Hard Luck Hero / Sabu book signing / Kurosawa's next

[Don Brown]

"Hard Luck Hero" invited to Berlin

"Drive" director Sabu's "Hard Luck Hero" has been selected as a special 
invitation film for the Berlin Film Festival in February of next year.
The 79-minute work, a vehicle for Johnny's Junior idol group V6 set in the 
seamy world of "underground kickboxing," was an official entry in October's 
Pusan International Film Festival and recently received its public premiere 
in Japan at the Tokyo International Film Festival, where V6 member Inohara 
Yoshihiko (27) announced the news to the audience.
Oddly, according to Amazon Japan the DVD of "Hard Luck Hero" will be 
released on the 27th of this month. Looks like it won't be making it to 
theatres.
Source:
http://www.sanspo.com/geino/top/gt200311/gt2003110910.html
"Hard Luck Hero" DVD at Amazon Japan:
http://www.amazon.co.jp/exec/obidos/ASIN/B0000DJW27/ref%3Dnosim/google-adword-15743-22/250-5858553-3993848


Sabu DVD signing in Tokyo

Sabu will be adding his signature to DVDs of his short film "A1012k" at the 
Sanseido bookstore in Tokyo's Yurakucho on November 28th from 7pm to 8pm.
The first 100 people to buy the DVD (2,800 yen) at the Yurakucho store or 
to bring along their copy will receive a numbered ticket allowing them to 
participate in the event.
The 17-minute short was made in collaboration with the Kyocera corporation 
to promote their A1012K mobile phone, and was previously available for free 
rental at around 1,000 Tsutaya video rental stores around Japan for one 
month from mid-April to mid-May of 2002.
The story: "New model spy robot A1012K has fled to Shibuya's Tsutaya video 
rental store. Slightly pudgy and clad in silver, he wears a hat emblazoned 
with "A1012K." What has led this robot to refuse to respond to the orders 
of Command Central? Mobile phone-wielding commandos are converging on 
Tsutaya to capture A1012K!"
Sources:
http://www.sabu-film.com/news/index.html
http://www.books-sanseido.co.jp/info/info_yurakutyou.html
Official homepage:
http://www.kinejun.com/A1012K

Korean support pays off for Kurosawa

"Bright Future" director Kurosawa Kiyoshi’s next film will be a 
Korean-funded horror focusing on themes of love and death.
Kurosawa (48) made the announcement during a personal appearance at Umeda's 
Cine Libre for the Osaka premiere of his latest work "Doppelganger." 
Starring frequent collaborator Yakusho Koji as well as Nagasaku Tomomi 
("Black Jack") and Yusuke Santamaria ("Bayside Shakedown"), this dark and 
sometimes imperceptibly comic tale takes a slightly different tack to his 
previous works, although without skimping on the trademark Kurosawa 
atmosphere of impending doom.
Last month "Doppleganger" featured as the opening screening at the Pusan 
International Film Festival, the first Japanese film to do so. According to 
Kurosawa, who has somewhat of a following in South Korea, viewers in Pusan 
"reacted with more laughter and surprise than Japanese audiences have." 
Perhaps local filmgoers familiar with his oeuvre were hoping for another 
"Kairo" or "Cure," but he apparently had different intentions this time 
around. "Sorry to those of you who were expecting a horror film. I made 
this one as a comedy."
The director is currently working on the screenplay for his new film.
Side note: One of the robotic chair props used in "Doppelganger" is 
currently on display in the foyer of Cine Amuse in Shibuya, Tokyo. Here's a 
link to a photo of it;
http://www.geocities.jp/electricdragon80000/jinkojintai.jpg
Source:
http://www.sanspo.com/geino/top/gt200311/gt2003110911.html

Don Brown

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