“To me, SMAP is…”

Junji Sakamoto (movie director for “Zatoichi the Last”): I met Katori-kun for the first time in the spring 2 years ago during the initial talks for the movie “Zatoichi the Last.” I was quite nervous at that time, “Will top star SMAP listen to my directing?” In addition, I told him an unnecessary bad pun, “I want you to have ( Read more... )

Kimura Takuya and Son Masayoshi TALK

The Heart of a Warrior: Confronting Challenges with No Fear

(Son Masayoshi: president of Softbank.)

People who are remembered in history tend to be people who possessed the heart of a warrior. They are proud, they never forget their manners, they follow through with what they believed in, they cherish ( Read more... )

Katsuhito Ishii (movie director, CM director): The first time I worked with SMAP was in 1995 for the commercial for “Knoll’s Cup Soup.” After that, I worked with them mostly on commercials such as “NTT East Japan Flet’s Hikari” and “Fujitsu FMV.”

The 15-minute mini-film “Birdman Fly” that was the promotional video for their single “Fly” left ( Read more... )

“To me, SMAP is…”

Koki Mitani (scriptwriter, director): I first met SMAP in 1999 for the drama “Furuhata Ninzaburo vs. SMAP” (t/n: detective drama where SMAP played the criminals). I researched about SMAP and tried to write their characters to fit the images the general public had of them. Looking back on it, I got some of their characters ( Read more... )

“To me, SMAP is…”

Yasuharu Konishi (musician, produced “Shingo-mama’s Oha Rock”): The only interaction I had with SMAP was through music, so I don’t really know them well personally. Yet, their musicality is spectacular. For a group to hold such power and to last for so long, this is probably a onetime phenomenon that exists in this country’s ( Read more... )

Off Shot: Kusanagi Tsuyoshi

Q: What are you into recently?

A: Rice with raw egg on top. It is so luxurious to have fresh egg serve on top of freshly cooked rice.

Q: What do you want to eat now?

A: Soup. I want to heal my body that was tired from dancing.

Q: In terms of cooking, what is your signature dish lately?

A: Making “dashi” ( ( Read more... )

Off Shot: Inagaki Goro

Q: What hobbies have you picked up recently?

A: Recently….none. I have started playing golf for 6-7 years, I still love it.

Q: What do you want to eat now?

A: Soumen (plain noodles). (topped with Japanese ginger and green onion)

Q: What flavor ramen noodles do you like?

A: Maybe shoyu (soy sauce)? I don’t have ( Read more... )

Off Shot: Nakai Masahiro

Q: What hobbies have you picked up recently?

A: None recently. My usual hobbies are to go to the river, to camp, that kind of outdoor activities. It is so much fun to just make a ruckus with all guys.

Q: What do you want to eat now?

A: Definitely Katsu Curry! (Katsu = deep fried pork/chicken) I haven’t had any ( Read more... )

“To me, SMAP is…”

Shingo Wakagi (photographer): The first time I have ever met all 5 members of SMAP was at the photo shoot for the cover of the single “Lion Heart.” When I asked them, “do you guys have any fixed standing positions?” they told me, “Not really.” We decided on the standing positions pretty casually right there and then. When we ( Read more... )

“To me, SMAP is…”

Osamu Suzuki (scriptwriter for TV and radio shows-he writes lots of SMAP shows including SXS): I first met Kimura-kun when I worked with him on a radio show. I was 22 years old. At that time, because it was very rare in our line of work to be able to work with someone who’s your same age, we were both very surprised. Around 2 ( Read more... )