Everyone wants to convey emotion and surprise. What matters is how you convey it. Masayuki Suo (Film Director)

Director Masayuki Suo's new film "Maiko is Lady," his first major entertainment production in 18 years since 1996's "Shall We Dance?", opened on September 13th. We spoke with him about what he wants to convey as a filmmaker and the secrets of creating expressions that captivate large audiences.

The "Shachihoko" of the Maiko That Set the Direction for the New Film

My roots as a film director stem from a simple desire: to somehow convey to many people the worlds that interest me—things that amuse me, move me, or sometimes make me so angry I can't contain it.

"Maiko is a Lady" Now Playing Nationwide in Toho Theaters Ⓒ 2014 Fuji Television Network, Toho
Kansai Television Broadcasting, Dentsu Inc., Kyoto Shimbun, KBS Kyoto, Altamira Pictures

The setting for the new film "Maiko is a Lady" is a Kyoto teahouse. My interest in the geisha district actually began over 20 years ago. It started with news that Kyoto-born maiko were almost extinct, and they were recruiting candidates nationwide. At the time, after portraying boys within traditional culture in "Fancy Dance" and "Shiko Funjatta," I was thinking about making a film about girls living in the world of tradition. I immediately began research, but quickly realized something: this was a world you couldn't truly understand unless you invested your own money and experienced it fully. While this was happening, discussions for "Shall We Dance?" progressed, and the "Maiko Project" was temporarily shelved.

Fortunately, someone invited me to experience Kyoto's entertainment world, and I got to know wonderful okami-san (brothel madams) and maiko/geiko (apprentice and professional courtesans). Around that time, a maiko I knew was retiring to marry, and her regular patrons were hosting a celebratory gathering, inviting me to join. At that banquet, I witnessed a deeply moving scene. The maiko being celebrated suddenly performed an art called "Shachihoko." As featured in "Maiko are Ladies," it involves a handstand in a pose resembling the shachi (dolphin-like creatures) atop Nagoya Castle. Witnessing this, I felt an extraordinary, fantastical joy beyond my imagination. My previous image of maiko was of innocent, beautiful young women walking gracefully. Yet here was one, suddenly performing a handstand with her kimono hem clamped between her legs.

I might not understand the true nature of the hanamachi, but I can grasp its joy, its fantasy. So, I should convey that joy. Looking back now, that Shachihoko act was what determined the direction of this film: to be top-notch entertainment.

The experiences accumulated through enjoyment become the power of the work.

The title "Maiko is Lady," a play on the classic "My Fair Lady," was decided early in the planning phase by a university senior. It also led to discovering the exceptional talent Mone Kamishiraishi, who would play the lead through auditions. So, how could the film's structure convey the pleasure of the flower district? Thinking back, the tea house parlor itself is like a musical. So why not incorporate song and dance to create a film that's truly wildly fun and overflowing with happiness? I thought that by including musical scenes, we could convey that extraordinary charm.

However, the script proved quite challenging. The basic flow of the story—a girl from the countryside growing into a maiko over the course of a year—was set. But when it came to structuring the narrative, I struggled with how to connect the episodes. So, I organized everything I'd jotted down on my computer over the past 20 years, along with things that moved me, by season. I incorporated Kyoto and hanamachi events into this, writing down every possible episode I could think of. While organizing these, I used the "box writing" method to examine the flow and foreshadowing, wrote lyrics, and drew hints from the songwriting process itself to craft the script. This was my first time writing a script this way, but it ultimately allowed me to fully express the unique enjoyment I'd experienced. I'm someone who meticulously researches, but this script was only possible because of the accumulation of surprises and moving moments I'd discovered while enjoying Kyoto for over 20 years.

Simply expressing what you personally find "interesting" won't necessarily resonate with others.

I think the difficulty of conveying your feelings and thoughts to others is the same for film directors and people involved in communication businesses.

I clearly remember something from "Shiko Funjatta." When I first saw student sumo, I was so intrigued that I took my staff to film it. I was grinning away, thinking it was absolutely fascinating, but when I glanced back, everyone was asleep. That was a stark realization: even when watching the same thing I found fascinating, some people would get bored. I understood that unless I could think about how I personally found something enjoyable or interesting, why I felt that way, and provide an "angle" that would make it interesting for the audience too, simply filming what I saw wouldn't convey anything. So, I thought about how to convey this student sumo, which led to that story. For this film, I turned it into a musical.

"Shall We Dance?" happened to get a Hollywood remake, but I personally don't particularly focus on overseas distribution. This film's subject matter is Japanese traditional culture itself, so some people might be interested in that aspect, but I don't think whether the subject is Japanese or not really matters. People living in the same era around the world aren't that different. If I, as one of them, have the resolve and the means to fully express something I'm genuinely interested in, then what needs to be conveyed will ultimately reach both Japanese and international audiences. That's how I see it.