Akutagawa Award-winning author Sayaka Murata's bestselling novel "The Vanishing World" has been made into the author's first live-action film. The English version of the novel was published on April 15, and the film adaptation was already reported in The New Yorker magazine in the U.S. The film, directed and written by up-and-coming director Makoto Kawamura, will be distributed by NAKACHIKA PICTURES and will be released nationwide this fall.

The original story of this work, "The Vanishing World," is a full-length novel published in December 2015, just before the Akutagawa Award-winning "Convenience Store Man," which has now sold a total of over 1.7 million copies. This work depicts young people tossed about by the drastically changing nature of "love," "marriage," and "family" in a world where "sex" is disappearing beyond the super-shrinking birthrate, and is like a mirror that reflects our own struggles within the framework of "common sense. This overwhelmingly shocking work, which has been widely talked about in various media as "a novel that predicts the future of Japan," has been produced by Makoto Kawamura, a visual director active in a wide variety of fields, including live performances and music videos, commercials, short films, and documentaries on major TV dramas for various artists in Japan and abroad, including MTV, RADIOHEAD, and OASIS. Makoto Kawamura, a video director who has worked on live performances, music videos, commercials, short films, and documentaries for TV dramas, will write the script and produce the film. He has developed his own unique worldview, and by making full use of his cinematic and musical sensibilities, he pursues a delicate and aesthetically pleasing view of other worlds. This is his feature film directorial debut. Makoto Kawamura, who has steadily built up his career by working in various genres of film, creates a novel that has been called a masterpiece in which the Murata world is in full bloom, with an exceptional sense of imagery and original direction.

We are pleased to announce the latest cast members, following Ayame Makita as the main character, Ameon, and Shuntaro Makita as Saku, Ameon's husband.

As Juri, Ame's best friend who has been a good friend of Ame's since her school days, she continues to attract fans with her solid acting skills, fresh from her memorable performance in the much-talked-about Village psycho-thriller "Gannibal".Yuri TsunematsuThe role of Mizunouchi, a classmate of Ame's at the same high school as Ame, is played byKohshin KohseiJuri's husband, Mizuto, plays the role of Juri's love interest, who has a strong impression in his first movie "i ai. In addition, the role of Mizuto, Juri's husband, will be played byKentaro TomitaHe is a unique personality who has captured the hearts of moviegoers with his appearances in "Wakamusha" and "Fictional" as Masanobu, the ex-husband of Ameon.Naoya Shimizueach embodies a character that plays with the emotions of the rain sound.
In addition, the mother of Ameon, Shizuku, from "Drive My CarReika KirishimaIn a world where sexual intercourse between husband and wife is taboo, the mother who gave birth to Ameon "after loving each other" is imbued with an aura of madness, and the uncertainty of the boundary between the normal and the abnormal confronts the viewer. The film also stars Miyuki, who played the difficult role of Saku's girlfriend in the film "Forgiveness," in a superb performance.Matsuura RyoThe doctor in charge of reproduction in the experimental city of Eden is played by the renowned playwright and director of the upcoming film "Kowloon Generic Romance".Takashi YamanakaIn addition, the caretaker of Eden has appeared in "Fugyouroku", "Kokoro ni Kaze", "Aru Otoko" and NHK's historical drama "Aru Otoko", and has always been a key figure in the productions.Hidekazu MashimaThe mysterious boy is played in the film "You small fry, embrace your ambition! and is also active in TV dramas.Kanade IwataMashima and Iwata have a unique presence as inhabitants of the other world of Eden, inviting the story to a higher level.

We hope you will enjoy the performances of the actors who share the world view of the film and whose performances represent a new frontier for each of them.

＜コメント＞

Yuri Tsunematsu
A world where having children through artificial insemination has become the norm. My character Juri embodied the normalcy of this world. She was a good friend of Amine, played by Makita-san, and we respected each other even though we had different ways of thinking. During the filming, I often wondered what "normal" was. I thought that human beings are creatures that tend to think that what is considered "normal" by the world is correct, rather than what they feel inside themselves.
It's a story about a strange world, but I think you can relate. Please look forward to its release!

YUUKI Kohsei
I remember reading the original work and being strongly drawn into the world of the piece.
At the same time, I felt a bit of fear that the world might become like this in the not-so-distant future.
The character I played, Mizuuchi, is a two-dimensional character whose love interest is not a person, and I felt that this was the role that I adapted to the most in this world.
I read the original story many times and tried to be as close to Mizunouchi as possible.
While I personally felt that Mizuuchi, who adapts to this world without any sense of discomfort, may in fact be the most "abnormal," I went into the shoot in pursuit of what was "normal" for Mizuuchi.
It is a work that can be interpreted in many ways. I hope you will see it in the theater.

Kentaro Tomita
How should life be born?
Is it a life that begins with love, or is it a life for the survival of humanity that is created mechanically?
Water people are comfortable with the idea of procreating through artificial insemination.
He meets a woman named Ameon and becomes aware of his own emotional turmoil.
At the root of my heart, I was a person who had come to realize the unquestionable fact of love.
I spent my days at the site thinking that it would be good if I could convey the struggles of the water people, who are troubled by their true feelings that do not fit into modern society and wonder how they should make decisions.

Naoya Shimizu
It was difficult for me to visualize the unique world view and the series of expressions, so I was very surprised when I saw the completed work.
I was also impressed by the many strong paintings that could be a single painting no matter where they were cut.
I am delighted to have been able to participate in this fascinating production with a wonderful cast and crew.
The man I played, Masanobu, is really a very ordinary man.
He also has a sensitive side that wavers between reason and instinct, and I think he was one of the most pitiful characters in the production.

Matsuura, Ryo.
Inherently, ingrained common sense and norms are not so easily changed.
However, I feel a sense of discomfort in simply going with the flow.
I felt that this work poses many questions from various angles to this world we live in today.
I remember feeling very fond of her when I thought about what it would be like to live in the world of this story.
I played the role while hoping that I could be there for her, even if it was only for myself.

Kanade Iwata
My name is Kanade Iwata, and I played the role of the boy in Eden. When I first read the script, it could be interpreted in so many different ways that it made me question the values of the world I am in now. I was shaken out of my common sense by the shocking developments and the ideas and values of the characters that would not normally come up. The boy in Eden that I played is a child who was not raised by any particular parent, but was raised by everyone together by his "mother" in Eden. He seems to be a very healthy and normal boy, but because he was raised in Eden, he has a completely different sense of values from our world, and I feel that something is fundamentally different from ourselves. It is a film that makes you think about many things through a mysterious experience. Please come and see it in the theater!

Takashi Yamanaka
In a bleached white world, there is a sense of cleanliness. But in exchange, there may be a certain "boredom" in the air. I wanted to respect the small desires of the protagonist, which emerged like blacks. I thought so.

[Hidekazu Mashima]
When I read the script, I was shocked at the world depicted in it, but when I felt the atmosphere that Mr. Makita and Mr. Yanagi wore on the set, I felt like I naturally became a resident of paradise.
Please come and see the works of Kawamura-gumi with its international staff!

Reika Kirishima
When I read the script, I was drawn in by the sense of real anxiety and fear, because even though the world was supposed to be strange and full of discomfort, it was somehow not detached from reality.
Shizuku was a person who never questioned the idea of making love, a person who cherished a sense of normalcy and did not feel distant from her role and herself. But what is normal? What is a mother? It was the first time for me to play a role with a feeling that I have never had before, a feeling that made me want to turn everything upside down and reevaluate everything from the beginning, wondering what family and love are all about.

<Outline of work

TITLE The Vanishing World
　original workThe Vanishing World (Kawade Bunko, by Sayaka Murata)
Director/ScreenplayMakoto Kawamura
　PerformancesAyamu Makita Shuntaro Yanagi
Yuri Tsunematsu Kosei Yuki Kentaro Tomita Naoya Shimizu Ryo Matsuura Kanade Iwata Takashi Yamanaka Hidekazu Majima Reika Kirishima
Theater open to the public Fall 2025
Company ： NAKACHIKA PICTURES
Official H P :https://shoumetsu-sekai.com

©2025 "Vanishing World" Production Committee