A day in January

Kikuchi Rinko (at the Anore office)

I meet actress Kikuchi Rinko for the first time in years. The presumptuous aim of this time’s get-together is an interview, alas in the opposite direction, as I ventured to ask Kikuchi to interview me for the "Editorial Paradise" book I'm currently rushing to finish (scheduled for publication in April). I've been working with the actress since the time before her big breakthrough with a role in the movie "Babel", photographing her several times for "Composite" magazine. Not that we've been working together frequently, but every time we meet, we wind up engaged in a really deep conversation, and somehow I like to believe that we're both aiming in the same direction, only from different standpoints.

Tsurikizawa-san from Pie Books, the publisher, suggested including an interview with the author, made by a famous (because that sells better), internationally renowned (for it’s a bilingual publication), pretty (because I tend to be more eloquent in front of pretty ladies) and congenial person. Kikuchi Rinko’s name was the first that came to mind, and upon asking her prepared for a rejection, she was kind enough to accept the offer as long as her schedule allowed.

"Babel" has of course turned Kikuchi into an international star who keeps jetting around the world, and as a matter of fact we finally manage to meet after two or three canceled appointments. She spent half of the year shooting abroad with such colleagues as Adrien Brody or Gong Li, and international movies she’s staring in are being unveiled one after another these days.

She asks me some point-blank questions about editing, which I answer in a state of mental overdrive, thanks to which my head is getting perfectly clear during the two hours of our conversation. It’s a strange experience of seeing things add up, and finally understanding what I've been doing all the time.

We talk about her appearances in foreign movies, and the fun and excitement of operating on an international stage. "For the roles in foreign movies, we usually have to get together and discuss exhaustively the role, and the kind of character and acting it requires. But it’s fine that way." And exactly the same thing actually also applies to editing. Approaching a project "as usual" doesn't work at all with creators from overseas, and we usually don't get anywhere without spending ages discussing everybody’s opinions. It does, however, help getting a clear picture of the idea, and of the methods how to realize it. Anyway, the first time in my life that I'm being interviewed by a famous personality, is a priceless experience comparable to a storm that sweeps away the fog and clears my mind.

Another day in January

Sakamoto with a YMO doll (at his KAB office)

Speaking of presumptuous projects - here’s another one. Again for a feature to be included in "Editorial Paradise", this time I'm meeting Sakamoto Ryuichi for a conversation. I get painfully aware of the presumptuousness of my plan when Sakamoto points out that I'd interviewed him several times, but this was the first time I had asked him for a conversation…

It’s a well-known fact that Sakamoto’s late father was a popular editor for Kawade Shobo. We talk about Sakamoto’s relationship to his father, the fact that I used to do a part-time job at the editorial office of "Honhondo", the publishing company that Sakamoto senior had started up, as a student, and finally about aspects of creating, editing, self-expressing and collaborating. I can sense from his illustrations how much his work as an artist was influenced by the conflict with his late father, which is probably where the literarily inquisitive nature of his solo works is rooted in.

Sakamoto has just finished "out of noise", his first solo album in five years (to be released on Sakamoto’s "commmons" label), and is soon to embark on a concert tour across 20+ venues across Japan this March. He plays me his new CD, and I would venture to call it a masterpiece in the quiet part of Sakamoto’s catalogue of music between quietude and movement.

He tells me that the album’s promotion includes the first live performance on a music TV program in a long time. "I'm still kind of embarrassed when appearing in such TV programs." Sakamoto Ryuichi is certainly one of the shiest top stars around, which is exactly what makes his music so credible.