The iDol (film)
Encyclopedia
The iDol is a 2006
film
from independent filmmaker Norman England. A science fiction
satire filmed entirely in Japan
, The iDol tells the story of a Japanese collector who comes into possession of a figure with origins not of this world.
The iDol premiered at the Fantasia Festival
in Montreal
on July 16, 2006 and has subsequently played at various festivals around the world. It was first broadcast on Japan's SKY Perfect satellite channel on March 3, 2008.
Ken's immature desires and indecisive nature are pit against a collection of seemingly normal, yet equally misguided characters who are meant to illustrate how people are victims of a socially implanted drive for things not in their own best interests.
. His idea for The iDol came in early 2002 while travelling on the subway in Tokyo, where he sketched a drawing of the alien figure and wrote a short synopsis.
England wrote the first version of the script in English. The Japanese version, on which he worked closely with Japanese scriptwriter Jiro Kaneko, was initially written as a literal translation of the English, however readers responded saying it "came across like subtitles". This version of the script was abandoned, and England and Kaneko rewrote it from a purely Japanese perspective. Takashi Yamazaki
also rewrote the script around the time he was directing Always Sanchōme no Yūhi
. England produced the final shooting script combining elements from his and Kaneko's version and Yamazaki's.
Casting began in 2004. Lead actor Jin Sasaki was recommended by director Shusuke Kaneko
, with whom he worked with on the TV series Holy Land. Takako Fuji
joined the production after director England saw her performance on the set of the 2004 movie The Grudge
.
Shooting took place over 10 days in August 2005, filming around Shimokitazawa
, Shibuya
, Shiba Park
, Tamagawa River
and at the Tokyo Film Centre School of Arts.
in Montreal
on July 16, 2006.
Other festival screenings have included The Festival of Fantastic Films
(Manchester, England - Sep 2006), Lyon Asian Film Festival (Lyon, France - Sep 2006), Nipponbashi International Film Festival (Osaka, Japan - Nov 2006), Kansai International Film Festival
(Osaka, Japan - Oct 2007), Club Bollywood (Osaka, Japan - Oct 2007), Vancouver Comicon (Vancouver, Canada - Oct 2007), Yubari International Fantastic Film Festival
(Yubari, Japan - Mar 2008), Japanisches Filmfest Hamburg (Hamburg, Germany - May 2008), Lost Plus One (Tokyo, Japan - Apr 2009).
The iDol had its television premiere on March 22, 2008 on Japan's SKY Perfect satellite channel.
2006 in film
- Highest-grossing films :Please note that following the tradition of the English-language film industry, these are the top-grossing films that were first released in the United States in 2006...
film
Film
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
from independent filmmaker Norman England. A science fiction
Science fiction
Science fiction is a genre of fiction dealing with imaginary but more or less plausible content such as future settings, futuristic science and technology, space travel, aliens, and paranormal abilities...
satire filmed entirely in Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
, The iDol tells the story of a Japanese collector who comes into possession of a figure with origins not of this world.
The iDol premiered at the Fantasia Festival
Fantasia Festival
Fantasia International Film Festival is a genre film festival that has been based mainly in Montreal since its founding in 1996...
in Montreal
Montreal
Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
on July 16, 2006 and has subsequently played at various festivals around the world. It was first broadcast on Japan's SKY Perfect satellite channel on March 3, 2008.
Story
Ken is a mild-mannered man in his mid-twenties who like many his age has interests that stopped developing during adolescence. On a visit to a local toy collectors shop he acquires a rare alien action figure. Unexpectedly, Ken's world is turned inside out as the somewhat silly looking toy alters his life by benevolently giving him everything he has ever dreamed of, and then callously taking it all back.Ken's immature desires and indecisive nature are pit against a collection of seemingly normal, yet equally misguided characters who are meant to illustrate how people are victims of a socially implanted drive for things not in their own best interests.
Production
First time director Norman England felt the urge to direct his own film after a year spent as a reporter on the set of the 2001 movie Godzilla, Mothra and King Ghidorah: Giant Monsters All-Out AttackGodzilla, Mothra and King Ghidorah: Giant Monsters All-Out Attack
is a 2001 science fiction kaiju film co-written and directed by Shūsuke Kaneko with a very catchy name. It was the twenty-fifth film to be released in the Godzilla film series. This is the eleventh film to feature Mothra, sixth to feature King Ghidorah, and third to feature Baragon. It is part of...
. His idea for The iDol came in early 2002 while travelling on the subway in Tokyo, where he sketched a drawing of the alien figure and wrote a short synopsis.
England wrote the first version of the script in English. The Japanese version, on which he worked closely with Japanese scriptwriter Jiro Kaneko, was initially written as a literal translation of the English, however readers responded saying it "came across like subtitles". This version of the script was abandoned, and England and Kaneko rewrote it from a purely Japanese perspective. Takashi Yamazaki
Takashi Yamazaki (film director)
is a Japanese film director, screenwriter and visual effects director. He won the Best Director and Best Screenplay prizes at the Japanese Academy Awards in 2006 for Always Sanchōme no Yūhi...
also rewrote the script around the time he was directing Always Sanchōme no Yūhi
Always Sanchome no Yuhi
is a 2005 film co-written and directed by the Japanese filmmaker Takashi Yamazaki, based on Ryōhei Saigan's long-running manga Sanchōme no Yūhi. It was chosen as Best Film at the Japan Academy Prize ceremony.-Plot summary:...
. England produced the final shooting script combining elements from his and Kaneko's version and Yamazaki's.
Casting began in 2004. Lead actor Jin Sasaki was recommended by director Shusuke Kaneko
Shusuke Kaneko
is a Japanese filmmaker and screenwriter.-Career:Shūsuke Kaneko began his career in film with Nikkatsu's Roman Porno film series, in which he served as assistant director to Kōyū Ohara. The series also gave Kaneko his directorial debut with writer Kōichirō Uno's, Kōichirō Uno's Wet and Swinging ,...
, with whom he worked with on the TV series Holy Land. Takako Fuji
Takako Fuji
is a Japanese actress and seiyū with strong ties to theatre.-Biography:A native of Tokyo, Honshū Island, Japan who was born there in 1972, Fuji studied acting at the Aoyama Gakuin University, and subsequently joined the Ein Theatrical Company. Her work was usually on-stage or in voice-over studios,...
joined the production after director England saw her performance on the set of the 2004 movie The Grudge
The Grudge
The Grudge is the 2004 American remake of the Japanese film Ju-on: The Grudge, and the first horror film in the Ju-on series, Ju-on 1. The film is the first installment in the American horror film series The Grudge...
.
Shooting took place over 10 days in August 2005, filming around Shimokitazawa
Shimokitazawa
is a neighborhood in Setagaya, Tokyo. It consists of the neighborhood immediately surrounding Shimo-Kitazawa Station, where the Odakyū and Keiō Inokashira Lines intersect. Also known as "Shimokita", the district is a center for stage theater and live music venues. It is home to the historic Honda...
, Shibuya
Shibuya, Tokyo
is one of the 23 special wards of Tokyo, Japan. As of 2008, it has an estimated population of 208,371 and a population density of 13,540 persons per km². The total area is 15.11 km²....
, Shiba Park
Shiba Park
is a public park in Minato, Tokyo, Japan built around the temple of Zōjō-ji.The park is located between the Minato municipal offices and Tokyo Tower...
, Tamagawa River
Tama River
The is a major river in Yamanashi, Kanagawa and Tokyo Prefectures on Honshū, Japan. It is officially classified as a Class 1 river by the Japanese government....
and at the Tokyo Film Centre School of Arts.
Distribution
The iDol first premiered at the Fantasia FestivalFantasia Festival
Fantasia International Film Festival is a genre film festival that has been based mainly in Montreal since its founding in 1996...
in Montreal
Montreal
Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
on July 16, 2006.
Other festival screenings have included The Festival of Fantastic Films
Festival of Fantastic Films (UK)
The Festival of Fantastic Films is an annual non-profit celebration of cinema fantastique, held annually in central Manchester, England. It was created by Tony Edwards and the late Harry Nadler , together with their fellow enthusiast Gil Lane-Young.Past...
(Manchester, England - Sep 2006), Lyon Asian Film Festival (Lyon, France - Sep 2006), Nipponbashi International Film Festival (Osaka, Japan - Nov 2006), Kansai International Film Festival
Kansai International Film Festival
The Kansai International Film Festival is a film festival in Osaka, Japan.The festival was started in 2007 and founded by Kansai Time Out writer, Matthew Kaufman, and Kobe-based film director, Darryl Knickrehm. The festival featured a lineup of "Japanese films made by foreign filmmakers." It was...
(Osaka, Japan - Oct 2007), Club Bollywood (Osaka, Japan - Oct 2007), Vancouver Comicon (Vancouver, Canada - Oct 2007), Yubari International Fantastic Film Festival
Yubari International Fantastic Film Festival
The , also sometimes called YIFFF, is held in a resort-like environment in the small town of Yūbari on the northernmost Japanese island of Hokkaidō. From 1990 to 1999, the festival was known as the Yubari International Fantastic Adventure Film Festival.-History:...
(Yubari, Japan - Mar 2008), Japanisches Filmfest Hamburg (Hamburg, Germany - May 2008), Lost Plus One (Tokyo, Japan - Apr 2009).
The iDol had its television premiere on March 22, 2008 on Japan's SKY Perfect satellite channel.
Cast
- Jin Sasaki as Ken
- Erina Hayase as Mayuka
- Mitsu Katahira as Yamada
- Masayasu Nakanishi as Tanaka
- Takako FujiTakako Fujiis a Japanese actress and seiyū with strong ties to theatre.-Biography:A native of Tokyo, Honshū Island, Japan who was born there in 1972, Fuji studied acting at the Aoyama Gakuin University, and subsequently joined the Ein Theatrical Company. Her work was usually on-stage or in voice-over studios,...
as Rika - Hirotaka Miyama as Taki
- Tomoo Haraguchi as Boss Goro
- Toshiyuki Watarai as Alien-Kun
- Takashi YamazakiTakashi Yamazaki (film director)is a Japanese film director, screenwriter and visual effects director. He won the Best Director and Best Screenplay prizes at the Japanese Academy Awards in 2006 for Always Sanchōme no Yūhi...
as Cameraman - Yukijiro HotaruYukijirō Hotaru-Filmography:*Sexy Battle Girls *Time Adventure: Zeccho 5-byo Mae *Itoshino Half Moon *Subway Serial Rape: Lover Hunting *Zeiram *Aiyoku Shūdōin: Jukujo, Chijo, Seijo...
as Homeless Man
Staff
- Director/Writer/Producer: Norman EnglandNorman England (actor)Norman England is a film director, actor and film reporter based primarily in Japan. As a reporter he has extensively covered the Millennium Godzilla movies and the new wave of Japanese horror...
- Script: Jiro Kaneko
- Producer: Shinako Sudo
- Director of Photography: Hiroo Takaoka
- Editor: Rob Moreno, Yasu Inoue
- Lighting Director: Hiroaki Morikawa, Taichi Suzuki
- Creature Creator: Kakusei Fujiwara
- CGI: Takashi Yamazaki
- Visual Effects: Hajime MatsumotoHajime Matsumotois a Japanese activist, and owner of a second hand goods shop in Koenji, Tokyo.Matsumoto founded the Association to Protect the Poor Students of Hosei University while a student at Hosei University...
- Alien Figure Sculptor: Bill Gudmundson
- Assistant Director: Takeru Emuta
- Matte Painter: Bob EggletonBob EggletonBob Eggleton is a science fiction, fantasy, and horror artist. Eggleton has been honored with the Hugo Award for Best Professional Artist eight times, first winning in 1994. He also won the Hugo Award for Best Related Book in 2001 for his art book "Greetings From Earth"...
- Music: Kow Otani