Yū Aoi
Yu Aoi (蒼井 優, Aoi Yū, born August 17, 1985) is a Japanese actress and model. She made her film debut as Shiori Tsuda in Shunji Iwai's 2001 film All About Lily Chou-Chou. She subsequently portrayed Tetsuko Arisugawa in Hana and Alice (2004), also directed by Iwai, Kimiko Tanigawa in the hula dancing film Hula Girls and Hagumi Hanamoto in the 2006 live-action adaptation of the Honey and Clover manga series.
Yū Aoi | |
|---|---|
蒼井 優 | |
Aoi at the 2017 Tokyo International Film Festival | |
| Born | Yū Natsui August 17, 1985 |
| Other names | Yu Yamasato (After marriage) |
| Occupations | |
| Years active | 1999–present |
| Agent | Itoh Co. |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 1 |
| Website | www |
She has won numerous awards for her performances on screen, including the Japan Academy Prize and Kinema Junpo Awards for best supporting actress in 2007 for Hula Girls and Rookie of the Year for continued performances in the field of Films in Media and Fine Arts by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology of Japan in 2009.[1]
Early life edit
Aoi was born on August 17, 1985, in Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan. She had moved to Tokyo in junior high school and lived in Kasai, Edogawa ward.[2]
Career edit
Early career edit
Yu Aoi made her stage debut as Polly in the 1999 rendition of Annie, followed by her appearance as a regular on TV Tokyo's Oha Suta (The Super Kids Station) in 2000. A year later, she debuted in Shunji Iwai's All About Lily Chou-Chou playing Shiori Tsuda alongside Hayato Ichihara, Shugo Oshinari, Miwako Ichikawa, and Ayumi Ito. Aoi would later work in Ao to Shiro de Mizuiro and Gaichu with friend Aoi Miyazaki. With her first roles on the small and big screen came TV commercials and endorsements for Sony, Yamaha, DoCoMo, Toshiba and Coca-Cola.
In 2003, commemorating the 30th anniversary of Kit Kat in Japan, Shunji Iwai shot a series of short films starring Yu Aoi and Anne Suzuki, which later was expanded into the feature film called Hana & Alice, which earned Aoi the Best Actress award at the Japanese Professional Movie Award.[3]
2005–2007 edit
In 2005, Aoi played her first lead on the big screen in Letters from Kanai Nirai, which was sold in Korea with the alternate title of Aoi Yu's Letter due to her popularity. She also had supporting roles in the Satoshi Miki film Turtles Swim Faster than Expected starring Juri Ueno, and Yamato with Shido Nakamura and Kenichi Matsuyama. This supporting role would earn her one of her double-nomination as Best Supporting Actress at the 2007 Japanese Academy Award.[4] She won against herself for her work as Kimiko Tanikawa in the Japanese hit Hula Girls, which was sent to the Academy Awards as the Japanese official selection that year.
To this date, her role as the hula dancing girl from small town Iwaki remains her most successful role yet, earning her a dozen awards as Best Actress and Best Supporting Actress,[5] alongside her other smaller roles that year as Hagu in Honey & Clover, and Kana Sato in the Shunji-Iwai-produced and Nirai-Kanai-directed Rainbow Song. Aoi also lent her voice to play Shiro in the animated film Tekkon Kinkreet, the adaptation to the Taiyō Matsumoto manga, Black and White, directed by Michael Arias.
During these years, she made commercials for Nintendo, Canon, Shiseido Cosmetics, Shueisha Publishing, Kirin Beverage and continued endorsing DoCoMo. Aoi also released two photobooks with Yoko Takahashi as photographer, and distributed by Rockin'on: Travel Sand in 2005 and Dandelion in 2007.
In 2007, she participated in the live-action adaptation of the manga series Mushishi alongside Joe Odagiri, as well as WOWOW's Don't Laugh at My Romance, Welcome to the Quiet Room with Yuki Uchida, and going back to the stage to play Desdemona in a rendition of Shakespeare's Othello. For these last two roles, Aoi lost 7 kg for her role as eating disorder patient, Miki.[citation needed]
2008–present edit
Aoi began 2008 with the release of Don't Laugh at My Romance, which earned her a nomination as Best Supporting Actress at the Asian Film Awards 2009. She appeared in the experimental drama Camouflage (aka. Aoi Yu x 4 Lies), in which she collaborated with four different directors exploring the theme of lies. The series lasted for 12 episodes, and included work with Ryō Kase, Yoichi Nukumizu, Shoko Ikezu, Nobuhiro Yamashita, and Yuki Tanada.
A couple of months later, NTV signed Aoi to play her first TV leading role as Handa Sen in the live-action adaptation of Shota Kikuchi's manga series Osen, which aired until the end of June with ten episodes.
Next, Aoi released One Million Yen Girl written and directed by Camouflage director Yuki Tanada, and also released by WOWOW. This was her latest leading film role since Nirai Kanai in 2005. She briefly participated in the Japanese World-War-II-jury-themed film Best Wishes for Tomorrow, as well as the international Tokyo! - a three-short-film collection by Michel Gondry, Leos Carax, and Bong Joon Ho.
In 2009, The Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology of Japan named Yu Aoi Rookie of the Year in the field of Films in Media and Fine Arts, citing her work in her film debut in All About Lily Chou Chou, until her work in One Million Yen Girl. Later that year, Aoi provided the voice of Ikechan in the film Ikechan and Me, a live-action adaptation of the picture book of the same name by Rieko Saibara, as well as playing supporting roles in Honokaa Boy and Yoji Yamada's Ototo. The following year Aoi starred in Ryūichi Hiroki's 2010 film The Lightning Tree.[6] She later appeared in Vampire,[7] Rurouni Kenshin,[8] and Kiyoshi Kurosawa's 2012 television drama Penance.[9]
Personal life edit
Aoi married comedian Ryota Yamasato on June 3, 2019.[10] On February 10, 2022, they announced that she was pregnant with their first child and due in the summer.[11] On August 10, 2022, Yamasato revealed that Aoi had given birth to their daughter.[12]
Filmography edit
Movies edit
| Year | Title | Role | Director | Notes | Ref(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | All About Lily Chou-Chou | Shiori Tsuda | Shunji Iwai | ||
| 2002 | Kinema Tōri no Hitobito | Hikari | Mariko Yamauchi | ||
| Harmful Insect | Natsuko | Akihiko Shiota | |||
| Hashire! Kettamashin: Wedding Kyosō Kyoku | Lead | Katsuhiko Ishizuka | Musical | ||
| 2003 | Worst by Chance | Harada's girlfriend | Gu Su-yeon | ||
| 1980 | Rika Hashiba | Keralino Sandorovich | |||
| 2004 | Hana and Alice | Tetsuko (Alice) Arisugawa | Shunji Iwai | Lead | |
| Mask de 41 | Haruka Kuramochi | Taishi Muramoto | |||
| Sea Cat | Miya Noda | Yoshimitsu Morita | |||
| 2005 | Tetsujin 28: The Movie | Mami Tachibana | Shin Togashi | ||
| Turtles Swim Faster Than Expected | Kujaku Ogitani | Satoshi Miki | |||
| Letters from Nirai Kanai | Fuki Asato | Naoto Kumazawa | Lead | ||
| Shining Boy & Little Randy | Emi Murakami | Shunsaku Kawake | |||
| Henshin | Kei Hamura | Tomoki Sano | |||
| Jukai | Harumi | Futoshi Jinno | |||
| Yamato | Taeko | Junya Sato | |||
| 2006 | Honey and Clover | Hagumi Hanamoto | Masahiro Takata | ||
| Hula Girls | Kimiko Tanikawa | Lee Sang-il | |||
| Tekkon Kinkreet | White (voice) | Michael Arias | |||
| Rainbow Song | Kana Sato | Naoto Kumazawa | |||
| Sugar and Spice | Isamu Nakae | Cameo | |||
| 2007 | Mushishi | Tanyu | Katsuhiro Otomo | ||
| Welcome to the Quiet Room | Miki | Suzuki Matsuo | |||
| 2008 | Sex Is No Laughing Matter | En-Chan | Nami Iguchi | ||
| Best Wishes for Tomorrow | Kazuko Moribe | Takashi Koizumi | |||
| One Million Yen Girl | Suzuko Sato | Yuki Tanada | Lead | ||
| Tokyo! | Pizza delivery girl | Bong Joon-ho | Segment Shaking Tokyo | ||
| 2009 | Honokaa Boy | Kaoru | Atsushi Sanada | ||
| Good Bye, My Secret Friend | Ikechan (voice) | Toshihiko Ōoka | |||
| 2010 | About Her Brother | Koharu Takano | Yoji Yamada | ||
| Flowers | Rin | Norihiro Koizumi | Lead | ||
| The Lightning Tree | Yū | Ryūichi Hiroki | Lead | ||
| Redline | Sonoshee (voice) | Takeshi Koike | |||
| 2011 | Patisserie Coin de rue | Natsume Usuba | Yoshihiro Fukagawa | Lead | |
| Vampire | Mina | Shunji Iwai | |||
| By Chance | Traveler | Mayumi Komatsu | Lead | ||
| 2012 | Fukushima Hula Girls | Narration | Masaki Kobayashi | ||
| Rurouni Kenshin | Megumi Takani | Keishi Ōtomo | |||
| 2013 | Tokyo Family | Noriko Mamiya | Yoji Yamada | ||
| Space Pirate Captain Harlock | Miime (voice) | Shinji Aramaki | |||
| 2014 | Rurouni Kenshin: Kyoto Inferno | Megumi Takani | Keishi Ōtomo | ||
| Rurouni Kenshin: The Legend Ends | Megumi Takani | Keishi Ōtomo | |||
| Climbing to Spring | Ai Takazawa | Daisaku Kimura | [13] | ||
| 2015 | The Case of Hana & Alice | Tetsuko "Alice" Arisugawa (voice) | Shunji Iwai | Lead, prequel of Hana and Alice. | [14] |
| Journey to the Shore | Tomoko | Kiyoshi Kurosawa | |||
| 2016 | Over the Fence | Satoshi Tamura | Nobuhiro Yamashita | [15] | |
| Japanese Girls Never Die | Haruko Azumi | Daigo Matsui | Lead | ||
| What a Wonderful Family! | Noriko Mamiya | Yoji Yamada | |||
| 2017 | What a Wonderful Family! 2 | Noriko Hirata | Yoji Yamada | ||
| Tokyo Ghoul | Rize Kamishiro | Kentarō Hagiwara | |||
| Mixed Doubles | Yo | Junichi Ishikawa | |||
| Birds Without Names | Towako | Kazuya Shiraishi | Lead | [16] | |
| 2018 | What a Wonderful Family! 3: My Wife, My Life | Noriko Hirata | Yoji Yamada | ||
| Penguin Highway | Lady (voice) | Yasuhiro Ishida | |||
| Killing | Yū | Shinya Tsukamoto | |||
| 2019 | Miyamoto | Yasuko Nakano | Tetsuya Mariko | [17] | |
| A Long Goodbye | Fumi Higashi | Ryōta Nakano | Lead | [18] | |
| Children of the Sea | Ruka's mother (voice) | Ayumu Watanabe | [19] | ||
| They Say Nothing Stays the Same | A geisha | Joe Odagiri | [20] | ||
| 2020 | Romance Doll | Sonoko | Yuki Tanada | Lead | [21] |
| Ora, Ora Be Goin' Alone | Young Momoko | Shūichi Okita | [22] | ||
| Wife of a Spy | Satoko Fukuhara | Kiyoshi Kurosawa | Lead | [23] | |
| 2021 | Rurouni Kenshin: The Final | Megumi Takani | Keishi Ōtomo | [24] | |
| 2022 | Dr. Coto's Clinic 2022 | Mina Nakai | Isamu Nakae | Cameo | [25] |
Television edit
| Year | Title | Role | Network | Notes | Ref(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | Ao to Shiro to Mizuiro | Kimiko Shiina | NTV | TV movie | |
| 2002 | Ukiwa - Shōnen-tachi no Natsu | Miyuki Yamashita | NHK | TV movie | |
| Shin Zukkoke Sanningumi | Megumi | NHK | |||
| 2003 | High School Teacher | Mami Ezawa | TBS | ||
| Engimono | Koyomi | Fuji TV | Mini-series | ||
| 14 Months | 17-year-old Yūko Igarashi | NTV | |||
| 2004 | Ichiban Taisetsu na Dēto Tokyo no Sora- Shanghai no Yume | Kaori | TBS | ||
| Yo ni mo Kimyō na Monogatari: Kako kara no Nikki | Yurie Kotajima | Fuji TV | Short drama | ||
| Nanako and Nanao: The Day They Became Sister and Brother | Nanako | NHK | Lead, TV movie | ||
| 2005 | Tiger & Dragon | Risa | TBS | ||
| Twenty-Four Eyes | Kotoe Katagiri | NTV | TV movie | ||
| 2006 | Dr. Coto's Clinic 2006 | Mina Nakai | Fuji TV | [25] | |
| 2008 | Camouflage | Chika, Makoto, Umeko, and Suzuko | Wowow | Lead | |
| Osen | Sen Handa | NTV | Lead | ||
| 2010 | Ryōmaden | Omoto | NHK | Taiga drama | |
| 2012 | Penance | Sae Kikuchi | Wowow | Mini-series | |
| 2013 | Galileo Season 2 | Atsuko Kanbara | Fuji TV | Episode 8 | |
| Mottomo Tooi Ginga | Akane | TV Asahi | Mini-series | ||
| 2014 | Mozu Season 2 | Shiori Nanami | Wowow | ||
| All About My Siblings | Azusa | Fuji TV | |||
| 2017 | Dr. Rintarō | Yumeno | NTV | [26] | |
| Hello, Detective Hedgehog | Setsuko Kawai | TBS | |||
| 2018 | Miyamoto kara Kimi e | Yasuko Nakano | TV Tokyo | ||
| 2020 | Wife of a Spy | Satoko Fukuhara | NHK | Lead, TV movie | [27] |
| 2021 | Shikatanakatta to Iute wa Ikan no desu | Fusako Torii | NHK | TV movie | [28] |
| 2023 | Boogie Woogie | Reiko Yamato | NHK | Asadora | [29] |
Stage edit
- Zipang Punk: Goemon Rock III (2014), Silver Cat Eyes
Awards and nominations edit
| Year | Award | Category | Work(s) | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2005 | 14th Japan Film Professional Awards | Best Actress | Hana and Alice | Won |
| 2006 | 31st Hochi Film Awards | Best Supporting Actress | Hula Girls, Honey and Clover | Won |
| 19th Nikkan Sports Film Awards | Best Newcomer | Hula Girls | Won | |
| 2007 | 26th Zenkoku Eiren Awards | Best Supporting Actress | Won | |
| 31st Elan d'or Awards | Newcomer of the Year | Herself | Won | |
| 61st Mainichi Film Awards | Best Supporting Actress | Hula Girls, Rainbow Song, Honey and Clover | Won | |
| 80th Kinema Junpo Awards | Best Supporting Actress | Won | ||
| 49th Blue Ribbon Awards | Best Actress | Hula Girls, Honey and Clover | Won | |
| 28th Yokohama Film Festival | Best Actress | Won | ||
| 30th Japan Academy Film Prize | Best Supporting Actress | Hula Girls | Won | |
| Yamato | Nominated | |||
| Newcomer of the Year | Hula Girls | Won | ||
| 2009 | 3rd Asian Film Awards | Best Supporting Actress | Don't Laugh at My Romance | Nominated |
| 2010 | 35th Hochi Film Awards | Best Actress | The Lightning Tree | Nominated |
| Best Supporting Actress | About Her Brother | Nominated | ||
| 23rd Nikkan Sports Film Awards | Best Supporting Actress | Won | ||
| 2011 | 34th Japan Academy Film Prize | Best Supporting Actress | Nominated | |
| 5th Asian Film Awards | Best Supporting Actress | Nominated | ||
| 2014 | 37th Japan Academy Film Prize | Best Supporting Actress | Tokyo Family | Nominated |
| 8th Asian Film Awards | Best Supporting Actress | Nominated | ||
| 2017 | 42nd Hochi Film Awards | Best Actress | Birds Without Names | Won |
| 30th Nikkan Sports Film Awards | Best Actress | Won | ||
| 2018 | 39th Yokohama Film Festival | Best Actress | Won | |
| 60th Blue Ribbon Awards | Best Actress | Nominated | ||
| 41st Japan Academy Film Prize | Best Actress | Won | ||
| 91st Kinema Junpo Awards | Best Actress | Won | ||
| 12th Osaka Cinema Festival | Best Actress | Won | ||
| 12th Asian Film Awards | Best Actress | Nominated | ||
| 2019 | 44th Hochi Film Awards | Best Actress | A Long Goodbye | Nominated |
| 32nd Nikkan Sports Film Awards | Best Actress | A Long Goodbye, Miyamoto | Nominated | |
| 2020 | 74th Mainichi Film Awards | Best Actress | Miyamoto | Nominated |
| Kinuyo Tanaka Award | Herself | Nominated | ||
| 62nd Blue Ribbon Awards | Best Actress | A Long Goodbye | Nominated | |
| 45th Hochi Film Awards | Best Actress | Wife of a Spy | Nominated | |
| 33rd Nikkan Sports Film Awards | Best Actress | Nominated | ||
| 2021 | 40th Zenkoku Eiren Awards | Best Actress | Won | |
| 75th Mainichi Film Awards | Best Actress | Nominated | ||
| 63rd Blue Ribbon Awards[30] | Best Actress | Nominated | ||
| 15th Asian Film Awards[31] | Best Actress | Won |
References edit
- ^ (in Japanese). The Agency for Cultural Affairs. Archived from the original on 2009-03-10. Retrieved 2015-10-30.
- ^ "蒼井優の、本気で買い物 in 福岡 | ブルータス". BRUTUS.jp (in Japanese). 2023-08-22. Retrieved 2023-08-22.
- ^ "Japanese Professional Movie Award". Retrieved 4 October 2014.
- ^ 第30回日本アカデミー賞優秀作品 [The 30th Japan Academy Award] (in Japanese). Japan Academy Prize Association. Retrieved 2015-10-30.
- ^ "Yû Aoi". IMDb. Retrieved 4 October 2014.
- ^ Schilling, Mark (October 29, 2010). "Raiou (The Lightning Tree)". The Japan Times.
- ^ DeFore, John (January 26, 2011). "SUNDANCE REVIEW: Vampire". The Hollywood Reporter.
- ^ Lee, Maggie (October 29, 2012). "Rurouni Kenshin". Variety.
- ^ Fainaru, Dan (August 29, 2012). "Penance - Review - Screen". Screen International.
- ^ "山里亮太と蒼井優３日に結婚". Nikkan Sports (in Japanese). June 5, 2019. Retrieved June 5, 2019.
- ^ "蒼井優、第1子妊娠「出産は夏頃を予定」 山里亮太と連名でコメント". Oricon (in Japanese). February 10, 2022. Retrieved February 10, 2022.
- ^ "蒼井優、第1子女児出産 山里亮太がラジオで生報告「かわいくて仕方ない」". Oricon (in Japanese). August 11, 2022. Retrieved August 11, 2022.
- ^ "Cast". Haru o Seotte official website (in Japanese). Toho. 2014. Retrieved 22 September 2014.
- ^ Kevin Ma (October 17, 2014). "Iwai Shunji to direct first anime feature". Film Business Asia. Retrieved October 18, 2014.
- ^ オーバー・フェンス (in Japanese). eiga.com inc. Retrieved 2015-10-30.
- ^ "彼女がその名を知らない鳥たち". eiga.com. Retrieved December 22, 2019.
- ^ "Miyamoto". TIFF. Retrieved February 6, 2020.
- ^ "長いお別れ". eiga.com. Retrieved August 1, 2020.
- ^ "海獣の子供". eiga.com. Retrieved December 15, 2022.
- ^ "ある船頭の話". eiga.com. Retrieved December 8, 2022.
- ^ "ロマンスドール". eiga.com. Retrieved November 26, 2022.
- ^ "田中裕子と蒼井優が2人1役 若竹千佐子『おらおらでひとりいぐも』映画化". Cinra.net. Retrieved January 24, 2020.
- ^ "蒼井優×高橋一生×黒沢清監督『スパイの妻』劇場公開へ！予告編も到着". Cinema Cafe. Retrieved June 27, 2020.
- ^ "るろうに剣心 最終章 The Final". eiga.com. Retrieved February 24, 2021.
- ^ a b "Dr.コトー診療所:映画版にドラマキャストが復帰 神木隆之介、伊藤歩、蒼井優、堺雅人出演". Mantan-web. Retrieved October 14, 2022.
- ^ 蒼井優、"芸者"役で堺雅人を翻ろう 新水10ドラマ豪華キャストが発表 (in Japanese). oricon ME inc. Retrieved 2015-05-31.
- ^ "黒沢清×蒼井優の8Kドラマ「スパイの妻」20年春放送！ 脚本に濱口竜介＆野原位が参加". eiga.com. Retrieved December 21, 2019.
- ^ "妻夫木聡がNHKの終戦ドラマで死刑判決受ける医師に、妻役は蒼井優". Natalie. Retrieved May 31, 2021.
- ^ "蒼井優:初の朝ドラ＆出産後初のドラマ出演「ブギウギ」で歌劇団のトップスターに「夢のような時間」". Mantan-web. Retrieved June 23, 2023.
- ^ "嵐・二宮和也主演の「浅田家!」が最多5部門でノミネート「第63回ブルーリボン賞」各部門候補を発表". The Chunichi Shimbun. Retrieved January 4, 2021.
- ^ "The 15th Asian Film Awards Nominations Announced". Asian Film Awards Academy. Retrieved September 9, 2021.
External links edit
- Official website
- Yū Aoi at IMDb
- Yū Aoi at the Japanese Movie Database (in Japanese)