Hikari - “Rental Family” | The Daily Show
Hikari on Creating "The Rental Family" and Japan's Loneliness Epidemic
Discover why director Hikari moved from Japan to America for inspiration and how she translated Japan's unique, real-life "rental family" services into a critically acclaimed film.
Short Summary
- Learn about the reality behind Japan's surrogate human rental services utilized to combat widespread isolation.
- Understand the filmmaker's personal journey from idolizing Hollywood to directing iconic actors. This conversation explores the inspiration, cultural relevance, and production execution of making the character-driven film, "The Rental Family," which explores themes of connection.
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Top Comments (10)
I love that Ronnie said “Hikari-san” at the end to honor her and her Japanese heritage. What a nice touch of respect.
I think it's so interesting she came to America for the Arts. My dad is an architect and he is influenced by the art of Japan. His favorite professor, Alan Tanaguchi, was a Japanese-American and my father had a lot of respect for him. When my dad saw Spirited Away in 2002, he began imitating the clouds the way Studio Ghibli does them, for his architectural renderings.
I catched the last screening of Rental Family at the Toronto International Film Festival, and Hikari showed up for every single screening at the festival to do the introductions and Q&As! She was so energetic, sweet, and genuinely kind in person. I absolutely loved her and the movie so so much!
As a Japanese myself living in US, I get “ Why the f did you leave!?” a lot 😂
Brendan Fraser coming back in multiple things after a long deserved hiatus made my heart swell. When I saw the first trailer for this I cheered audibly in the theatre. I wanted him to hug me and tell me that everything was going to be ok. I'm going to cry a lot during this one. I know it.
Awesome interview! American in Japan around 30 years and the wealth of fringe stuff is never-ending. But given all the reserve and politeness of the the society it is amazing all the warmth, sadness, joy and shear beauty of humanity can be found in these fringe creations. Heard about Hikari's new movie here and have been waiting to see it, experience it ever since.
I’m glad they got to talk about Akira Emoto a bit at the end. He was amazing in this movie.
Great chemistry between this two.
I saw Rental Family the other night and it's one of the most thoughtful, funny, heartfelt films I've seen in years. I adored it.
Thank you for having her as a guest! Going to watch it now.
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Top Comments (10)
I love that Ronnie said “Hikari-san” at the end to honor her and her Japanese heritage. What a nice touch of respect.
I think it's so interesting she came to America for the Arts. My dad is an architect and he is influenced by the art of Japan. His favorite professor, Alan Tanaguchi, was a Japanese-American and my father had a lot of respect for him. When my dad saw Spirited Away in 2002, he began imitating the clouds the way Studio Ghibli does them, for his architectural renderings.
I catched the last screening of Rental Family at the Toronto International Film Festival, and Hikari showed up for every single screening at the festival to do the introductions and Q&As! She was so energetic, sweet, and genuinely kind in person. I absolutely loved her and the movie so so much!
As a Japanese myself living in US, I get “ Why the f did you leave!?” a lot 😂
Brendan Fraser coming back in multiple things after a long deserved hiatus made my heart swell. When I saw the first trailer for this I cheered audibly in the theatre. I wanted him to hug me and tell me that everything was going to be ok. I'm going to cry a lot during this one. I know it.
Awesome interview! American in Japan around 30 years and the wealth of fringe stuff is never-ending. But given all the reserve and politeness of the the society it is amazing all the warmth, sadness, joy and shear beauty of humanity can be found in these fringe creations. Heard about Hikari's new movie here and have been waiting to see it, experience it ever since.
I’m glad they got to talk about Akira Emoto a bit at the end. He was amazing in this movie.
Great chemistry between this two.
I saw Rental Family the other night and it's one of the most thoughtful, funny, heartfelt films I've seen in years. I adored it.
Thank you for having her as a guest! Going to watch it now.