Director Norihisa Hiranuma on Cinema★Cinema No.99 (YUTA related parts)

Director Norihisa Hiranuma on Cinema★Cinema No.99 (YUTA related parts)
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Translated JP>ZH by 中本悠太_OnlyForYuta; ZH>EN by @dearapril5

Character Profile: RYO SUZAKI

Cold and the strongest in Senomon, Member No. 2

He is the strongest man in Senomon and serves as the right-hand man to the leader of Senomon. However, he has complicated feelings for leader Kohei Amagai (played by Ryoki Miyama) who looks down on his companions and uses money to manipulate people.

Interview with HiGH & LOW THE WORST X Director Norihisa Hiranuma

How did you come about casting Yuta Nakamoto as Ryo Suzaki and Ryoki Miyama as Kohei Amagai?
Hiranuma: We have connections with Korean actors amongst our staff. We initially thought about casting Korean actors and using translators, but with Yuta, we wouldn't need translators. This casting could surprise people and so the decision was made. When we were discussing who would be his match, Ryoki was nominated. They are all artists/entertainers, and this seemed to maintain the balance well, so we decided to go with Ryoki. Casting isn't really done based on popularity alone, but we do want to shock the audience, and this is what makes it entertaining. Therefore, we unanimously decided to let these two remarkable 2Top to initiate the attack.

This is the first time that Yuta Nakamoto will be acting and doing action scenes?
Hiranuma: He has foundations in dancing, so I don't think there was a problem with the action scenes. In fact, he remembers the movements very fast and he has very good physical fitness, so these were all very helpful. Because he is used to shooting MVs, he is able to "convey only with expression without needing words." The moment he faces the camera, he can reveal Suzaki's deepest and innermost emotions using facial expressions, and this is very difficult to do [as an actor]. He also knows his own expressions very well, and he would guide us and say, "film my face [like this]." I don't know if this was simply because of his experiences with filming MVs, but in the beginning, he did not blink at all and his eyes were filled with tears. I told him, "It's okay to blink. Just act naturally." He replied, "Oh, like this?" and then he started blinking. He is such a pure person. We communicated and filmed smoothly and harmoniously.

How about Ryoki Miyama?
Hiranuma: […] For the climactic scene between Suzaki and Amagai, I felt that doing it in one long take would be better for the both of them rather than breaking it into multiple cuts and doing multiple takes, so it was filmed in one shot until the end. At that time, I told Yuta, "It is going to be filmed no matter what, so give it everything you've got." I didn't give Ryoki any specific instructions. I just told him to "receive Suzaki's feelings." They both executed it really well in the end. Once again, I felt that there are things that can only be understood after experiencing such a very tense scene. For me, this scene was the most striking scene in the movie.

With such a large cast of actors, how were the group fight scenes arranged?
Hiranuma: […] There are times in fight scenes when you have to defend and be attacked, so minor injuries are inevitable, but we made a choice or rather a mission to "ensure that Yuta returns to Korea unscathed." (laughs) […]

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