■”I think we’ve created a movie that will make you laugh and bring tears to your eyes, one that everyone will understand a little bit. And I’m sure you’ll want to meet your teacher again.” (Mei Nagano)
It has been announced that the movie “Kakukaku Shikajika” starring Mei Nagano and co-starring Hiroshi Oizumi will be released on May 16, 2025.
Akiko Higashimura is a legendary manga artist who has created many hit works such as “Mama is a Temperist”, “Kaigetsuhime”, and “Tokyo Tarareba Musume”, and continues to encourage people all over Japan while depicting life with laughter and tears. Higashimura’s own true story, “Kakukaku Shikajika” (published by Shueisha Margaret Comics), which he wrote while crying, continues to be loved as a timeless masterpiece, winning the 2015 Manga Award. This work has been talked about as a movie, and Higashimura himself has refused, saying it would be impossible to realize it in a perfect form, but now Akiko Higashimura herself has written the script, and the cast is one of Japan’s most representative. It has been decided that the dream will be made into a movie.
There is Mei Nagano, a young actor who is at the top of his game in both popularity and ability, whose movie “Cells at Work!” is a huge hit, and Hiroshi Oizumi, a nationally recognized actor whose famous performance in “Dear Family” is still fresh in our minds. In fact, it was the existence of these two actors that led Higashimura to decide to make this work into a movie. She is confident that it will be a good work if Akiko Higashimura is played by Mei Nagano, and she is also enthusiastic about Hiroshi Oizumi to play the role of her teacher Hidaka Sensei, saying, “This is the only person.” In this way, a miraculous film adaptation that would not have been possible without these two was realized.
The nine irreplaceable days of Akiko, a lazy high school student who dreams of becoming a manga artist, with her most terrifying teacher, Mr. Hidaka, who changed her life. Set in Akiko Higashimura’s hometown of Miyazaki, Ishikawa, and Tokyo, this work is a gift to all people living today. The director is Kazuaki Seki, who directed the comedy film “Hell’s Garden,” which depicts the internal conflicts of Yankee office workers. This is a “real” power-charging movie filled with the pain and brilliance of youth.
■“I told an unforgivable lie.” The true story of the 9 years I spent with my mentor, which I was unable to draw for a long time, has been revealed!
The newly released special video begins with Akiko Hayashi (Mei Nagano), a lazy high school student who dreams of becoming a manga artist, meeting her mentor Kenzo Hidaka (Hiroshi Oizumi). “Mr. Akiko Hayashi?” Hidaka-sensei says in Miyazaki dialect. Akiko was confident in her ability to draw and thought she would become a manga artist and lead a bright life, but she is taken aback when Hidaka-sensei yells at her to draw. Mr. Hidaka, who runs a painting class, swings down the bamboo sword with a roar. A comical depiction of Akiko, who rebels against the instruction and runs away, saying, “That’s just a corporal punishment teacher!” The two of them have a special relationship that goes beyond love and hate and their daily battle with Hidaka Sensei, who just keeps telling him to draw. The beautiful days of Akiko and Hidaka Sensei laughing and crying out loud take a turn, and a heart-wrenching scene takes place where Akiko sheds tears, thinking of Hidaka Sensei, saying, “I told an unforgivable lie.”
What happened between the two? This special report lets you imagine the cruel “lies” and “secret stories” that led Akiko to become a popular manga artist.
The special report is narrated by Kana Hanazawa, who played the main character Tsukiumi Kurashita in the TV anime “Kaigetsu Hime” and the main character “Red Blood Cell” in the TV anime “Cells at Work!”, and the original author: Akiko Higashimura. The cast has a deep connection with the lead actress, Mei Nagano.
At the same time, Akiko Higashimura’s hand-drawn illustration was released, along with the comment, “Finally, the information has been released.” It also depicts the rough-looking Mei Nagano and Hiroshi Oizumi, who played Akiko and Hidaka-sensei.
■Mei Nagano comment
This work depicts the time between Higashimura-sensei and his mentor, so I feel even more responsible than usual in portraying someone’s life, and the time I have spent with him will be different depending on my role. I absolutely didn’t want to end up in a situation like that, so I spent every day observing the original work, what the teacher was saying to me, and how I looked. I’ve played the role of a manga artist before, so it’s been a while since I’ve held a G-pen, painted solids, added tone, and completely immersed myself in the role, forgetting about acting. lol
I remember being moved by the fact that co-starring with Mr. Oizumi was a surprisingly perfect fit, as if the image of him holding a bamboo sword in the classroom came from the original work. And of course, when the cameras aren’t rolling, he’s always happy to talk to me, but when the cameras are rolling, he gets really scary. The scene changes to the teacher who doesn’t know when the bamboo sword will come flying at him, so it was very stimulating for me to watch as an actor.
I think we’ve created a movie that will make everyone laugh and bring tears to their eyes, one that everyone can relate to. And I’m sure you’ll want to meet your teacher. I would be happy if you could see it in theaters. Look forward to it!■Hiroshi Oizumi comment
When I received the offer to appear in Higashimura’s work, Kakukaku Shikajika, which has a lot of support from fans, I was filled with both joy and pressure.
However, once we started filming, thanks to Higashimura-sensei, who was always there to tell us about the real situation at the time, we had a lot of fun.
I believe that Mei Nagano and Mei Nagano were able to portray the long-standing bond and complicated love between Hidaka-sensei and Akiko in a delicate yet profoundly comical way.
This is a work that I can confidently recommend to both fans of the original work and those who haven’t read it yet.
Please look forward to its release.■Akiko Higashimura comment
My masterpiece, and also an autobiographical work, is now being made into a film.
There have been various talks about making it into a film, but until now we have often declined requests, and when it comes to TV dramas, it’s quite difficult to shoot across the three cities of Miyazaki, Kanazawa, and Tokyo, so I don’t think this would be possible. Eel, well, anyway, oil. I had to prepare a lot of pictures and drawings, and although it looks like a plain manga, the story actually has a lot of difficult elements to visualize, so I thought it would be impossible to realize it in a perfect form… I have refused until now.
But this time, when I was told that Mei Nagano would be playing Akiko, I felt confident that if Ms. Nagano, who has great acting skills, played the role, it would be a really good work. For that reason, I accepted the offer thinking that I would be fully involved in the production.
I asked Hiroshi Oizumi to play the role of Mr. Hidaka based on my casting request. Director Kazuaki Seki filmed the scenery of the painting class, centering around these two, in a truly fresh and eternal memory-like image.
I also took a break from serialization and participated in everything from location scouting to filming. I supervise all the paintings and drawings in the movie. It was difficult, but I had to do it because I wanted to see Mei Nagano’s Akiko.
It has not yet been released to the public, but thank you for your understanding.■Director Kazuaki Seki’s comment
We were able to visualize “Kukukaku Shikajika.”
It was a miracle that Mei Nagano and Hiroshi Oizumi played the roles, and that Akiko Higashimura wrote the script, which led to this work being made into a film.
I think everyone has a teacher in their life.
I would be happy if you could watch it while thinking about such a teacher.
Please come and see us at the theater.
Work information
“This is how it is”
Nationwide roadshow on Friday, May 16, 2025
Cast: Mei Nagano Hiroshi Oizumi
Original work: Akiko Higashimura “Kakukaku Shikajika” (published by Shueisha Margaret Comics)
Director: Kazuaki Seki
Screenplay: Akiko Higashimura Date-san
Music: Yuki Munakata
Distribution: Warner Bros. Pictures
(C)Akiko Higashimura/Shueisha (C)2025 Movie “Kakukaku Shikajika” Production Committee
Movie site “Kakukaku Shikajika”
kakushika-movie.jp
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