Interview with Takashi Miike

Profile: Takashi Miike - Born on August 24, 1960 in Osaka Prefecture. Miike apprenticed with Shohei Imamura, and debuted in 1991. Eccentric and incredibly prolific, Miike has challenged almost any film genre, and his works are hugely popular among movie fans around the globe. His most prominent movies include Yatterman, Imprint, Audition and Sukiyaki Western Django

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What are the key features and the structure of this drama series?
Freedom. Until now, heroes had predetermined characters and the story normally let the audience share the hero's anguish and fight along with the hero. But Phone Braver 7 has a young main character. Because he is still a boy, his story is many sided: he would fall in love and get jealous or have family problems. So the audience can see him from many perspectives. And it's all right for him to change as the story progresses.

How would you like to experiment with younger audiences through this drama?
When we were young, TV was the all-mighty. Now, it's different. Children are surrounded by an incredible number of things that attract their attention. TV programs must be really stimulating to attract them. I would like to collaborate with other directors and create an even free, unpredictable, nail-biting and heart-pounding drama, and enjoy that process with the directors. And then see if the children would give me their thumbs up.

What is your reaction to the program being aired at 7 pm on TV Tokyo?
Unpredictable. The key point for a movie or a TV program to succeed is the level of anticipation. And it's working well with this drama. The momentum of growing anticipation before the airing will be replaced by complete surprise once you actually see the episodes: we've prepared a story that would increase the audience's anticipation even more with an unexpected and unpredictable storyline.

As a key feature of this series, there will be a contingent of gorgeous directors including you - the list would certainly please movie and anime fans -. What do you expect from this set up as a series director?
It is very important to keep to the original story and characters, but I am not satisfied with just that and finish the job. That's the minimum requirement for any director. I would like the directors to utilize the staff member's skills and the time they have to really focus on bringing out the distinctiveness. As for Mamoru Oshii, I am expecting more than just following the same story as other episodes. I'd like him to throw in ideas liberally and create something completely different and utterly Oshii-like.

Please offer a message to the audience.
This is a story you've never seen before - a meeting of two heroes: a boy named Keita, representing the human being, and Seven, representing the machines. About a half-hour into the first episode, they have to fight together. It's a universal drama of vulnerable and caring humans as they respond to an unexpected incident. The first episode is an introduction to the unknown world. If that will encourage people to get inside the story, they are sure to enjoy the diverse stories that unfold.

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