At the age of 25, Ryunosuke Kamiki is an actor with a career already spanning more than 20 years. He is capable of playing a versatile range of roles and has appeared in works spanning a variety of genres, from action and comedy to period dramas.
In the movie "Fortuna no Hitomi" (Fortuna's Eye), which was released on Feb. 15, Kamiki plays the role of a young man who risks his life for the love of a woman. Surprisingly, this is the first time he has played the lead in a romance movie. In a recent interview with The Yomiuri Shimbun, Kamiki spoke about a new facet of his repertoire.
In the photo studio, only the sound of the camera shutter could be heard echoing in the room. Wearing a somewhat melancholy expression, Kamiki smiled softly as he faced the camera. However, his demeanor was completely different during the interview, in which he offered a glimpse of a humorous and candid side to his character.
"My actor friends are mostly 'masters of love stories' -- [Kento] Yamazaki, [Ryo] Yoshizawa, [Taishi] Nakagawa and Macken [Arata Mackenyu], for example. But I always thought that perhaps I wasn't suited to the genre," he said. "Then all of a sudden I received a role in a love story and it really lifted my spirits."
Fortuna in the title refers to the goddess of fate in Roman mythology. Kamiki plays the role of Shinichiro Kiyama, a young man who lost his family in a plane accident as a child. Kiyama's quiet, solitary life as an automobile technician changes when he becomes aware of a supernatural ability -- people he encounters who are close to death appear to fade from visibility. After he develops the unusual power, he meets Aoi Kiryu -- played by Kasumi Arimura -- with whom he soon falls deeply in love. However, when Kiyama realizes Kiryu's body is starting to fade, he puts his life on the line in an attempt to change her fate.
The movie, which is adapted from a novel of the same title written by Naoki Hyakuta, also stars Jun Shison, Yuki Saito and Saburo Tokito.
Takahiro Miki, the movie's director, aimed to "capture a version of Kamiki that woman would be drawn to." A scene in which Kiyama is running to rescue Kiryu shows an unfamiliar side of the actor. His arms embracing her, Kamiki exudes a sense of maturity. He said he bulked up at a gym especially for this role, revealing a more masculine side to the actor for the first time.
Arimura has worked with Kamiki in other works, including the movie "Sangatsu no Lion" (March comes in like a lion). "No matter how I act, she can respond. She knows how to handle me," Kamiki said.
Both Kamiki and Arimura were born in 1993. "She is very kind. She treats me like a child. Not long ago, our relationship was like that of an older sister and younger brother, but Kasumi behaves more like the adult now," he said.
"I struggled in a scene in which I embraced her from behind on a beach. Kasumi is surprisingly tall," he said. "I thought I'd need a stepping stool again."
In the movie "Kirishima Bukatsu Yamerutteyo" (The Kirishima Thing), Kamiki explained that he needed to use a stepping stool in a scene with costar Masahiro Higashide, who is much taller than him. "It was so embarrassing. I was miserable and prayed for the shooting to end quickly," he confessed candidly.
Born on May 19, 1993, in Saitama Prefecture, Kamiki appeared in a TV commercial for a toy at the age of 2. "Production crew members clapped their hands and told me, 'Smile!' and 'Be surprised!'" he recalled. Since then, Kamiki has played the role of a loving son in a number of films and TV dramas. When he was 12, he played the leading role in the 2005 film "Yokai Daisenso" (The Great Yokai War). The following year, he also played the lead in the TV drama "Tantei Gakuen Q!" (detective school Q), which became a drama series in 2007.
Major productions in which he appeared in recent years include the movies "Too Young to Die! Wakakushite Shinu," "Jojo no Kimyona Boken Diamond wa Kudakenai" (Jojo's Bizarre Adventure: Diamond is Unbreakable) and the TV drama series "Keiji Yugami" (Detective Yugami). His voice acting in such animations as "Howl no Ugoku Shiro" (Howl's Moving Castle) by Studio Ghibli and "Kimi no Na wa" (your name.) has also been impressive. Currently, he is appearing in NHK's yearlong drama series "Idaten: Tokyo Olympic Banashi" (Idaten: A tale of Tokyo Olympics).
His experience filming "The Kirishima Thing" led him to decide to make acting his career. Kamiki gave his all playing the role of a geeky member of a movie club in a film that captured a realistic portrayal of high school students going through adolescence.
"I tackled the role like never before. I had to act in scene after scene, but it was so much fun," he said.
During the film's shooting, Kamiki was a high school student himself, and the film was released after he had graduated.
"The movie coincided with a turning point for my life. After watching it, I couldn't move for a while," he said. "It felt like I was being asked by the old me, 'Who am I really?'"
He called the film an unforgettable production. Perhaps owing to "The Kirishima Thing," Kamiki is seen as a perfect fit for geeky young men roles, as seen in productions like the movie "Bakuman."
"In many cases, I've also been given a heavy cross to bear," he said. "I've never played the role of a person who lives an easygoing life -- just characters consumed by suffering. They always involve gloomy flashbacks of the past," he said with a chuckle.
Asked what kind of role he would like to play, Kamiki said: "The role of a regular company employee who interacts with superiors and subordinates, colleagues and clients. Romance at the office, too. I want to act in a comedy based on a screenplay by Kudokan (Kankuro Kudo) in which distinct characters interact with each other," he said.
Compared with his teenage years, he said he has found it "more enjoyable" to establish roles by looking into details such as speech patterns, habits and characters. But he added, "I'm now encountering new problems -- my ability to memorize lines has been on the decline recently."
The young and experienced actor continues to embrace the excitement and enjoyment of his craft.
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