Actress Kimura Yoshino (31) and actor Iseya Yuusuke (31) are taking their real-life romance to Hollywood. The pair have been in Canada since mid-July shooting the movie “Blindness”. The only Japanese among the cast, they play a married couple living in a town where everyone has been struck with a mysterious case of sudden blindness. Starring Julianne Moore and directed by Fernando Meirelles, the movie is an adaptation of the novel of the same name by Portuguese Nobel prize-winner José Saramago. It is due for U.S. release next year. Kimura and Iseya first met when they worked together last year on the upcoming Miike Takashi movie “Sukiyaki Western Jango”. They spent more than a month filming in a remote mountain location in Yamagata Prefecture and started dating after their return to Tokyo. They will be in Canada until October, so no doubt the three months together on a foreign movie location is the perfect chance to deepen their relationship. Born in London, Kimura made her first movie appearance in the hit “Shitsurakuen” in 1997 and has since been in dozens of TV dramas and movies. Iseya is the step-brother of fashion designer Yamamoto Kansai. His movie debut was in 1999 and his credits include “Distance” (2001), “Casshern” (2004) and this year’s “Closed Note”.
Young Fukuda Mayuko (13) has been chosen from over 300 hopefuls for the upcoming “Death Note” spinoff movie. Provisionally titled “L”, the movie is being directed by Nakata Hideo, the man behind the “Ring” series. Regarded as a child prodigy, Fukuda was chosen for the key part of Maki and had her hair cut into a bob style for the role. Nakata said of her, “She has a strength of character that shows in her eyes. She’s been able to display a sensitivity and expressiveness beyond that of a child actress.” Filming started in Saitama Prefecture at the beginning of this month. Following the huge success in Asia of the first two Death Note movies, the latest spinoff will open in Japan, Korea, Hong Kong and Taiwan on February 9, 2008. It’s the first time for a Japanese movie to open in so many countries on the same day.