" that the protagonist shouts heartedly in a snowy field in Hokkaido, Japan, became a buzzword of the time.

‘Kirie's Song’ is a music movie in which Kirie (Aina The End), a woman who has trouble with her voice in ordinary times due to the aftereffect of the Great East Japan Earthquake but sings songs well, becomes a street singer. The movie was invited to the 28th Busan International Film Festival last month. "I wanted to make a movie with a singing protagonist," Iwai said. "The idea of the protagonist being unable to speak well came to me after the Great East Japan Earthquake."

Music is what he has focused on the most in this movie. He used field recordings of buskers on the streets as is in the movie in a bid to bring the scenes to life. "We wanted to give the feeling that part of the movie was a performance," he said. Six of the songs that he helped create are featured in the movie's OST. The song "I Like Being Alone" was composed by Aina The End, and Iwai wrote the lyrics.

Iwai, who is celebrating 32 years since his debut in 1991 with the drama ‘My Child I Never Met,’ said he is envious of the Korean content community. "Korean content is very active in turning webtoons into live-action movies. In Japan, live-action movie fans are very few compared to animations, and the budget is also small. I wish there was a better environment for making live-action movies."


Ji-Sun Choi aurinko@donga.com