Akiko Nogi and Yukihiko Tsutsumi talk about TV dramas of the 2000s

Looking back at Tsutsumi-san's work, I was surprised to see that "Ikebukuro West Gate Park" (hereafter "IWGP") [A] was broadcast in April 2000, followed by "TRICK" [B] in July. Both are legendary dramas, but is this even possible? (laughs)

Yes, I did (laughs). However, I was busier when I was working as an AD before that. I had a lot of work in the 2000s, but because the time spent on film and TV production was long, I was still able to work calmly.

"IWGP" was shocking. It was incredibly dense from the first episode. There were a lot of cuts, and it had an addictive sense of speed. It was like a drama like no other I'd ever seen before!

The script by Kankuro Kudo and the cast were both fantastic. Producer Isoyama Akira was also an aggressive person, gathering real color gangsters in Ikebukuro to interview them. He observed things like, "How many centimeters should their pants be lowered?"

He said that he got it from the "real thing" in order to express the city of Ikebukuro itself.

I had no intention of leaving Ikebukuro. But when the show actually started, Yakusho realized, "So this is the kind of drama it is!" and asked me to film the punching scene outside the park.

Even in the 2000s, things weren't that lawless (laughs). The sequel, "TRICK," has been running for 14 years.

The first season of "TRICK" was a huge loss, but sales of VHS and DVDs eventually made up for the loss.

In an era where ratings were paramount, it created value in the form of software sales.

We also made efforts to include special edited versions so that people could enjoy the software. Before we knew it, it had been going on for 14 years. The contents of the egg in the opening were originally just a different color yolk, but now it's a chick.

It was fun. When you watch it, expecting a yolk to come out of the egg, you're shocked to see green coming out. That's a real trick! The play that followed was also typical Tsutsumi direction!

There were times when viewers would get angry and say, "Stop messing around and do it properly!" In 2001, when "Handoku!!!" was airing, I chatted online in real time, and I even declared that if the viewership rating fell below 10%, I would shave my head. In the end, it never reached single digits.

I wish that had happened (laughs).

But regardless, I had a hair-cutting ceremony at Midoriyama Studio and got my head shaved (laughs). Anyway, it was around this time that I started to feel the presence of my viewers more strongly through online interactions.

The final episode of the one-off drama "Hotel Sunrise HND - The Last Stay" titled "ROOM888 'My Wife's True Feelings'" also left a lasting impression on me. The story is about a married couple played by Yoko Nogiwa and Soichiro Kitamura searching for a ring in a hotel room... It's not what you would call a tricky drama. As a viewer at the time, I was amazed, thinking, "Tsutsumi Yukihiko can even film something like this!"

People often say my direction is "tricky," but I don't think of it that way. I've always loved the eccentric music videos of Michel Gondry and Spike Jonze in the 1990s, and I also love the work of Sato Teru, who is known in Japan for his music videos for Ozaki Yutaka. As for dramas, I've always wanted to do something like Kuze Mitsuhiko's. His appeal is that he's well-versed in culture, as in "It's Time," while also having a mischievous side.

So "tricky" is something I was given, and what I'm more conscious of is "rhythm." Switching the images to coincide with the sound of the snare drum in the background music creates a nice flow. This is probably due to the influence of my enthusiasm for bands and student movements as a student.

The sense of speed in "IWGP" was born from rhythm. Does that mean you were also deeply involved in editing? I don't think you're credited for that.

I edit as I shoot on location. It's like mixing the rhythm. I sometimes add lines on location to get the rhythm right. In "Trick," I asked Abe Hiroshi, "Could you please say 'Azerbaijan' here?" (laughs). I'm not very good at using editing equipment, so I don't have any credits.

How did you get that rhythm?

A big influence was my work on Nippon Television's 9pm slot "Saturday Grand Theatre" [C] in the 1990s. It was a slot that was already able to get high ratings, so it was easy to try new things. I tried and tested here, and "Kindaichi Shonen no Jikenbo" series from 1995 and "Keizoku" in 1999 were "aimed" at me.

I'm also grateful to have had the opportunity to work with people who share similar aspirations, such as TBS producer Hiroki Ueda. But now I'm thinking, "I have to make my real debut work."

This was before Tsutsumi-san's debut!? It's strange considering he's been in so many dramas and movies! (laughs)

No (laughs). I mean this in a personal sense. I want to plan it myself, carefully write the script, and create a work. I still have a long way to go.