hsjhoshi | Chinen Yuri - Barfout! March 2018 (English Translation)

Chinen: I heard about this film when I was shooting for "Shinobi no Kuni", and at first I was under a lot of pressure about whether I could play the lead, and I was overwhelmed. But I'm also in a position where I perform music and I've been dancing jazz since I was three years old, so I had the pleasure of being able to act while feeling jazz. I knew "Moanin'" which is a key song on the soundtrack and I also like the famous jazz classic "Take Five". Amongst the different types of dancing, hip-hop and rock are popular, and there are a lot of people in Johnny's who do those, but jazz, the genre I've been dancing to, hasn't really caught on. I was feeling a little bit out of place, so it was a pleasure to be able to do jazz here again.

Barfout: Kaoru transfers to a high school in Sasebo but doesn't fit in right away, and he doesn't feel comfortable at home. How did you feel about his background when you read the script?

Chinen: I know a little bit about the feelings that come when changing schools. When I came to Tokyo from Shizuoka, I felt a bit lonely, and that's when I became shy. So I could relate to the difficulties of living in a different environment. When Kaoru moved to Sasebo, he meets Sentaro and music becomes his friend. I think the time he spend playing the piano and having sessions with his friends was irreplaceable. Kaoru's the type of person who can't express his emotions very well, which is why he and the dynamic Sentaro are like the sun and the moon. With his strong light, he was able to find his way to shine.

Barfout: As the sun and the moon are comparable, you and Nakagawa-san are now two sides of the same coin.

Chinen: This is my second time acting with Taishi, and he's always been good at acting, so I don't feel like he's younger than me every time (laughs). Kaoru is the type of person who keeps his emotions bottled up, so there are many scenes where I act with facial expressions instead of words, so it was important for me to feel and explore the role on the spot. When I was looking for a way to express myself in a way that would be easy but not so easy to convey with words, Taishi brightened up the atmosphere of the scene. He made me feel comfortable, and I think that shows in my expressions. If he hadn't been there, I would have been in a more difficult state of mind.

Barfout: You have a lot of trust between you. Did you and Nakagawa-san become even closer with this project?

Chinen: We became quite close. At the hotel where we stayed, we often gathered together at the end of shooting, including with the staff. We were playing "UNO" and badminton like great teammates, but in the latter half of filming, I found out that the hotel had a Japanese-style room. I said, "Isn't there something nice about Japanese style rooms? I'd like to stay there." In the end, Taishi went along with my idea, and since it was a large room, we both stayed together in the same Japanese-style room in the second half (laughs). So we were pretty much together the whole day. When I left at a slightly different time, he would say "Have a good day" to see me off, and he would wake me up again and again because his alarm was so noisy (laughs). Normally, I couldn't do that with my co-star, but I could because it's Taishi.

Barfout: It's like you were living together (laughs).

Chinen: (laughs) Then one of my juniors Matsumura Hokuto (SixTONES), who I nicknamed "Mushroom" because of his mushroom cut haircut, came halfway through the filming came, so I called him to the Japanese-style room. Taishi was like, "You should stay here too!" and both made their way into the room. They forced me to lay out the futon and we slept on it as three guys (laughs).

Barfout: The setting also seems to depict adolescence. What attracted you to the lifelong friendships and relationships depicted in the film?

Chinen: I'm not the kind of person who fights at all, so maybe that's why I was attracted to it... I think it's really wonderful that we can hurt each other and still be together and have respect for each other. I felt that in order for us to be deeply connected friends, we had to expose ourselves to that extent and clash with each other. I have those kinds of feelings towards my group, but it's not often that I get to experience that with my personal friendships, so I think that’s valuable!

Barfout: The friendship between the men is also connected between each other's sound and it feels like they can't be without the other.

Chinen: The respect I had for him could be felt during the session. I went from practicing alone on the piano in silence to joining Taishi on the drums, making eye contact with him and signalling "let's go". It was an amazing feeling of elation. When we'd make a mistake, we'd be like, "Aha, I messed up" and we'd be able to communicate not with words, but with music, which was just fun. Whenever someone started playing a jam, someone else would join in and think, "Oh, this sounds like fun", and word would spread. It went from practice and got to the point where we played together.

Barfout: Is there anything that Director Miki Takahiro asked you to emphasise in your performance?

Chinen: Before we started filming, Taishi, Nana-chan and me received a letter from the director. It wasn't addressed to "Chinen", but to Kaoru, the character I was playing. The letter explained that the film is about Kaoru's meeting with Sentaro, Ritsuko and jazz, and while he gets hurt, he grows up and comes out of his shell, so he wanted me to come out of my shell too. He told me that the music this time demanded a high level of difficulty, so he told me that even though I would have hardships, I would be able to enjoy the music and overcome the difficulties, and that he thought I would be able to see a different side to music than before. I was happy to receive the letter itself, and I could feel Miki-san's passion, which really motivated me to make on the role!

Barfout: What do you think has revealed itself for you after filming?

Chinen: It was a lead role, so I was under a lot of pressure, and I think I was a bit in my shell at first. But I was touched by the kindness of my co-stars and the staff, and I felt that this was where I belonged. It would be nice if we could all stay in Sasebo forever (laughs). I think it was because of the warmth of the team that I was able to expose everything as Kaoru.

Barfout: When we had the opportunity to interview you before, we heard that you yourself were ready to give your all into your actions, even in difficult situations. I wonder if this is why you are able to expose yourself so much in your roles.

Chinen: Hmm, it's nice to hear you say that, but I'm just going with an image of the role that I've created in my mind from reading the script. I'm not different from other people, and I'm not doing anything special at all. But this time, I had Taishi and a friendly team who made me feel at home, and I've always been fortunate to be around them. I think it's because they let me stand in an environment where I can give it my all as much as I can, and that's why I was just able to get straight into the role.